Communication method and communication device

Abstract

An embodiment of the present application provides a communication method and apparatus. The method includes a step of a terminal device obtaining first information, the first information being used to change the state of a main communication module of the terminal device, the terminal device including a main communication module and a secondary communication module. The terminal device switches the main communication module from a first state to a second state based on the first information, the first state including the main communication module being in an idle state, an inactive state, and a connected state. Based on the above solution, the terminal device can adjust the state of the main communication module based on the first information, i.e., can control the state switching of the main communication module, thereby promoting power saving of the terminal device.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202211078772.8, entitled "Communication Method and Communication Apparatus," filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of the People's Republic of China on September 5, 2022, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

[0002] TECHNICAL FIELD Embodiments of the present application relate to the field of communications, and more particularly to a communication method and a communication device. [Background technology]

[0003] In current communication systems, the status of a terminal device includes a connected state, an inactive state, and an idle state. Compared with the connected state, the air interface connection between the terminal device and the network device in the idle state and the inactive state is disconnected, so that the power consumption of the terminal device can be reduced.

[0004] However, even when the terminal device is in an idle or inactive state, the terminal device needs to perform radio resource management (RRM) measurements on the serving cell and / or neighboring cells, which makes it difficult for the terminal device to achieve good power saving effects. Summary of the Invention [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] The embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and a communication device to reduce the number of times that the main circuit is woken up, promote power saving of the terminal device, and reduce the power consumption of the terminal device.

[0006] According to a first aspect, there is provided a communication method, which may be performed by a terminal device, or may be performed by a chip or circuit configured in the terminal device, which is not limited in this application.

[0007] The method includes the steps of obtaining first information, the first information being used to change a state of a main communication module of a terminal device, the terminal device including a main communication module and a secondary communication module, and switching the main communication module from a first state to a second state based on the first information, the first state including the main communication module being in an idle state, an inactive state, and a connected state.

[0008] Based on the above solution, the terminal device can adjust the state of the main communication module according to the first information, i.e., control the state switching of the main communication module, thereby helping to save power of the terminal device.

[0009] Referring to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the first information includes a first condition, the first condition is used to evaluate the quality of a first service area of ​​the terminal device, the first service area is a service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in a first state, and the step of switching the main communication module from the first state to the second state based on the first information includes switching the main communication module from the first state to the second state if the quality of the first service area satisfies the first condition.

[0010] For example, the first condition includes at least one of the following: the variation of the quality of the first service area within a first time threshold is less than a first variation threshold, where the first time threshold is greater than the time threshold in the low mobility criterion or the first variation threshold is less than the variation threshold in the low mobility criterion; the quality of the first service area is greater than a first quality threshold, where the first quality threshold is greater than a threshold in the cell center criterion, greater than the first quality threshold; and the quality of the first service area is greater than a second quality threshold, where the second quality threshold is greater than a threshold in the S criterion, greater than the second quality threshold.

[0011] Based on the aforementioned solution, the terminal device can adjust the state of the main communication module based on a first condition, and when the quality of the first service area meets the first condition, the terminal device switches the main communication module from the second state to the first state, thus promoting power saving of the terminal device.

[0012] Optionally, if the quality of the first coverage area satisfies a first condition, the terminal device stops performing measurements on the high priority frequency.

[0013] Based on the above solution, when the quality of the first coverage area meets the first condition, the terminal device stops performing measurements on the high-priority frequency, so that the power consumption of the terminal device can be reduced more significantly.

[0014] Referring to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the method further includes a step of transmitting second information to the network device, wherein the second information is used to request a change in the state of the main communication module or indicates that the state of the main communication module is to change.

[0015] Based on the above solution, the terminal device and the network device can agree on the current state of the terminal device, for example, whether the terminal device is in an idle state, an inactive state, or a WUR mode, so that the network device can efficiently use WUR resources for a specific terminal device.

[0016] Optionally, the second information is carried in message 3 in a random access procedure.

[0017] Referring to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the method further includes a step of receiving third information from the network device, wherein the third information instructs the network device to allow the terminal device to switch the main communication module from the first state to the second state.

[0018] For example, the third information is carried in a radio resource control (RRC) release message, an RRC connection reject message, or an RRC reconfiguration message.

[0019] Referring to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the first information instructs the main communication module to switch from a first state to a second state.

[0020] Based on the above solution, the network device can control the terminal device to adjust the state of the main communication module, and when the quality of the first service area meets a first condition, the network device can instruct the terminal device to switch the main communication module from the second state to the first state, thus promoting power saving of the terminal device.

[0021] For example, the first information is carried in a radio resource control (RRC) release message or an RRC connection rejection message.

[0022] Referring to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the method further includes a step of transmitting a measurement result of a first service area to the network device, wherein the first service area is a service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in a first state.

[0023] Referring to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the method further includes a step of transmitting fourth information to the network device, wherein the fourth information indicates that the terminal device tends to enter an idle state when leaving the connected state, or tends to enter an inactive state when leaving the connected state, or tends to enter a second state when leaving the connected state.

[0024] Referring to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the method further includes a step of receiving a first wake-up radio WUR using a secondary communication module, wherein the first WUR is used to determine the quality of a second service area of ​​the terminal device, the second service area being the service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in the second state; and a step of switching the main communication module from the second state to the first state if the quality of the second service area does not satisfy a second condition.

[0025] Based on the above solution, if the quality of the second service area satisfies the second condition, the main communication module of the terminal device may remain in the second state. In this way, a better power saving effect may be achieved. If the quality of the second service area does not satisfy the second condition, the main communication module of the terminal device may switch to the first state. In this way, it may be ensured that the communication performance of the terminal device is not affected.

[0026] For example, the second condition includes at least one of the following: the variation of the quality of the second service area within a second time threshold is less than a second variation threshold, where the second time threshold is greater than the time threshold in the low mobility criterion or the second variation threshold is less than the variation threshold in the low mobility criterion; the quality of the second service area is greater than a third quality threshold, where the third quality threshold is greater than a threshold in the cell center criterion, greater than the third quality threshold; and the quality of the second service area is greater than a fourth quality threshold, where the fourth quality threshold is greater than a threshold in the S criterion, greater than the fourth quality threshold.

[0027] Optionally, the method further includes receiving a second condition from the network device.

[0028] Referring to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the method further includes a step of transmitting sixth information to the network device, wherein the sixth information indicates that the state of the main communication module is to change.

[0029] Based on the above solution, the terminal device and the network device can agree on the current state of the terminal device, for example, whether the terminal device is in an idle state, an inactive state, or a WUR mode, so that the network device can efficiently use WUR resources for a specific terminal device.

[0030] Specifically, the sixth information may be carried in message 3 in the random access procedure.

[0031] For example, the sixth information is an identifier of the terminal device when the main communication module is in the second state, or an identifier of the terminal device corresponding to the secondary communication module when the main communication module is in the second state.

[0032] Referring to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the method further includes a step of listening to a second WUR using a secondary communication module, wherein the second WUR instructs the terminal device to receive a paging message using the main communication module, and a step of switching the main communication module from the second state to the first state when the second WUR is detected by listening.

[0033] Based on the above solution, the terminal device in WUR mode can determine whether to wake up the main communication module by monitoring the second WUR, thereby achieving good power saving effect for the terminal device and ensuring that the normal communication of the terminal device is not affected.

[0034] Referring to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the method further includes a step of receiving first configuration information from the network device, wherein the first configuration information is used to configure the first WUR and / or the second WUR, and the first configuration information includes fifth information, wherein the fifth information indicates that the first WUR is used for measurement and / or the second WUR is used for wakeup.

[0035] Based on the aforementioned solution, the network device can send the first configuration information and / or the fifth information to the terminal device to instruct the terminal device to receive the first WUR and the second WUR more accurately, thus ensuring the performance of the terminal device in the WUR mode.

[0036] Referring to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, when the main communication module switches from the second state to the first state, the method further includes a step of switching from the second state to an idle state or an inactive state based on an RRC release message or an RRC reconfiguration message, wherein the RRC release message or the RRC reconfiguration message indicates that the first state should be selected as the idle state or the inactive state when the terminal device switches from the second state to the first state.

[0037] Optionally, when the main communication module is in the second state, the terminal device does not listen to or update system information.

[0038] Based on the above solution, when the main communication module is in the second state, the terminal device does not listen to or update system information, so the power consumption of the terminal device can be reduced more significantly.

[0039] Referring to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the method further includes a step of sending seventh information to the network device, wherein the seventh information instructs the terminal device not to listen to or update system information or to stop listening to or updating system information when the main communication module is in the second state.

[0040] Optionally, after switching the main communication module from the second state to the first state, the method further includes performing cell selection and receiving system information in the selected cell.

[0041] Referring to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, when the main communication module is in the first state, the secondary communication module is in a third state or a fourth state, the third state including the secondary communication module being in an on state, a running state, or an active state, and the fourth state including the secondary communication module being in an off state, a dormant state, or an inactive state.

[0042] According to a second aspect, there is provided a communication method, which may be performed by a network device, or may be performed by a chip or circuit configured in the network device, which is not limited in this application.

[0043] The method includes a step of determining first information, the first information being used by the terminal device to switch a main communication module from a first state to a second state, the first state including the main communication module being in an idle state, an inactive state, and a connected state, and the terminal device including the main communication module and a secondary communication module, and a step of transmitting the first information to the terminal device.

[0044] Referring to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the first information includes a first condition, the first condition is used to evaluate the quality of a first service area of ​​the terminal device, the first service area being a service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in a first state, and the first condition includes at least one of the following: a fluctuation in the quality of the first service area within a first time threshold is less than a first fluctuation threshold, where the first time threshold is greater than a time threshold in a low mobility criterion or the first fluctuation threshold is less than the fluctuation threshold in a low mobility criterion; the quality of the first service area is greater than a first quality threshold, where the first quality threshold is greater than a threshold in a cell center criterion, greater than the first quality threshold; and the quality of the first service area is greater than a second quality threshold, where the second quality threshold is greater than a threshold in an S criterion, greater than the second quality threshold.

[0045] Referring to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes a step of receiving second information from the terminal device, wherein the second information is used to request a change in the state of the main communication module or indicates that the state of the main communication module is to change.

[0046] For example, the second information is carried in message 3 in the random access procedure.

[0047] Referring to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes a step of transmitting third information to the terminal device, wherein the third information indicates that the terminal device is authorized to switch the main communication module from the first state to the second state.

[0048] For example, the third information is carried in a radio resource control (RRC) release message, an RRC connection reject message, or an RRC reconfiguration message.

[0049] Referring to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the first information instructs the main communication module to switch from a first state to a second state.

[0050] For example, the first information is carried in a radio resource control (RRC) release message or an RRC connection rejection message.

[0051] Referring to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes a step of receiving a measurement result of a first service area from the terminal device, where the first service area is a service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in a first state, and the step of transmitting first information to the terminal device includes a step of transmitting the first information to the terminal device when the measurement result of the first service area satisfies a predetermined condition.

[0052] Referring to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes a step of receiving fourth information from the terminal device, where the fourth information indicates that the terminal device tends to enter an idle state when leaving the connected state, or tends to enter an inactive state when leaving the connected state, or tends to enter a second state when leaving the connected state, and the step of sending the first information to the terminal device includes a step of sending the first information to the terminal device if the fourth information indicates that the terminal device tends to enter the second state when leaving the connected state.

[0053] Referring to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes a step of sending a first wake-up radio WUR to the terminal device, wherein the first WUR is used to determine the quality of a second service area of ​​the terminal device, and the second service area is the service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in the second state.

[0054] Referring to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes a step of sending a second condition to the terminal device, wherein the second condition includes at least one of the following: the fluctuation of the quality of the second service area within a second time threshold is less than a second fluctuation threshold, wherein the second time threshold is greater than a time threshold in the low mobility criterion, or the second fluctuation threshold is less than the fluctuation threshold in the low mobility criterion; the quality of the second service area is greater than a third quality threshold, wherein the third quality threshold is greater than a threshold in the cell center criterion, greater than the third quality threshold; and the quality of the second service area is greater than a fourth quality threshold, wherein the fourth quality threshold is greater than a threshold in the S criterion, greater than the fourth quality threshold.

[0055] Referring to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes a step of sending sixth information to the network device, wherein the sixth information indicates that the state of the main communication module is to change.

[0056] For example, the sixth information is carried in message 3 in the random access procedure.

[0057] Optionally, the sixth information is an identifier of the terminal device when the main communication module is in the second state, or an identifier of the terminal device corresponding to the secondary communication module when the main communication module is in the second state.

[0058] Referring to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes a step of sending a second WUR to the terminal device, wherein the second WUR instructs the terminal device to receive a paging message using the main communication module.

[0059] Referring to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes a step of transmitting downlink control information DCI to a terminal device, wherein the DCI includes scheduling information for a paging message, and the paging message is used to page the terminal device.

[0060] Referring to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes a step of sending first configuration information to a terminal device, wherein the first configuration information is used to configure a first WUR and / or a second WUR, and the first configuration information includes fifth information, and the fifth information indicates that the first WUR is used for measurement and / or the second WUR is used for awakening.

[0061] For example, the RRC release message or the RRC reconfiguration message indicates that when the terminal device switches from the second state to the first state, the first state should be selected as an idle state or an inactive state.

[0062] Referring to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes a step of receiving seventh information from the terminal device, wherein the seventh information instructs the terminal device not to listen to or update system information or to stop listening to or updating system information when the main communication module is in the second state.

[0063] It should be understood that the beneficial effects of the second aspect and the implementation of the second aspect should refer to those of the first aspect and the implementation of the first aspect.

[0064] According to a third aspect, there is provided a communication device, which may be a terminal device, or may be a chip or circuit configured in a terminal device, which is not limited in this application.

[0065] The apparatus includes a processing unit configured to obtain first information, the first information being used to change a state of a main communication module of a terminal device, the terminal device including a main communication module and a secondary communication module, and the processing unit is further configured to switch the main communication module from a first state to a second state based on the first information, the first state including the main communication module being in an idle state, an inactive state, and a connected state.

[0066] Referring to the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the first information includes a first condition, the first condition is used to evaluate the quality of a first service area of ​​the terminal device, the first service area is a service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in a first state, and the step of switching the main communication module from the first state to the second state based on the first information includes switching the main communication module from the first state to the second state if the quality of the first service area satisfies the first condition.

[0067] For example, the first condition includes at least one of the following: the variation of the quality of the first service area within a first time threshold is less than a first variation threshold, where the first time threshold is greater than the time threshold in the low mobility criterion or the first variation threshold is less than the variation threshold in the low mobility criterion; the quality of the first service area is greater than a first quality threshold, where the first quality threshold is greater than a threshold in the cell center criterion, greater than the first quality threshold; and the quality of the first service area is greater than a second quality threshold, where the second quality threshold is greater than a threshold in the S criterion, greater than the second quality threshold.

[0068] Optionally, if the quality of the first coverage area satisfies a first condition, the terminal device stops performing measurements on the high priority frequency.

[0069] Referring to the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the apparatus further includes a transceiver unit configured to transmit second information to the network device, the second information being used to request a change in the state of the main communication module or indicating that the state of the main communication module is to change.

[0070] Optionally, the second information is carried in message 3 in a random access procedure.

[0071] Referring to the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to receive third information from the network device, the third information instructing the network device to allow the terminal device to switch the main communication module from the first state to the second state.

[0072] For example, the third information is carried in a radio resource control (RRC) release message, an RRC connection reject message, or an RRC reconfiguration message.

[0073] Referring to the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the first information instructs the main communication module to switch from a first state to a second state.

[0074] For example, the first information is carried in a radio resource control (RRC) release message or an RRC connection rejection message.

[0075] Referring to the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to transmit a measurement result of the first service area to the network device, and the first service area is the service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in the first state.

[0076] Referring to the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to transmit fourth information to the network device, wherein the fourth information indicates that the terminal device tends to enter an idle state when leaving the connected state, or tends to enter an inactive state when leaving the connected state, or tends to enter the second state when leaving the connected state.

[0077] Referring to the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to receive a first wake-up radio WUR using the secondary communication module, the first WUR being used to determine the quality of a second service area of ​​the terminal device, the second service area being the service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in the second state, and the processing unit is further configured to switch the main communication module from the second state to the first state if the quality of the second service area does not satisfy the second condition.

[0078] For example, the second condition includes at least one of the following: the variation of the quality of the second service area within a second time threshold is less than a second variation threshold, where the second time threshold is greater than the time threshold in the low mobility criterion or the second variation threshold is less than the variation threshold in the low mobility criterion; the quality of the second service area is greater than a third quality threshold, where the third quality threshold is greater than a threshold in the cell center criterion, greater than the third quality threshold; and the quality of the second service area is greater than a fourth quality threshold, where the fourth quality threshold is greater than a threshold in the S criterion, greater than the fourth quality threshold.

[0079] Optionally, the transceiver unit is further configured to receive a second condition from the network device.

[0080] Referring to the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to transmit sixth information to the network device, the sixth information indicating that the state of the main communication module is to change.

[0081] Specifically, the sixth information may be carried in message 3 in the random access procedure.

[0082] For example, the sixth information is an identifier of the terminal device when the main communication module is in the second state, or an identifier of the terminal device corresponding to the secondary communication module when the main communication module is in the second state.

[0083] Referring to the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to listen to a second WUR using the secondary communication module, and the second WUR instructs the terminal device to receive a paging message using the main communication module, and the processing unit is further configured to switch the main communication module from the second state to the first state when the second WUR is detected by listening.

[0084] Referring to the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to receive first configuration information from the network device, the first configuration information being used to configure the first WUR and / or the second WUR, the first configuration information including fifth information, the fifth information indicating that the first WUR is used for measurement and / or the second WUR is used for wake-up.

[0085] Referring to the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, when the main communication module switches from the second state to the first state, the processing unit is further configured to switch from the second state to an idle state or an inactive state based on an RRC release message or an RRC reconfiguration message, and the RRC release message or the RRC reconfiguration message indicates that the first state should be selected as the idle state or the inactive state when the terminal device switches from the second state to the first state.

[0086] Optionally, when the main communication module is in the second state, the terminal device does not listen to or update system information.

[0087] Referring to the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to transmit seventh information to the network device, and the seventh information instructs the terminal device not to listen to or update system information or to stop listening to or updating the system information when the main communication module is in the second state.

[0088] Optionally, after switching the main communication module from the second state to the first state, the processing unit is further configured to perform cell selection and receive system information on the selected cell.

[0089] Referring to the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, when the main communication module is in a first state, the secondary communication module is in a third state or a fourth state, the third state including the secondary communication module being in an on state, a running state, or an active state, and the fourth state including the secondary communication module being in an off state, a hibernation state, or an inactive state.

[0090] It should be understood that the beneficial effects of the third aspect and the implementations of the third aspect should refer to those of the first aspect and the implementations of the first aspect.

[0091] According to a fourth aspect, there is provided a communication device, which may be a network device or a chip or circuit configured in a network device, although this is not limited in this application.

[0092] The apparatus includes a processing unit configured to determine first information, the first information being used by a terminal device to switch a main communication module from a first state to a second state, the first states including the main communication module being in an idle state, an inactive state, and a connected state, and the terminal device including the main communication module and a secondary communication module, and a transceiver unit configured to transmit the first information to the terminal device.

[0093] Referring to the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the first information includes a first condition, the first condition is used to evaluate the quality of a first service area of ​​the terminal device, the first service area being a service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in a first state, and the first condition includes at least one of the following: a fluctuation in the quality of the first service area within a first time threshold is less than a first fluctuation threshold, where the first time threshold is greater than a time threshold in a low mobility criterion or the first fluctuation threshold is less than a fluctuation threshold in a low mobility criterion; the quality of the first service area is greater than a first quality threshold, where the first quality threshold is greater than a threshold in a cell center criterion, greater than the first quality threshold; and the quality of the first service area is greater than a second quality threshold, where the second quality threshold is greater than a threshold in an S criterion, greater than the second quality threshold.

[0094] Referring to the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to receive second information from the terminal device, the second information being used to request a change in the state of the main communication module or to indicate that the state of the main communication module is to change.

[0095] For example, the second information is carried in message 3 in the random access procedure.

[0096] Referring to the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to transmit third information to the terminal device, the third information indicating that the terminal device is authorized to switch the main communication module from the first state to the second state.

[0097] For example, the third information is carried in a radio resource control (RRC) release message, an RRC connection reject message, or an RRC reconfiguration message.

[0098] Referring to the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the first information instructs the main communication module to switch from a first state to a second state.

[0099] For example, the first information is carried in a radio resource control (RRC) release message or an RRC connection rejection message.

[0100] Referring to the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to receive a measurement result of a first service area from the terminal device, the first service area being a service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in a first state, and the transceiver unit is specifically configured to transmit first information to the terminal device when the measurement result of the first service area satisfies a predetermined condition.

[0101] Referring to the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to receive fourth information from the terminal device, the fourth information indicating that the terminal device tends to enter an idle state when leaving the connected state, or tends to enter an inactive state when leaving the connected state, or tends to enter a second state when leaving the connected state, and the transceiver unit is specifically configured to transmit the first information to the terminal device when the fourth information indicates that the terminal device tends to enter the second state when leaving the connected state.

[0102] Referring to the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to transmit a first wake-up radio WUR to the terminal device, the first WUR being used to determine the quality of a second service area of ​​the terminal device, and the second service area being the service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in the second state.

[0103] Referring to the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to transmit a second condition to the terminal device, wherein the second condition includes at least one of the following: a fluctuation in the quality of the second service area within a second time threshold is less than a second fluctuation threshold, wherein the second time threshold is greater than a time threshold in the low mobility criterion or the second fluctuation threshold is less than the fluctuation threshold in the low mobility criterion; the quality of the second service area is greater than a third quality threshold, wherein the third quality threshold is greater than a threshold in the cell center criterion, greater than the third quality threshold; and the quality of the second service area is greater than a fourth quality threshold, wherein the fourth quality threshold is greater than a threshold in the S criterion, greater than the fourth quality threshold.

[0104] Referring to the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to transmit sixth information to the network device, the sixth information indicating that the state of the main communication module is to change.

[0105] For example, the sixth information is carried in message 3 in the random access procedure.

[0106] Optionally, the sixth information is an identifier of the terminal device when the main communication module is in the second state, or an identifier of the terminal device corresponding to the secondary communication module when the main communication module is in the second state.

[0107] Referring to the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to transmit a second WUR to the terminal device, the second WUR instructing the terminal device to receive the paging message using the main communication module.

[0108] With reference to the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to transmit downlink control information DCI to the terminal device, the DCI including scheduling information for a paging message, and the paging message being used to page the terminal device.

[0109] Referring to the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to transmit first configuration information to the terminal device, the first configuration information being used to configure the first WUR and / or the second WUR, the first configuration information including fifth information, and the fifth information indicating that the first WUR is used for measurement and / or the second WUR is used for wake-up.

[0110] For example, the RRC release message or the RRC reconfiguration message indicates that when the terminal device switches from the second state to the first state, the first state should be selected as an idle state or an inactive state.

[0111] Referring to the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to receive seventh information from the terminal device, and the seventh information instructs the terminal device not to listen to or update system information or to stop listening to or updating the system information when the main communication module is in the second state.

[0112] It should be understood that the beneficial effects of the fourth aspect and the implementation of the fourth aspect should refer to those of the second aspect and the implementation of the second aspect.

[0113] According to a fifth aspect, there is provided a communications device including a processor and a storage medium, the storage medium storing instructions which, when executed by the processor, perform a method according to the first aspect or any one of the possible implementations of the first aspect, or a method according to the second aspect or any one of the possible implementations of the second aspect.

[0114] According to a sixth aspect, there is provided a communications device including a processor configured to process data and / or information, such that a method according to the first aspect or any one of its possible implementations, or a method according to the second aspect or any one of its possible implementations, is performed. Optionally, the communications device may further include a communications interface. The communications interface is configured to receive the data and / or information and to transmit the received data and / or information to the processor. Optionally, the communications interface is further configured to output the data and / or information processed by the processor.

[0115] According to a seventh aspect, there is provided a chip including a processor, the processor configured to execute a program or instructions, thereby performing a method according to the first aspect or any one of its possible implementations, or a method according to the second aspect or any one of its possible implementations. Optionally, the chip may further include a memory, the memory configured to store the program or instructions. Optionally, the chip may further include a transceiver.

[0116] According to an eighth aspect, there is provided a computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions which, when executed by a processor, perform a method according to the first aspect or any one of the possible implementations of the first aspect, or a method according to the second aspect or any one of the possible implementations of the second aspect.

[0117] According to a ninth aspect, there is provided a computer program product comprising computer program code or instructions which, when executed, perform a method according to the first aspect or any one of the possible implementations of the first aspect, or a method according to the second aspect or any one of the possible implementations of the second aspect.

[0118] According to a tenth aspect, there is provided a communication method comprising a method according to the first aspect or any one of the possible implementations of the first aspect and a method according to the second aspect or any one of the possible implementations of the second aspect.

[0119] According to an eleventh aspect, there is provided a communication system including a communication device according to the third aspect or any one of the possible implementations of the third aspect, and a communication device according to the fourth aspect or any one of the possible implementations of the fourth aspect. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0120] [Figure 1]1 is a diagram of a communication system applicable to an embodiment of the present application; [Figure 2] FIG. 1 illustrates receiving a page by a terminal device. [Figure 3] 1 is a diagram of the WUS mechanism. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram of the structure of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present application; [Figure 5] 2 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method 200 according to the present application. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a diagram of low mobility standards. [Figure 7] FIG. 1 is a diagram of a cell center reference. [Figure 8] FIG. 1 is a diagram of information #A according to the present application. [Figure 9] 3 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method 300 according to the present application. [Figure 10] 4 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method 400 according to the present application. [Figure 11] 1 is a block diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application; [Figure 12] FIG. 2 is another block diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. [Figure 13] FIG. 2 is another diagram of the structure of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0121] The following describes the technical solutions of the present application with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0122] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application can be applied to various communication systems, such as Global System of Mobile communications (GSM), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) systems, Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) systems, General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems, LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) systems, LTE time division duplex (TDD) systems, Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) communication systems, and 5th Generation (5G) mobile communication systems or new radio (NR). 5G mobile communication systems can be non-standalone (NSA) or standalone (SA).

[0123] The technical solutions provided in this application may further be applied to machine-type communication (MTC), long-term evolution-machine (LTE-M), device-to-device (D2D) networks, machine-to-machine (M2M) networks, Internet of Things (IoT) networks, or other networks. IoT networks may include, for example, Internet of Vehicles. Communication methods in Internet of Vehicle systems are collectively called Vehicle-to-X (V2X, where X can represent anything). For example, V2X may include vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications, vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications, vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P) communications, vehicle-to-network (V2N) communications, etc.

[0124] The technical solutions provided in this application may further be applied to future communication systems, such as 6th Generation (6G) mobile communication systems, which are not limited in this application.

[0125] In embodiments of the present application, a terminal device may also be referred to as user equipment (UE), access terminal, subscriber unit, subscriber station, mobile station, remote station, remote terminal, mobile device, user terminal, terminal, wireless communication device, user agent, or user equipment.

[0126] A terminal device may be a device that provides a user with a voice / data connection, such as a handheld device or an in-vehicle device with wireless connectivity. Currently, some examples of terminals include mobile phones, tablet computers, computers with wireless transceiver capabilities (such as notebook computers and palmtop computers), mobile internet devices (MIDs), virtual reality (VR) devices, augmented reality (AR) devices, wireless terminals for industrial control, wireless terminals for self-driving, wireless terminals for remote medical care, wireless terminals for smart grids, wireless terminals for transportation safety, wireless terminals for smart cities, wireless terminals for smart homes (e.g., home appliances such as televisions, smart boxes, and game consoles), cellular phones, cordless phones, session initiation protocol (SIP) phones, wireless local loop (WLL) stations, and personal digital assistants (PDAs). The device may be a mobile telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a handheld device with wireless communication capabilities, a computing device or another processing device connected to a wireless modem, an in-vehicle device, a wearable device, a terminal device of a 5G network, or a terminal device of a future evolved public land mobile network (PLMN).

[0127] Wearable devices, sometimes referred to as wearable intelligent devices, are a general term for wearable devices such as glasses, gloves, watches, clothing, and shoes, which are developed by applying wearable technology to the intelligent design of everyday wearable items. Wearable devices are portable devices that can be worn directly on the body or integrated into the user's clothing or accessories. Wearable devices are not only hardware devices, but also perform powerful functions through software support, data exchange, and cloud interaction. In a broad sense, wearable intelligent devices include full-featured large devices, such as smart watches and smart glasses, that can perform full or partial functions independently of smartphones, as well as devices that specialize in only one application function and require cooperation with other devices, such as smartphones, such as various smart bands and smart jewelry that monitor physical symptoms.

[0128] In addition, the terminal device may alternatively be a terminal device in an Internet of Things (IoT) system. IoT is an important part of future information technology development. The main technical feature of IoT is to connect things to a network using communication technology and implement a smart network for human-machine interconnection and thing-thing interconnection. In IoT technology, for example, large-scale connection, deep coverage, and power saving of terminals can be implemented by using narrow band (NB) technology.

[0129] In embodiments of the present application, the terminal device may alternatively be a vehicle or an entire vehicle, capable of communicating using the Internet of Vehicles, or may be a component located within the vehicle (e.g., disposed within or installed within the vehicle), i.e., an on-board terminal device, on-board module, or on-board unit (OBU).

[0130] In addition, the terminal devices may alternatively include sensors such as intelligent printers, train detectors, or gas stations, and their main functions include (for some terminal devices) collecting data, receiving control information and downlink data of network devices, transmitting electromagnetic waves, and transmitting uplink data to network devices.

[0131] In an embodiment of the present application, the network device may be any device having a wireless transceiver function, including, but not limited to, an evolved Node B (eNB), a radio network controller (RNC), a Node B (NB), a base station controller (BSC), a base transceiver station (BTS), a home base station (e.g., a home evolved Node B or home Node B (HNB)), a baseband unit (BBU), an access point (AP), a wireless relay node, a wireless backhaul node, a transmission point (TP) in a wireless fidelity (WiFi) system, or a transmission and reception point (TRP), etc. Alternatively, the device may be a gNB or transmission point (TRP or TP) of a 5G (e.g., NR) system, one or a group of antenna panels (including multiple antenna panels) of a 5G base station, or a network node constituting a gNB or transmission point, such as a baseband unit (BBU), or a distributed unit (DU), or a base station of a next-generation 6G communication system.

[0132] In some deployments, a gNB may include a centralized unit (CU) and a DU. The gNB may further include an active antenna unit (AAU). The CU performs some functions of the gNB, and the DU performs some functions of the gNB. For example, the CU is responsible for processing non-real-time protocols and services and performs functions of the radio resource control (RRC) layer and packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer. The DU is responsible for processing physical layer protocols and real-time services and performs functions of the radio link control (RLC) layer, medium access control (MAC) layer, and physical (PHY) layer. The AAU performs some physical layer processing functions, radio frequency processing, and functions related to active antennas. RRC layer information is ultimately converted to or from PHY layer information. Therefore, in this architecture, higher layer signaling, such as RRC layer signaling, can also be considered to be transmitted by the DU or by the DU and CU. It should be understood that the network device may be a device including one or more of a CU node, a DU node, and an AAU node. In addition, the CU may be classified as a network device in an access network (radio access network, RAN), or the CU may be classified as a network device in a core network (CN). This is not limited in the present application.

[0133] A network device provides a service for a cell, and a terminal device communicates with the cell using transmission resources (e.g., frequency domain resources or spectrum resources) allocated by the network device. The cell may belong to a macro base station (e.g., a macro eNB or a macro gNB) or may belong to a base station corresponding to a small cell. Small cells in this specification may include metro cells, micro cells, pico cells, femto cells, etc. These small cells are characterized by small coverage and low transmission power and are applicable to providing high-speed data transmission services.

[0134] FIG. 1 is a diagram of a communication system 100 applicable to a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 1, the communication system 100 may include at least one network device, for example, the network device 110 shown in FIG. 1. The communication system 100 may further include at least one terminal device, for example, the terminal device 120 shown in FIG. 1. The network device 110 and the terminal device 120 can communicate with each other through a wireless link. For example, multiple antennas may be configured for each communication device, such as the network device 110 or the terminal device 120. For each communication device in the communication system, the multiple configured antennas may include at least one transmitting antenna configured to transmit signals and at least one receiving antenna configured to receive signals. Thus, the communication devices in the communication system, for example, the network device 110 and the terminal device 120, can communicate with each other using multi-antenna technology.

[0135] It should be understood that Figure 1 is merely a simplified diagram used as an example for ease of understanding, and the communication system may further include other network devices or other terminal devices not shown in Figure 1.

[0136] To facilitate understanding of the solutions of the embodiments of the present application, relevant concepts are explained.

[0137] 1. Terminal device status: In NR, a terminal device has three states: radio resource control idle (RRC_idle), radio resource control inactive (RRC_inactive), and radio resource control connected (RRC_connected). The three states are briefly described below.

[0138] (1) The RRC_idle state may also be referred to as an idle state or an RRC idle state. When the terminal device is in the idle state, the air interface connection between the terminal device and the network device is disconnected, and the network device no longer stores the context information of the terminal device. The terminal device can receive broadcast information transmitted by the network device.

[0139] (2) The RRC_inactive state is also referred to as an inactive state or an RRC inactive state. When the terminal device is in the inactive state, the air interface connection between the terminal device and the network device is disconnected, but the network device continues to store context information of the terminal device. When the terminal device enters the connected state from the inactive state, the terminal device can quickly recover to the connected state based on the context information stored in the network device.

[0140] (3) The RRC_connected state may also be referred to as a connected state or an RRC connected state. When the terminal device is in the connected state, an air interface connection is established between the terminal device and the network device, and the terminal device can communicate with the network device based on the air interface connection.

[0141] 2. Paging mechanism Paging is used to trigger a terminal device to establish an RRC connection or to notify the terminal device of system information (SI) and alert information. Specifically, paging can be carried using paging messages and / or short messages. Paging messages typically carry an identifier of the terminal device, and short messages can be used to transmit information such as a system information update indication, an earthquake and tsunami warning system (EWTS) indication, and a commercial mobile alert system (CWAS) indication. Paging messages are transmitted to terminal devices over a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH). The PDSCH carrying the paging message is scheduled and transmitted over a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) scrambled using a radio network temporary identifier. For example, the radio network temporary identifier may be a paging radio network temporary identifier (P-RNTI). The short message is typically transmitted on a PDCCH scrambled using a scrambling code. For example, the scrambling code may be a P-RNTI. The scheduling information of the PDSCH carrying the paging message and the short message may be carried in downlink control information (DCI) of the PDCCH. The DCI may also be referred to as paging DCI, and the scheduling information of the PDSCH carrying the paging message may also be referred to as scheduling information of the paging message.

[0142] A terminal device in an idle or inactive state listens to a paging occasion (PO) in each paging cycle to determine whether a network device performs paging. When the terminal device is in an idle or inactive state, the terminal device periodically listens for paging messages and determines whether the paging message includes a terminal device identifier of the terminal device. If so, the terminal device performs related tasks, such as performing an RRC connection setup process, or in another example, returning from an inactive state to an idle state. If not, the terminal device continues to periodically listen for subsequent paging messages. The listening cycle is usually called a paging cycle or a paging discontinuous reception (DRX) cycle.

[0143] 2 is a diagram illustrating a terminal device receiving a paging message. As shown in FIG. 2, the terminal device listens to a PO based on a paging cycle. In the first PO, the terminal device does not detect a PDCCH scrambled using a P-RNTI by listening. The terminal device continues to listen to the PO. In the second PO, the terminal device detects a PDCCH scrambled using a P-RNTI by listening, and the terminal device obtains a short message carried on the PDCCH and / or a paging message scheduled through the PDCCH, i.e., the scheduling information of the PDSCH of the paging message.

[0144] The terminal device calculates the PO location based on the terminal device identification information and paging-related parameters of the terminal device according to a calculation formula specified in the protocol. The PO locations calculated by different terminal devices may be the same or different. In other words, multiple terminal devices may listen to the same PO.

[0145] The basic paging procedure is as follows: Step 1: A network device selects a specific paging range and sends a paging DCI to the PO.

[0146] The paging range is an area in which a network device sends a page, and this area is determined by the network device. For example, for a terminal device in an idle state, the network device can use a tracking area (TA) to which the terminal device belongs as the paging range. As another example, for a terminal device in an inactive state, the network device can use a radio access network notification area (RAN notification area) to which the terminal device belongs as the paging range.

[0147] The paging DCI may include scheduling information of a paging message and / or a short message, etc., where the scheduling information of the paging message includes a frequency domain resource location of the paging message and / or a time domain resource location of the paging message. Specific contents are shown in Table 1.

[0148] [Table 1]

[0149] Step 2: After receiving the paging DCI sent by the network, the terminal device determines subsequent operations based on the content of the paging DCI.

[0150] Specifically, when the paging DCI includes scheduling information for the paging message, the terminal device receives and decodes the paging message on the PDSCH based on the scheduling information, and then determines subsequent operations based on the content of the paging message. The paging message includes terminal device identification information and / or access type information of one or more terminal devices paged by the network device. The terminal device identification information may be a user identifier allocated by the core network, such as a 5G S-temporary mobile subscription identifier (5G-S-TMSI), or may be a context identifier of an RRC inactive state terminal device allocated by the RAN, such as an inactive-radio network temporary identifier (I-RNTI).

[0151] After decoding the paging message, the terminal device determines whether the paging message includes a terminal device identifier of the terminal device. If the paging message does not include the terminal device identifier of the terminal device, the terminal device ignores the paging message. If the paging message includes the terminal device identifier of the terminal device, the terminal device determines subsequent operations based on other content in the paging message. Specifically, if the paging DCI includes only a short message, the terminal device receives at least one of updated system information, an earthquake and tsunami warning system indication, and a commercial mobile alert system indication according to the instructions of the short message. If the paging DCI includes only scheduling information for the paging message, the terminal device receives the paging message based on the indicated frequency domain resource location and / or the indicated time domain resource location of the paging message. If the paging DCI includes scheduling information for the paging message and a short message, the terminal device separately receives the paging message and at least one of updated system information, an earthquake and tsunami warning system indication, and a commercial mobile alert system indication.

[0152] According to different network elements that trigger paging, paging can be classified into core network (CN) paging triggered by the CN and RAN paging triggered by the RAN. A core network device can initiate CN paging to a terminal device in an idle or inactive state, and a RAN can initiate RAN paging to a terminal device in an inactive state.

[0153] A terminal device in idle state needs to listen to CN paging. Specifically, when receiving and decoding the paging message, the terminal device verifies whether the terminal device identification information in the paging message matches the 5G-S-TMSI of the terminal device. If there is a match, the terminal device initiates the RRC connection setup (RRC setup) process.

[0154] A terminal device in an inactive state needs to listen to CN paging and RAN paging. Specifically, when receiving and decoding a paging message, the terminal device verifies whether the terminal device identification information in the paging message matches the 5G-S-TMSI or I-RNTI of the terminal device. If the 5G-S-TMSI matches, the terminal device first enters an RRC idle state and then initiates an RRC connection setup process. If the I-RNTI matches, the terminal device initiates an RRC connection resume process.

[0155] 3. Wake-up signal (WUS) mechanism A power saving signal is a signal introduced to achieve power saving purposes in a terminal device, and a WUS is a type of power saving signal. There can be multiple types of WUS, including DCI, physical layer signal / sequence, medium access control element (MAC CE), RRC signaling, etc.

[0156] 3 is a diagram of the WUS mechanism. As shown in FIG. 3, for the paging process, the network can send a WUS before or on the PO to indicate whether the terminal device needs to listen to the PO or receive the paging message later, in order to avoid unnecessary paging reception by the terminal device and thereby save the power of the terminal device.

[0157] Currently, the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP®) Release 18 is considering the introduction of a wake-up radio (WUR) mechanism to further reduce the power consumption of terminal devices. As shown in FIG. 4, in the WUR mechanism, a terminal device includes a WUR circuit and a main circuit. The WUR is a signal and may include a sequence. The WUR may also be referred to as a WUR sequence or a WUR signal.

[0158] FIG. 4 is a diagram of the structure of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present application. The WUR circuit may also be referred to as a WUR receiver, WUR communicator, secondary communicator, wake-up receiver, WUR-only receiver, low-power communicator, ultra-low-power communicator, ultra-low-power receiver, ultra-low-power module, secondary communication module, etc. The main circuit may also be referred to as a main receiver, main communicator, main modem, main communication module, main circuit, etc. In FIG. 4, the WUR circuit is in an on state and the main circuit is in an off state. The WUR circuit may be configured to listen for a wake-up signal or wake-up data when the main circuit is in an off state. When the WUR circuit receives a WUR, the WUR circuit wakes up the main circuit, which can further complete the reception and transmission of data and signaling. When the WUR circuit does not receive a WUR, the main circuit continues to maintain an off state, thereby reducing the power consumption of the terminal device.

[0159] After the WUR mechanism is implemented, if the main circuit is frequently awakened, it is difficult for the terminal device to achieve a good power saving effect. For example, in the current 3GPP communication system, a terminal device in an idle or inactive state performs radio resource management (RRM) measurements on a serving cell and / or a neighboring cell, and can further determine whether to perform cell reselection based on the measurement results of the serving cell and / or the neighboring cell. After the WUR mechanism is implemented, when the main circuit of the terminal device is in an off state and the WUR circuit is in an on state, if the terminal device still performs RRM measurements in the idle and / or inactive state, the main circuit of the terminal device is frequently awakened based on the RRM measurement requirements. As a result, it is still difficult for the terminal device to achieve a good power saving effect.

[0160] In light of this, the present application provides a communication method and a communication device for controlling the state switching of a main circuit of a terminal device, which can reduce the number of times the main circuit is woken up, thus promoting power saving of the terminal device.

[0161] 5 is a schematic flowchart of a communication method 200 according to the present application. As shown in FIG. 5, the method may include the following steps:

[0162] S210: The terminal device obtains first information.

[0163] The terminal device includes a primary communication module and a secondary communication module, and the first information is used to change a state of the primary communication module of the terminal device. Specifically, the state of the primary communication module includes a first state and a second state.

[0164] Specifically, the first state includes the main communication module being in an idle state, an inactive state, and a connected state. In other words, the idle state, the inactive state, and the connected state are situations in which the main communication module is in the first state. The main communication module being in an idle state, an inactive state, or a connected state may also be referred to as the terminal device being in an idle state, an inactive state, or a connected state. Steps performed by the terminal device in the idle state, the inactive state, or the connected state may be understood as steps performed by the main communication module in the first state.

[0165] The first state may be referred to as an on state, a started state, a running state, an enabled state, an active state, an awake state, etc. In other words, when the main communication module is in the first state, the terminal device listens to synchronization signals, receives DCI, and / or listens to paging, etc. The second state may be referred to as an off state, a dormant state, a sleep state, a deep sleep state, a low power state, a disabled state, an inactive state, etc. In other words, when the main communication module is in the second state, the terminal device does not listen to synchronization signals, does not receive DCI, does not listen to paging, etc. The synchronization signal may be located in a synchronization signal / physical broadcast channel block (SSB).

[0166] Similar to the primary communication module, the states of the secondary communication module include a third state and a fourth state.

[0167] Specifically, the third state may be referred to as an on state, a started state, a running state, an enabled state, an active state, an awake state, etc. In other words, when the secondary communication module is in the third state, the terminal device listens for a power-saving signal such as a wake-up radio (WUR) signal. The fourth state may be referred to as an off state, a hibernate state, a sleep state, a deep sleep state, a low-power state, a disabled state, an inactive state, etc. In other words, when the secondary communication module is in the fourth state, the terminal device does not listen for a power-saving signal such as a WUR signal.

[0168] When the main communication module is in the first state, the secondary communication module may be in the third state or in the fourth state. When the main communication module is in the second state, the secondary communication module may be in the third state or in the fourth state. In other words, in this application, the state of the terminal device may include the following several situations:

[0169] Situation 1: The primary communication module is in the ON state and the secondary communication module is in the ON state.

[0170] Situation 2: The primary communication module is in the ON state and the secondary communication module is in the OFF state.

[0171] Situation 3: The primary communication module is in the off state and the secondary communication module is in the on state.

[0172] Situation 4: The primary communication module is in the off state and the secondary communication module is in the off state.

[0173] Optionally, in this application, the situation in which the primary communication module is in the second state and the secondary communication module is in the first state may be referred to as a WUR mode. In the WUR mode, the primary communication module of the terminal device no longer listens to or receives conventional wake-up signals (e.g., PDCCH signaling with a wake-up function, or a signal or sequence with a wake-up function).

[0174] The first information is used to change the state of the main communication module of the terminal device, in other words, the terminal device can change the state of the main communication module based on the first information.

[0175] Optionally, the first information may be further used to change a state of a secondary communication module of the terminal device, for example, the terminal device switches the primary communication module from the first state to the second state and switches the secondary communication module from the fourth state to the third state based on the first information.

[0176] Optionally, the first information may not be used to change the state of the secondary communication module of the terminal device. For example, no matter how the state of the main communication module changes, the secondary communication module is in the third state. In this case, the terminal device only needs to change the state of the main communication module based on the first information. In this case, the main communication module is in the first state, i.e., the terminal device is in the first state, and the main communication module is in the second state, i.e., the terminal device is in the second state.

[0177] Obtaining the first information by the terminal device includes the terminal device reading pre-configured first information or the terminal device receiving the first information from the network device.

[0178] S220: The terminal device changes the state of the main communication module based on the first information.

[0179] For example, the main communication module is originally in a first state, and the terminal device switches the main communication module from the first state to the second state based on the first information. As another example, the main communication module is originally in a second state, and the terminal device switches the main communication module from the second state to the first state based on the first information.

[0180] The first information may be a condition, and the terminal device may determine whether to change the state of the main communication module based on whether the condition is met. Alternatively, the first information may be instruction information. For example, if the first information instructs the terminal device to change the state of the main communication module, the terminal device may change the state of the main communication module according to the instruction.

[0181] Optionally, in this application, the switching of the main communication module from the first state to the second state may also be referred to as the terminal device entering the WUR mode, including the terminal device entering the WUR mode from the idle state, or the terminal device entering the WUR mode from the inactive state, or the terminal device entering the WUR mode from the connected state. The switching of the main communication module from the second state to the first state may also be referred to as the terminal device exiting the WUR mode, including the terminal device entering the idle state after exiting the WUR mode, or the terminal device entering the inactive state after exiting the WUR mode, or the terminal device entering the connected state after exiting the WUR mode.

[0182] Based on the above solution, the terminal device can adjust the state of the main communication module according to the first information, i.e., control the state switching of the main communication module, thereby helping to save power of the terminal device.

[0183] In one implementation scenario of the above embodiment, the first information is a first condition, the first condition is used to evaluate the quality of a first service area of ​​the terminal device, the first service area is the service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in a first state, and the terminal device switches the main communication module from the second state to the first state when the first condition is met.

[0184] The first condition may be that the fluctuation in the quality of the first service area within a first time threshold is less than or equal to a first fluctuation threshold, and the first time threshold is greater than or equal to a time threshold in the low mobility criterion, or the first fluctuation threshold is less than or equal to a fluctuation threshold in the low mobility criterion.

[0185] Specifically, the low mobility criteria are also referred to as stationary or quasi-stationary criteria, and are collectively referred to as low mobility criteria for purposes of explanation in this application.

[0186] 6 is a diagram of the low mobility criterion. As shown in FIG. 6, the basic principle of the low mobility criterion is to evaluate whether the fluctuation in the quality of the service area of ​​the terminal device within a specific time (Tthreshold) is less than (or equal to) a given threshold (LSthreshold). If the fluctuation in the quality of the service area of ​​the terminal device within a specific time (Tthreshold) is less than (or equal to) the given threshold (LSthreshold), the low mobility criterion is met. The low mobility criterion may be used when the terminal device is in an idle state, an inactive state, or a connected state, and may optionally be used as a criterion for entering a WUR mode.

[0187] It should be understood that in FIG. 6, Sthreshold represents a threshold value, the value of Sthreshold may be equal to LSthreshold, and Sref represents a cell quality reference value.

[0188] Specifically, if the fluctuation in the quality of the terminal device's serving cell or service area within a specific time Tthreshold is less than (or equal to) the threshold LSthreshold, the terminal device determines that the terminal device may enter the WUR mode from an idle state or an inactive state, or the terminal device directly enters the WUR mode when it determines that the terminal device may leave the connected state. Alternatively, if the fluctuation in the quality of the terminal device's serving cell or service area within a specific time Tthreshold is greater than (or equal to) the threshold LSthreshold, the terminal device determines that the terminal device should not enter the WUR mode from an idle state or an inactive state, or the terminal device directly enters the WUR mode when it determines that the terminal device should not leave the connected state.

[0189] As a further improvement, the low mobility criterion may be improved to be more applicable in the WUR mode. For example, the improvement may be to introduce a second threshold LSthreshold_e (an example of a first fluctuation threshold), where the threshold LSthreshold_e may have a value smaller than LSthreshold. Alternatively, the improvement may be to introduce a second threshold Tthreshold-e (an example of a first time threshold), where the threshold Tthreshold-e may have a value larger than Tthreshold, which is referred to as the improved low mobility criterion for short.

[0190] Specifically, if the fluctuation in the quality of the terminal device's serving cell or service area within a specific time Tthreshold or Tthreshold-e is less than (or equal to or less than) the second threshold LSthreshold-e, the terminal device determines that the terminal device may enter the WUR mode from an idle state or an inactive state, or the terminal device directly enters the WUR mode when it determines that the terminal device may leave the connected state. If the fluctuation in the quality of the terminal device's serving cell or service area within a specific time Tthreshold or Tthreshold-e is greater than (or equal to or greater than) the second threshold LSthreshold-e, the terminal device determines that the terminal device should not enter the WUR mode from an idle state or an inactive state, or the terminal device directly enters the WUR mode when it determines that the terminal device should not leave the connected state.

[0191] The first condition may alternatively be that the quality of the first coverage area is greater than or equal to a first quality threshold, the first quality threshold being greater than or equal to a threshold on a cell center basis.

[0192] Specifically, the cell-center reference may also be referred to as the non-cell-edge reference, and this application will be described in terms of the cell-center reference.

[0193] 7 is a diagram of the cell center criterion. As shown in FIG. 7, the basic principle of the cell center criterion is to evaluate whether the quality of the service area of ​​the terminal device is greater than a given threshold (CSthreshold). If the quality of the service area of ​​the terminal device is greater than the given threshold (CSthreshold), the non-cell edge criterion is met. The non-cell edge criterion may be applied to the idle state, the inactive state, and the connected state, and may optionally be used as a criterion for the terminal device to enter or exit the WUR mode.

[0194] In FIG. 7, Sthreshold represents the threshold value, and it should be understood that the value of Sthreshold can be equal to CSthreshold.

[0195] Specifically, if the quality of the serving cell or service area of ​​the terminal device is greater than (or equal to) the threshold CSthreshold, the terminal device determines that the terminal device may enter the WUR mode from an idle state or an inactive state, or the terminal device directly enters the WUR mode when it determines that the terminal device may leave the connected state. If the quality of the serving cell or service area of ​​the terminal device is less than (or equal to) the threshold CSthreshold, the terminal device determines that the terminal device should not enter the WUR mode from an idle state or an inactive state, or the terminal device directly enters the WUR mode when it determines that the terminal device should not leave the connected state.

[0196] Alternatively, the above criteria may be further improved. For example, a second threshold CSthreshold-e (an example of the first quality threshold) is introduced, the second threshold CSthreshold-e is greater than CSthreshold, and CSthreshold-e is used to determine whether the terminal device enters or exits the WUR mode, which may be referred to as an improved low mobility criterion for short.

[0197] Specifically, if the quality of the serving cell or service area of ​​the terminal device is greater than (or equal to) the second threshold CSthreshold-e, the terminal device determines that the terminal device may enter the WUR mode from an idle state or an inactive state, or the terminal device directly enters the WUR mode when it determines that the terminal device may leave the connected state. If the quality of the serving cell or service area of ​​the terminal device is less than (or equal to) the second threshold CSthreshold-e, the terminal device determines that the terminal device should not enter the WUR mode from an idle state or an inactive state, or the terminal device directly enters the WUR mode when it determines that the terminal device should not leave the connected state.

[0198] The first condition may alternatively be that the quality of the first coverage area is greater than a second quality threshold, the second quality threshold being equal to or greater than a threshold in the S criterion.

[0199] The S criterion means that when the quality of the serving cell or service area of ​​the terminal device is greater than a threshold SSthreshold, the terminal device no longer needs to measure inter-frequency or inter-RAT neighboring cells, but the terminal device needs to measure cells of high priority frequencies.

[0200] For a terminal device that supports the WUR mode, if it determines that the criterion S is met, the terminal device can determine that it will enter the WUR mode, or that the conditions for entering the WUR mode are met.

[0201] As an improvement of the S criterion, a second threshold SSthreshold-e (an example of a second quality threshold) may be introduced, where the threshold SSthreshold-e is different from SSthreshold, for example, the second threshold SSthreshold-e is greater than SSthreshold. The UE can determine whether to enter the WUR mode or whether the conditions for entering the WUR mode are met based on the second threshold SSthreshold-e.

[0202] The above description is of a single criterion or condition item for a terminal device. Specifically, the terminal device determines whether the terminal device can enter the WUR mode from an idle state or an inactive state, or whether the terminal device can directly enter the WUR mode when leaving a connected state, based on a single criterion. Optionally, the terminal device can refer to multiple criterion items among the above criteria to determine whether the terminal device can enter the WUR mode from an idle state, an inactive state, or a connected state based on the multiple criterion items. For example, only when the terminal device determines that both the improved low mobility criterion and the improved cell center criterion are satisfied, the terminal device can determine that the terminal device can enter the WUR mode from an idle state or an inactive state, or the UE can determine that the terminal device should directly enter the WUR mode when leaving a connected state. In this case, it will be understood that the first condition includes multiple conditions.

[0203] In addition, the first condition may be understood as a judgment condition for entering the WUR mode. Satisfying the first condition may be understood as satisfying the condition for entering the WUR mode, and not satisfying the first condition may be understood as not satisfying the condition for entering the WUR mode.

[0204] In one implementation, the quality of the first coverage area of ​​the terminal device may be evaluated by the main communication module by measuring reference information such as the SSB or channel state information-reference signal (CSI-RS) of the cell.

[0205] Based on the aforementioned solution, the terminal device can adjust the state of the main communication module based on a first condition, and when the quality of the first service area meets the first condition, the terminal device switches the main communication module from the second state to the first state, thus promoting power saving of the terminal device.

[0206] In addition, the terminal device can make its own decisions, which increases power saving efficiency.

[0207] Optionally, when the first condition is met, the terminal device stops performing measurements on the high priority frequency, in other words, regardless of whether the neighboring cell is a cell on the high priority frequency, the terminal device switches the main communication module to the second state and stops measuring the neighboring cell.

[0208] Based on the above solution, when the quality of the first coverage area meets the first condition, the terminal device stops performing measurements on the high-priority frequency, so that the power consumption of the terminal device can be reduced more significantly.

[0209] Optionally, in this implementation scenario, method 200 further includes a step in which the terminal device transmits second information to the network device when it determines that the aforementioned criteria or judgment conditions are met, the second information being used to request a change in the state of the main communication module or indicating that the state of the main communication module is to change.

[0210] Specifically, when it determines that the aforementioned criteria or judgment conditions are met, the terminal device initiates a random access procedure to request the network device to enter the WUR mode or to indicate that the terminal device is about to enter the WUR mode.

[0211] The second information may be carried in message 3 (Msg 3) in the random access procedure.

[0212] Specifically, the terminal device may indicate in the random access message 3 that the access reason is a request to enter the WUR mode, or the terminal device may add an identifier of the terminal device in the WUR mode to the transmitted random access message 3. Optionally, the identifier of the terminal device may alternatively be a WUR sequence or WUR sequence information corresponding to the terminal device. In other words, the terminal device may send the WUR sequence or WUR sequence information of the terminal device to the network device in the random access message 3. In this specification, the WUR sequence information may be an identifier of the WUR sequence.

[0213] Further, the terminal device may receive a message 4 (Msg 4) sent by the network device, where message 4 may include a WUR mode acknowledgement message, which is the network device's response to the second information.

[0214] Based on the above solution, the terminal device and the network device can agree on the current state of the terminal device, for example, whether the terminal device is in an idle state, an inactive state, or a WUR mode, so that the network device can efficiently use WUR resources for a specific terminal device.

[0215] Optionally, in this implementation scenario, method 200 further includes the steps of: the network device sending third information to the terminal device; and correspondingly, the terminal device receiving the third information, wherein the third information instructs the network device to allow the terminal device to switch the main communication module from the first state to the second state.

[0216] In one implementation, the network device's permission to the terminal device to switch the main communication module from the first state to the second state can be understood as response information, i.e., the network device instructs the terminal device whether to switch the main communication module from the first state to the second state. For example, after the terminal device sends the second information, the network device permits the terminal device to switch the main communication module from the first state to the second state. In this case, the third information can be understood as the network device's response to the second information.

[0217] In another implementation, the network device's permission to the terminal device to switch the main communication module from the first state to the second state may also be understood as configuration information, i.e., the network device instructs whether the terminal device is permitted to perform the switching itself. Self-switching means that the terminal device can switch the main communication module from the first state to the second state by itself without the terminal device needing to send second information to the network device before switching the main communication module from the first state to the second state. For example, before S220, the network device may send third information to the terminal device, and the third information may be understood as instructing the network device to permit the network device to autonomously switch the main communication module from the first state to the second state.

[0218] Specifically, the third information may be carried in a radio resource control (RRC) connection release message, an RRC connection rejection message, or an RRC reconfiguration message.

[0219] For example, when the terminal device is in a connected state, the terminal device can receive an RRC connection release message from the network device. Upon receiving the RRC connection release message, the terminal device can determine whether to enter an idle state or an inactive state according to the instruction in the RRC connection release message. For example, the RRC connection release message instructs the terminal device to enter the idle state. After receiving the RRC connection release message, the terminal device can first enter the idle state and then further determine whether the conditions for entering the WUR mode are met. If the conditions are met, the terminal device determines to enter the WUR mode from the idle state. Alternatively, upon receiving the RRC connection release message, the terminal device does not enter the idle state or the inactive state but performs condition determination. If the conditions for entering the WUR mode are met, the terminal device determines that the terminal device can enter the WUR mode. The RRC connection release message can carry third information. The RRC connection release message is also referred to as an RRC release message.

[0220] As another example, when the terminal device is in an idle state or an inactive state, the terminal device may perform an RRC connection setup process with the network device. In this process, the terminal device may receive an RRC rejection message or an RRC reconfiguration message from the network device. The RRC rejection message indicates to the terminal device that the network device rejects the RRC connection setup, and the RRC reconfiguration message is used to provide configuration information to the terminal device. The RRC rejection message or the RRC reconfiguration message may carry third information.

[0221] In another implementation scenario of the aforementioned embodiment, the first information instructs the main communication module to switch from a first state to a second state.

[0222] For example, when the terminal device is in a connected state, the terminal device may receive an RRC connection release message from the network device. The network device may instruct the terminal device to enter an idle state, an inactive state, or a WUR mode in the RRC connection release message. Upon receiving the RRC connection release message, the terminal device may determine whether to enter the idle state, the inactive state, or the WUR mode based on the information instructed in the RRC connection release message.

[0223] As another example, in the process of the terminal device establishing an RRC connection to the network device, the terminal device may receive an RRC rejection message from the network device, and the network device may instruct the terminal device in the RRC rejection message whether to enter the WUR mode.

[0224] Optionally, in this implementation scenario, method 200 further includes a step in which the terminal device transmits a measurement result of the first service area to the network device, and correspondingly, the network device receives the measurement result of the first service area, where the first service area is the service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in the first state.

[0225] For example, before S220, the first coverage area measurement result may be sent to the network device using an RRC connection establishment request message.

[0226] In one implementation, the quality of the first coverage area of ​​the terminal device may be evaluated by the main communication module by measuring reference information such as SSB or CSI-RS of the cell.

[0227] The measurement result of the first coverage area may also be understood as the quality of the first coverage area.

[0228] Optionally, in this implementation scenario, method 200 further includes the network device determining the first information based on a measurement result of the first service area. For example, if the measurement result of the first service area satisfies a predetermined condition, the network device transmits the first information to the terminal device. If the measurement result of the first service area does not satisfy the predetermined condition, the network device does not transmit the first information to the terminal device.

[0229] Specifically, the network device also manages a predetermined condition. The predetermined condition may be a first condition. If the measurement result of the first service area satisfies the first condition, the network device can instruct the terminal device to directly enter the WUR mode from the connected state.

[0230] Based on the above solution, the network device can control the terminal device to adjust the state of the main communication module, and when the quality of the first service area meets a first condition, the network device can instruct the terminal device to switch the main communication module from the second state to the first state, thus promoting power saving of the terminal device.

[0231] Additionally, in this way, the terminal device can be prevented from using additional signaling to reconcile its state with the network device, thus reducing signaling overhead.

[0232] Optionally, in any one of the aforementioned implementation scenarios, method 200 further includes a step in which the terminal device sends fourth information to the network device, and correspondingly, the network device receives fourth information from the terminal device, wherein the fourth information indicates that the terminal device tends to enter an idle state when leaving the connected state, or tends to enter an inactive state when leaving the connected state, or tends to enter a second state when leaving the connected state.

[0233] For example, when the terminal device is in a connected state or in the process of establishing an RRC connection, the terminal device can send tendency information of the terminal device to the network in an uplink message. The tendency information may include that the terminal device tends to enter an idle state when leaving the connected state, or that the terminal device tends to enter an inactive state when leaving the connected state, or that the terminal device tends to enter a WUR mode when leaving the connected state.

[0234] Optionally, in this implementation scenario, the method 200 further includes the network device determining the first information based on the fourth information.

[0235] For example, if the tendency information reported by the terminal device indicates that the terminal device tends to preferentially enter the WUR mode when leaving the connected state, the network device can instruct the terminal device in the RRC connection release indication to enter the WUR mode when leaving the connected state based on the tendency information reported by the terminal device.

[0236] Optionally, in any one of the aforementioned implementation scenarios, the RRC connection release message or the RRC reconfiguration message may further indicate that when the terminal device switches from the second state to the first state, the first state should be selected as an idle state or an inactive state.

[0237] Optionally, in this implementation scenario, method 200 further includes a step in which, when the terminal device exits the WUR mode, the terminal device switches from the second state to an idle state or an inactive state based on an RRC connection release message or an RRC reconfiguration message.

[0238] In another implementation scenario of the aforementioned embodiment, the first information is a second condition, which is used to evaluate the quality of a second service area of ​​the terminal device, the second service area being the service area of ​​the terminal device when the primary communication module is in the second state. If the quality of the second service area does not satisfy the second condition, the primary communication module is switched from the second state to the first state. In other words, if the quality of the second service area satisfies the second condition, the state of the primary communication module is not changed, i.e., the primary communication module is maintained in the second state.

[0239] The second condition may be that the fluctuation in the quality of the second service area within a second time threshold is less than or equal to a second fluctuation threshold, and the second time threshold is greater than or equal to the time threshold in the low mobility criterion, or the second fluctuation threshold is less than or equal to the fluctuation threshold in the low mobility criterion.

[0240] For example, if the terminal device detects that the fluctuation in the quality of the serving cell or service area within a specific time period T is greater than (or equal to) a third threshold L S -e2 (an example of a second fluctuation threshold), the terminal device determines that the terminal device should exit the WUR mode. Alternatively, if the fluctuation in the quality of the serving cell or service area of ​​the terminal device within a specific time period T is greater than (or equal to) the third threshold L S -e2, the terminal device determines that the terminal device should exit the WUR mode. The third threshold L S -e2 may be equal to the second threshold L S -e, or the third threshold L S -e2 may be equal to the threshold L S -e. It should be understood that the second time threshold may be another value in addition to being equal to T or T. For example, the second time threshold is T, and T is greater than T. This is not a limitation of the present application.

[0241] The second condition may be that the quality of the second coverage area is equal to or greater than a third quality threshold, the third quality threshold being equal to or greater than a threshold on a cell center basis.

[0242] For example, if the quality of the serving cell or service area of ​​the terminal device is less than (or equal to) a third threshold CSthreshold-e2 (an example of a third quality threshold), the terminal device determines that the terminal device should exit the WUR mode. In this specification, the third threshold CSthreshold-e2 may be equal to the second threshold CSthreshold-e, or may be equal to the threshold CSthreshold, or may be another value. This is not limited in the present application.

[0243] The second condition may be that the quality of the second service area is greater than or equal to a fourth quality threshold, the fourth quality threshold being greater than or equal to a threshold in the S criterion.

[0244] For example, if the quality of the terminal device's serving cell or service area is less than (or equal to) a third threshold SSthreshold-e2 (an example of a fourth quality threshold), the terminal device determines that the terminal device should exit the WUR mode. In this specification, the third threshold SSthreshold-e2 may be equal to the second threshold SSthreshold-e, or may be equal to the threshold SSthreshold, or may be another value. This is not limited in the present application.

[0245] The above description is a description of a single criterion or condition item for the terminal device. Specifically, the terminal device determines whether the terminal device can exit the WUR mode based on the single criterion. Optionally, the terminal device can refer to multiple criterion items among the above criteria to determine whether the terminal device can exit the WUR mode based on the multiple criterion items. For example, the terminal device can determine to exit the WUR mode only if it determines that neither the improved low mobility criterion nor the improved cell center criterion is satisfied. In this case, it will be understood that the second condition includes multiple conditions.

[0246] In addition, the second condition may be understood as a judgment condition for exiting the WUR mode. Not satisfying the second condition may be understood as satisfying the condition for exiting the WUR mode, and satisfying the second condition may be understood as not satisfying the condition for exiting the WUR mode.

[0247] Optionally, the value of the threshold in the second condition may be the same as that in the first condition.

[0248] Based on the above solution, if the quality of the second service area satisfies the second condition, the main communication module of the terminal device may remain in the second state. In this way, a better power saving effect may be achieved. If the quality of the second service area does not satisfy the second condition, the main communication module of the terminal device may switch to the first state. In this way, it may be ensured that the communication performance of the terminal device is not affected.

[0249] Optionally, a service area may include one or more cells, and the quality of the service area is the signal quality or average signal quality of a terminal device in one or more cells included in the service area.

[0250] It should be understood that in this application, a first service area is a service area of ​​the terminal device when the primary communication module is in a first state, and a second service area is a service area of ​​the terminal device when the primary communication module is in a second state. The first service area includes one or more cells, and the second service area also includes one or more cells. The first service area and the second service area may be the same or different.

[0251] Specifically, the first service area may be a serving cell and / or a neighboring cell of a terminal device in an idle state, an inactive state, or a connected state as defined in the current standard.

[0252] Specifically, the second service area may include multiple cells and may be referred to as a WUR area. Within the WUR area, the terminal device has one or more WUR wake-up signals or wake-up sequences. In the WUR area, the terminal device can determine whether it is suitable to maintain WUR mode within the WUR area by detecting the WUR signal quality.

[0253] A WUR area may include multiple gNB-DUs in a single gNB-CU, and the WUR signal or sequence of a terminal device (second WUR) may be unique within the range of multiple gNB-DUs controlled by the gNB-CU. Alternatively, a WUR area may include multiple gNB-CUs. In this case, negotiation control of the WUR signal or sequence of a specific terminal device may be performed between the gNB-CU and neighboring gNB-CUs to keep the WUR of the specific terminal device as unique as possible within the area. Alternatively, a CN entity, such as an access and mobility management function (AMF), may manage multiple gNB-CUs. This CN entity can control the WUR signal or sequence of a specific terminal device so that the WUR signal or sequence of the specific terminal device is as unique as possible within a WUR area that includes multiple gNB-CUs.

[0254] In one implementation, the quality of the second service area of ​​the terminal device may be evaluated by the secondary communication module through detection based on a WUR, where the WUR may be a first WUR, and the first WUR is used to determine the quality of the service area of ​​the terminal device.

[0255] Specifically, in this implementation scenario, method 200 further includes a step in which the terminal device listens to a first WUR using a secondary communication module, where the first WUR can be understood as a WUR used for measurement.

[0256] It should be understood that a WUR sequence may be used for wakeup or for measurement. For a particular UE, if one or more WUR sequences correspond to the UE, the one or more WUR sequences can be used to wake up the particular UE. However, the one or more WUR sequences can also be used by the UE and another UE to perform measurements. Similarly, other WUR sequences are not used to wake up the UE, but the UE can use these other WUR sequences to measure cell quality. In this application, for distinction, a WUR used for measurement is referred to as a first WUR, and a WUR used for wakeup is referred to as a second WUR. The first WUR may be one or more WURs, and the second WUR may also be one or more WURs. Optionally, there may be a common set between the WUR sequences included in the first WUR and the WUR sequences included in the second WUR.

[0257] Optionally, the WUR to be measured may be the WUR of another terminal device in the network, in other words, the first WUR may include a WUR sequence used to wake up another terminal device in the communication system.

[0258] Based on the above solution, the WUR sequence can not only be used to wake up the primary communication module of the terminal device, but also be used by the secondary communication module of the terminal device to perform cell measurement in WUR mode, so that the terminal device can obtain more WUR sequences to obtain better measurement results. In this way, the performance of the terminal device in WUR mode can be guaranteed, and more accurate criteria can be provided for determining whether the terminal device should exit WUR mode.

[0259] Optionally, in this implementation scenario, method 200 further includes a step in which the terminal device sends sixth information to the network device, and correspondingly, the network device receives the sixth information, where the sixth information indicates that the state of the main communication module is to change.

[0260] Specifically, when the terminal device in the WUR mode determines that the aforementioned exit criteria or conditions are met based on the detection quality of the serving cell or service area, the terminal device determines to exit the WUR mode and determines to wake up the primary communication module. In other words, the primary communication module of the terminal device enters a first state. Furthermore, the terminal device can trigger the primary communication module to perform a random access procedure and notify the network that the terminal device has exited the WUR mode.

[0261] The sixth information may be carried in message 3 in the random access procedure.

[0262] For example, the sixth information is an identifier of the terminal device when the main communication module is in the second state, or an identifier of the terminal device corresponding to the secondary communication module when the main communication module is in the second state.

[0263] Specifically, the terminal device may indicate in the random access message 3 that the access reason is a request to exit the WUR mode, or the terminal device may add the ID of the terminal device in the WUR mode to the transmitted random access message 3. Optionally, the ID of the terminal device may alternatively be a WUR sequence or WUR sequence information corresponding to the terminal device. In other words, the terminal device may send the WUR sequence or WUR sequence information of the terminal device to the network device in the random access message 3. In this specification, the WUR sequence information may be the ID or identifier of the WUR sequence.

[0264] It should be understood that the identifier of the terminal device in the first state may be different from the identifier of the terminal device in the second state. For example, the identifier of the terminal device in the first state may be a UE ID, and the identifier of the terminal device in the second state may be a WUR ID defined in the NR standard.

[0265] Based on the above solution, the terminal device and the network device can agree on the current state of the terminal device, for example, whether the terminal device is in an idle state, an inactive state, or a WUR mode, so that the network device can efficiently use WUR resources for a specific terminal device.

[0266] Optionally, in this implementation scenario, the method 200 further includes the steps of the terminal device first performing cell selection before performing random access, selecting a suitable cell to obtain system information, and then initiating the random access procedure.

[0267] Specifically, in one implementation, the terminal device performs cell selection using the primary communication module. For example, when the terminal device needs to exit the WUR mode, the terminal device first awakens the primary communication mode, and the primary communication module performs cell selection and initiates random access. In another implementation, the terminal device performs cell selection using the secondary communication module. For example, the secondary communication module performs cell selection based on the measurement results of the first WUR. The secondary communication module can notify the primary communication module of the selected cell, and the primary communication module then receives system information and initiates random access.

[0268] Optionally, in this implementation scenario, method 200 further includes a step in which the network device sends a response message to the terminal device for the sixth information, and correspondingly, the terminal device receives the response message, where the response message can be understood as a WUR mode exit message and includes a WUR mode exit instruction.

[0269] Specifically, the terminal device can receive a WUR mode exit message from the network to obtain the WUR mode exit instruction information, or the terminal device can obtain the WUR mode exit instruction information from an RRC connection release message. The WUR mode exit message or the RRC connection release message may include instruction information instructing the terminal device to enter an idle state or an inactive state after exiting the WUR mode, as instructed by the network. The terminal device determines to enter the idle state or the inactive state based on the state instructed by the network.

[0270] In addition, the message name and specific form of the response message are not limited in this application.

[0271] In yet another implementation scenario of the above embodiment, the terminal device uses a secondary communication module to listen to a second WUR, and the second WUR instructs the terminal device to receive a paging message using the main communication module, and when the secondary communication module detects the second WUR by listening, the terminal device switches the main communication module from the second state to the first state.

[0272] Specifically, the second WUR instructs the terminal device to receive a paging message using the main communication module, or instructs the terminal device to wake up the main communication module, or instructs the terminal device to switch the main communication module from the second state to the first state. When the main communication module is in the first state, the main communication module receives the paging message.

[0273] Optionally, in this implementation scenario, method 200 further includes a step of transmitting downlink control information DCI to the terminal device, where the DCI includes scheduling information for a paging message, and the paging message is used to page the terminal device.

[0274] Specifically, in one implementation, when the network device determines that the terminal device is currently in a WUR mode, the network device determines that the main communication module of the terminal device is turned off, and determines to wake up the terminal device using a second WUR to instruct the terminal device to receive a paging message. In other words, when the network device needs to page the terminal device, it sends a second WUR to the terminal device. After detecting that the terminal device has woken up the second WUR, the terminal device sends a wake-up instruction to the main communication module to instruct the main communication module to receive a paging message. When the network device determines that the terminal device is not currently in a WUR mode, the network device can directly send a DCI to the terminal device, where the DCI includes scheduling information for the paging message, and the terminal device can receive the paging message based on the scheduling information for the paging message. When the network device determines that the terminal device is not currently in a WUR mode, the network device does not need to send a second WUR to the terminal device.

[0275] In another implementation, if the network device does not know that the terminal device is currently in WUR mode, when it determines that the terminal device needs to be paged or woken up, the network device can send both the second WUR and the DCI. For example, the second WUR and the DCI may be sent to the same PO to quickly wake up the terminal device to receive the page. When the terminal device is in WUR mode, the primary communication module of the terminal device is turned off. After detecting the second WUR, the terminal device sends a wake-up instruction to the primary communication module to instruct the primary communication module to receive the paging message. If the terminal device is not in WUR mode, the primary communication module of the terminal device can directly receive the DCI to further receive the paging message. Additionally, in this implementation, the network device can first use the second WUR to attempt to wake up the primary communication module of the terminal device to receive the paging message. If the terminal device still does not access the network after a certain period of time, the network can use the DCI to attempt to wake up the terminal device to receive the paging message.

[0276] The process by which the terminal device receives a paging message is described in FIG. 2 above, and the details will not be described again here.

[0277] It should be understood that in the present application, when the terminal device is in a WUR mode, waking up the terminal device may include switching the main communication module from the second state to the first state, and may further include receiving, by the main communication module, a paging message based on a DCI. When the terminal device is not in a WUR mode, waking up the terminal device includes receiving, by the main communication module, a paging message based on a DCI, where the DCI includes scheduling information for the paging message.

[0278] Optionally, in this application, there are two situations in which the terminal device performs random access. In one situation, after the main communication module switches to the first state, the main communication module is responsible for receiving a paging message, and after receiving the paging message, the main communication module performs random access. In another situation, after receiving the second WUR, the terminal device already knows that it is being paged. For example, the second WUR has UE ID information, or the second WUR has one-to-one correspondence with the terminal device. In this case, after the main communication module switches to the first state, the main communication module can directly perform random access.

[0279] Based on the above solution, the terminal device in WUR mode can determine whether to wake up the main communication module by monitoring the second WUR, thereby achieving good power saving effect for the terminal device and ensuring that the normal communication of the terminal device is not affected.

[0280] Optionally, in any one of the aforementioned implementation scenarios, the method may further include a step in which the network device sends first configuration information to the terminal device, and correspondingly, the terminal device receives the first configuration information.

[0281] The first configuration information is used to configure the first WUR and / or the second WUR, and the first configuration information includes fifth information, which indicates that the first WUR is used for measurement and / or the second WUR is used for wake-up. The first configuration information may also be referred to as WUR configuration information.

[0282] The fifth information may indicate a WUR to be used for measurement in the communication system, i.e., the fifth information indicates that a first WUR is to be used for measurement. Alternatively, the fifth information may indicate a WUR to be used for waking up the terminal device in the communication system, i.e., the fifth information indicates that a second WUR is to be used for waking up.

[0283] Specifically, the WUR configuration information may include a table of correspondence between WURs and WUR functions, and the WUR configuration information may include configuration information of a WUR to be awakened and / or a WUR to be measured of a terminal device. The WUR to be awakened (i.e., the second WUR) of the terminal device indicates that the terminal device needs to receive a paging message, and the terminal device can also perform signal measurement operations on the WUR. The WUR to be measured (i.e., the first WUR) of the terminal device is used by the terminal device to measure signal quality. After performing measurements on one or more WURs to be measured, the terminal device can obtain cell quality information based on the measurement results of one or more WURs. Optionally, the WUR to be measured may also be a WUR to be awakened of another terminal device in the network.

[0284] In addition, the manner in which a terminal device receives the WUR configuration information sent by a network device may be that a terminal device in a connected state obtains the WUR configuration information from dedicated signaling sent by the network device, or that a terminal device in a connected, idle, or inactive state obtains the WUR configuration information from a broadcast message sent by the network device.

[0285] Optionally, the first configuration information may further include a first condition and / or a second condition. For example, when the network device transmits the first condition to the terminal device, the first condition may be transmitted in the first configuration information. When the network device transmits the second condition to the terminal device, the second condition may be transmitted in the first configuration information.

[0286] Optionally, if the network device sends the second condition to the terminal device, the second condition may be carried in the WUR mode acknowledgement message.

[0287] Optionally, the first configuration information may be carried in the WUR mode acknowledgement message.

[0288] It should be understood that one or more of the first condition, the second condition, the first configuration information, etc. may be pre-configured in the terminal device and do not need to be transmitted by the network device.

[0289] Optionally, the fifth information and the first WUR may be transmitted simultaneously. For example, to ensure that the terminal device can have enough first WUR for measurement even when there are not enough terminal devices to receive the second WUR, the second WUR may be used as the first WUR, and specific indication information or specific short sequence information may be used in combination, where the specific indication information or specific short sequence information indicates that the current WUR transmitted by the terminal device is only used to support measurement and is not used to wake up the specific terminal device, or does not indicate that the specific terminal device is to receive a paging message.

[0290] FIG. 8 is a diagram of information #A according to the present application. The WUR sequence in FIG. 8 may be a first WUR, which is used to wake up a specific terminal device or instruct a specific terminal device to receive a paging message. As shown in (a) and (b) of FIG. 8, information #A includes instruction information (an example of fifth information) and a WUR sequence. The instruction information in (a) and (b) of FIG. 8 is located on the left and right sides of the WUR sequence, respectively. The instruction information can indicate that the WUR sequence is used for measurement and is not used to wake up a terminal device to receive a paging message. As shown in (c) of FIG. 8, information #A includes a WUR instruction sequence (an example of fifth information) and a WUR sequence. The WUR instruction sequence can indicate that the WUR sequence is used for measurement and is not used to wake up a terminal device to receive a paging message.

[0291] Based on the aforementioned solution, the network device can send the first configuration information and / or the fifth information to the terminal device to instruct the terminal device to receive the first WUR and the second WUR more accurately, thus ensuring the performance of the terminal device in the WUR mode.

[0292] Optionally, in any one of the above implementation scenarios, when the main communication module is in the second state, the terminal device does not listen to or update system information (SI).

[0293] In this case, the method may further include a step of sending seventh information to the network device, the seventh information instructing the terminal device not to listen to or update system information when the main communication module is in the second state.

[0294] For example, the terminal device may add seventh information to the random access message.

[0295] Optionally, after switching the main communication module from the second state to the first state, the method 200 further includes the terminal device performing cell selection and receiving system information in the selected cell.

[0296] Specifically, the terminal device may indicate its type or preference to the network to indicate whether it needs to listen for changes in system information after entering the WUR mode. If the terminal device indicates that it does not need to listen for changes in SI, it does not listen to the WUR of updated system information in the WUR mode. In this case, when the terminal device later exits the WUR mode, it performs a cell selection operation and re-receives SI in the selected cell. The type of the terminal device may be whether the terminal device supports the WUR mode. If the terminal device supports the WUR mode, it may not listen for system information in the WUR mode by default.

[0297] Optionally, the terminal device not listening to or updating the system information may mean that the secondary communication module of the terminal device does not listen to or update the system information, or may mean that the primary communication module does not listen to or update the system information.

[0298] Optionally, the terminal device not listening to or updating the system information when the primary communication module is in the second state includes the terminal device not listening to or updating the system information when the primary communication module is in the first state and the second state. Alternatively, the terminal device listens to or updates the system information when the primary communication module is in the first state, and stops listening to or updating the system information after the primary communication module switches to the second state. For example, when the primary communication module is in the first state, the terminal device listens to or updates the system information using the primary communication module. After the primary communication module switches to the second state, both the primary communication module and the secondary communication module of the terminal device stop listening to or updating the system information.

[0299] Based on the above solution, when the main communication module is in the second state, the terminal device does not listen to or update system information, so that the power consumption of the terminal device can be reduced more significantly.

[0300] It should be understood that in practical applications, the above implementation scenarios may be combined with each other, and are not limited thereto.

[0301] 9 is a schematic flowchart of a communication method 300 according to the present application. The method 300 can be regarded as a specific implementation of the method 200. The method 300 includes the following steps:

[0302] S301: A base station (an example of a network device) sends WUR configuration information to a UE (an example of a terminal device).

[0303] The WUR configuration information includes indication information of a WUR to be measured (an example of a first WUR) and a WUR to be awakened (an example of a second WUR).

[0304] Optionally, the WUR configuration information may include condition #1 (an example of a first condition), which may be used as a criterion for entering the WUR mode.

[0305] Optionally, the UE is in a connected state when S301 is executed.

[0306] S302: The base station sends an RRC connection release message to the UE.

[0307] For example, the RRC connection release message instructs the UE to enter the idle state from the connected state, in which case the UE can enter the idle state based on the RRC connection release message.

[0308] S303: The UE measures the cell quality.

[0309] A UE in idle state performs cell measurements based on SSB or CSI-RS and determines whether the cell measurement results satisfy condition #1. If condition #1 is satisfied, the UE first performs S304 and S305, and then enters WUR mode.

[0310] S304: The UE initiates random access.

[0311] The UE requests to enter WUR mode with Msg3.

[0312] S305: The base station sends an acknowledgement message to the UE.

[0313] The acknowledgement message may indicate that the UE is authorized to enter the WUR mode.

[0314] Optionally, the acknowledgement message may include condition #2 (an example of a second condition), which may be used as a criterion for exiting WUR mode.

[0315] For example, steps S301 to S305 are all performed by the UE using the main communication module.

[0316] S306: The UE measures the cell quality.

[0317] The UE in the WUR mode performs cell measurement based on the WUR to be measured, and determines whether the cell measurement result satisfies condition #2. If condition #2 is met, the UE first wakes up the main communication module, i.e., exits the WUR mode, and then executes S307 and S308.

[0318] For example, the UE performs S306 using a secondary communication module.

[0319] For example, in step S306, the base station transmits the WUR to be measured to the UE.

[0320] S307: The UE initiates random access.

[0321] The UE can indicate with Msg4 that the UE has exited WUR mode.

[0322] S308: The base station sends an acknowledgement message to the UE.

[0323] S309: The UE performs cell reselection based on the RRM measurement.

[0324] For example, steps S307 to S309 are all performed by the UE using the main communication module.

[0325] Based on the solutions of the foregoing embodiments, the UE can be effectively controlled to enter or exit the WUR mode, thus ensuring the performance of the UE in the WUR mode.

[0326] In addition, when entering or exiting the WUR mode, the UE uses a random access procedure to notify the network of a related request or instruction to enter or exit the WUR mode, so that it can be ensured that the UE and the network device agree on the current state of the UE (i.e., idle state, inactive state, or WUR mode). In this way, the network can efficiently use WUR resources for a particular UE.

[0327] 10 is a schematic flowchart of a communication method 400 according to the present application. The method 400 can be regarded as a specific implementation of the method 200. The method 400 includes the following steps:

[0328] S401: A base station (an example of a network device) sends WUR configuration information to a UE (an example of a terminal device).

[0329] The WUR configuration information includes indication information of a WUR to be measured (an example of a first WUR) and a WUR to be awakened (an example of a second WUR).

[0330] Optionally, the WUR configuration information may include condition #1 (an example of a first condition), which may be used as a criterion for entering the WUR mode.

[0331] Optionally, the WUR configuration information may include condition #2 (an example of a second condition), which may be used as a criterion for exiting the WUR mode.

[0332] Optionally, the UE is in a connected state when S301 is executed.

[0333] S402: The base station sends an RRC connection release message to the UE.

[0334] For example, the RRC connection release message instructs the UE to enter the idle state from the connected state, in which case the UE can enter the idle state based on the RRC connection release message.

[0335] For example, the RRC connection release message further instructs the UE to enter an inactive state when exiting the WUR mode.

[0336] S403: The UE measures the cell quality and enters the WUR mode.

[0337] A UE in idle state performs cell measurements based on SSB or CSI-RS and determines whether the cell measurement results satisfy condition #1. If condition #1 is satisfied, the UE enters WUR mode.

[0338] For example, steps S401 to S403 are all performed by the UE using the main communication module.

[0339] S404: The UE measures the cell quality and exits the WUR mode.

[0340] The UE in the WUR mode performs cell measurement based on the WUR to be measured and determines whether the cell measurement result satisfies condition #2. If condition #2 is met, the UE wakes up the main communication module, i.e., exits the WUR mode.

[0341] In addition, the UE can exit the inactive state according to the instruction of the RRC connection release message. A UE in the WUR mode listens for a WUR to be woken up, and if a WUR to be woken up is detected by listening, the UE wakes up the main communication module.

[0342] For example, in step S404, the base station transmits the WUR to be measured to the UE.

[0343] S405: The UE listens for a WUR to be woken up.

[0344] Optionally, a UE in WUR mode can listen for a WUR to be awakened, and if a WUR to be awakened is detected by listening, the UE awakens the main communication module.

[0345] For example, in step S405, the base station sends a WUR to the UE to be woken up.

[0346] For example, the UE performs S404 and S405 using a secondary communication module.

[0347] S406: The UE performs cell reselection based on the RRM measurement.

[0348] For example, the UE uses the main communication module to perform S405 and S406.

[0349] Based on the above solution, the UE can be effectively controlled to enter or exit the WUR mode, and the state of the UE after the UE exits the WUR mode can be controlled, thereby ensuring the performance of the UE in the WUR mode. In addition, this solution can further avoid the random access procedure, so that the signaling overhead of the terminal can be reduced.

[0350] It should be understood that the method 300 and the method 400 are two specific implementations of the present application, and are intended to provide a better understanding of the present application, but do not constitute limitations on the solution of the present application.

[0351] The above describes in detail the technical solutions provided in the communication method of the embodiment of the present application with reference to Figures 1 to 10. Below, the communication device provided in the embodiment of the present application will be described with reference to Figures 11 to 13.

[0352] 11 is a block diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 11, the device 600 may include a processing unit 620. The processing unit 620 is configured to process data / information so as to implement the functions of the terminal device in the method 200, the method 300, or the method 400, or to implement the functions of the network device in the method 200, the method 300, or the method 400.

[0353] Optionally, the device 600 may further include a transceiver unit 610. The transceiver unit 610 can communicate with the outside. For example, the transceiver unit 610 can input data / information received from the outside to the processing unit. As another example, the transceiver unit 610 can output data / information processed by the processing unit to the outside. The transceiver unit 610 may also be referred to as a communication interface or a communication unit.

[0354] In one possible implementation, the apparatus 600 may be a terminal device of method 200, method 300, or method 400, or may be a chip configured to perform the functions of the terminal device of method 200, method 300, or method 400. Specifically, the apparatus 600 may perform the procedures performed by the terminal device in method 200, method 300, or method 400. The processing unit 620 is configured to perform the processing-related tasks of the terminal device in the procedures of the aforementioned methods.

[0355] For example, the processing unit 620 is configured to obtain first information, the first information being used to change a state of a primary communication module of a terminal device, the terminal device including a primary communication module and a secondary communication module, and the processing unit 620 is further configured to switch the primary communication module from a first state to a second state based on the first information, the first state including the primary communication module being in an idle state, an inactive state, or a connected state.

[0356] Optionally, in this implementation, the apparatus 600 further includes a transceiver unit 610. The transceiver unit 610 is configured to perform transmission and reception related tasks of the terminal device in the manner described above, for example, to transmit second information to the network device.

[0357] It should be understood that the processing unit 620 and the transceiver unit 610 may further separately perform any other steps, operations, and / or functions performed by the terminal device in methods 200, 300, or 400. The specific processes for performing the corresponding steps described above by each unit have been described in detail in the embodiments of the methods described above. For the sake of brevity, the details will not be described again herein.

[0358] In another possible implementation, the apparatus 600 may be the network device of method 200, method 300, or method 400, or may be a chip configured to perform the functionality of the network device of method 200, method 300, or method 400. Specifically, the apparatus 600 may perform the procedures performed by the network device corresponding to method 200, method 300, or method 400. The transceiver unit 610 is configured to perform transmission and reception related tasks of the network device in the procedures of the aforementioned methods, and the processing unit 620 is configured to perform processing related tasks of the network device in the procedures of the aforementioned methods.

[0359] For example, the processing unit 620 is configured to determine first information, the first information being used by the terminal device to switch the primary communication module from a first state to a second state, the first state including the primary communication module being in an idle state, an inactive state, and a connected state, and the terminal device including the primary communication module and the secondary communication module. The transceiver unit 610 is configured to transmit the first information to the terminal device.

[0360] It should be understood that the processing unit 620 and the transceiver unit 610 may further separately perform any other steps, operations, and / or functions performed by the network device in methods 200, 300, or 400. The specific processes for performing the corresponding steps described above by each unit have been described in detail in the embodiments of the methods described above. For the sake of brevity, the details will not be described again herein.

[0361] It should be further appreciated that in any one of the aforementioned implementations, the transceiver unit 610 may include a receiving unit 611 and a transmitting unit 612. The receiving unit 611 is configured to perform a receiving function in the transceiver unit 610, and the transmitting unit 612 is configured to perform a transmitting function in the transceiver unit 610.

[0362] The apparatus 600 has functionality to perform corresponding steps performed by a terminal device in method 200, method 300, or method 400, or the apparatus 600 has functionality to perform corresponding steps performed by a network device in method 200, method 300, or method 400. The functionality may be implemented by hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the aforementioned functionality. For example, in order to separately perform transmission and reception operations and related processing operations in the method embodiments, a transceiver unit may be replaced with a transceiver (e.g., a transmitting unit in the transceiver unit may be replaced with a transmitter, and a receiving unit in the transceiver unit may be replaced with a receiver), and another unit, for example, a processing unit, may be replaced with a processor.

[0363] It is to be understood that the apparatus 600 herein is embodied in the form of a functional unit, where the term "unit" may refer to an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), an electronic circuit, a processor (e.g., a shared, dedicated, or group processor) configured to execute one or more software or firmware programs, a memory, a merged logic circuit, and / or another suitable component that supports the described functionality.

[0364] In addition, the transceiver unit may alternatively be a transceiver circuit (e.g., may include a receiving circuit and a transmitting circuit), and the processing unit may be a processing circuit. In an embodiment of the present application, the device 600 may be a terminal device or a network device of the aforementioned embodiments, or may be a chip or a chip system, for example, a system on chip (SoC). The transceiver unit may be an input / output circuit or a communication interface. The processing unit may be a processor, a microprocessor, or an integrated circuit integrated on a chip. This is not limited herein.

[0365] 12 is another block diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 12, the communication device 700 includes at least one processor 710. The processor 710 is configured to execute instructions such that the functions of the terminal device in method 200, method 300, or method 400 are performed, or the functions of the network device in method 200, method 300, or method 400 are performed.

[0366] Optionally, the apparatus 700 may further include a transceiver 720. The transceiver 720 is configured to transmit signals and / or receive signals.

[0367] Optionally, communications device 700 further includes memory 730 configured to store instructions. Processor 710 is coupled to the memory and configured to execute the instructions stored in the memory to control transceiver 720 to transmit and / or receive signals.

[0368] It should be understood that the processor 710 and memory 730 may be combined into one processing unit, with the processor 710 configured to execute program code stored in the memory 730 to perform the functions described above. In particular implementations, the memory 730 may alternatively be integrated into the processor 710 or may be separate from the processor 710.

[0369] It should be further understood that the transceiver 720 may include a receiver (also referred to as a receiver) and a transmitter (also referred to as a transmitter). The transceiver 720 may further include an antenna. There may be one or more antennas. The transceiver 1020 may be a communication interface or interface circuit.

[0370] When the communication device 700 is a chip, the chip includes a transceiver unit and a processing unit. The transceiver unit may be an input / output circuit or a communication interface. The processing unit may be a processor, a microprocessor, or an integrated circuit integrated on the chip.

[0371] An embodiment of the present application further provides a processing device, including a processor and an interface, wherein the processor is capable of performing the method of the aforementioned method embodiments.

[0372] It is understood that the processing device may be a chip, for example, a field programmable gate array (FPGA), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a system on chip (SoC), a central processor unit (CPU), a network processor (NP), a digital signal processor (DSP), a microcontroller unit (MCU), a programmable logic device (PLD), or another integrated chip.

[0373] In the implementation process, the steps of the aforementioned method may be implemented using hardware integrated logic circuits in a processor or using instructions in the form of software. The steps of the method disclosed with reference to the embodiments of the present application may be directly executed by a hardware processor, or may be executed using a combination of hardware and software modules in a processor. The software modules may be located in a storage medium mature in the art, such as a random access memory, a flash memory, a read-only memory, a programmable read-only memory, an electrically erasable programmable memory, or a register. The storage medium is located in the memory, and the processor reads the information in the memory and completes the steps of the aforementioned method together with the hardware of the processor. To avoid repetition, details will not be described again in this specification.

[0374] 13 is another diagram of the structure of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 13, the device 800 includes a processing circuit 810. The processing circuit 810 is configured to execute instructions such that the functions of the terminal device in method 200, method 300, or method 400 are performed, or the functions of the network device in method 200, method 300, or method 400 are performed.

[0375] Optionally, the device 800 may further include a transceiver circuit 820. The processing circuit 810 and the transceiver circuit 820 communicate with each other using an internal connection path, and the processing circuit 810 can control the transceiver circuit 820 to transmit signals and / or receive signals.

[0376] Optionally, the apparatus 800 may further include a storage medium 830. The storage medium 830 is in communication with the processing circuit 810 and the transceiver circuit 820 using an internal connection path. The storage medium 830 is configured to store instructions, and the processing circuit 810 can execute the instructions stored in the storage medium 830.

[0377] In one possible implementation, the apparatus 800 is configured to perform procedures corresponding to the terminal device in the above-described method embodiments.

[0378] In another possible implementation, the apparatus 800 is configured to perform procedures corresponding to the network device in the method embodiments described above.

[0379] According to the method provided in the embodiments of the present application, the present application further provides a computer program product, which includes instructions, which, when executed by a processor, perform functions of the terminal device of the method 200, the method 300, or the method 400, or perform functions of the network device of the method 200, the method 300, or the method 400.

[0380] According to the method provided in the embodiment of the present application, the present application further provides a computer-readable storage medium, which includes instructions, which, when executed by a processor, perform functions of the terminal device of the method 200, the method 300, or the method 400, or perform functions of the network device of the method 200, the method 300, or the method 400.

[0381] According to the method provided in the embodiment of the present application, the present application further provides a system, which includes one or more terminal devices as described above and one or more network devices as described above.

[0382] All or part of the above embodiments may be implemented using software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When software is used to implement an embodiment, all or part of the embodiment may be implemented in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, the procedures or functions according to the embodiments of the present application are generated in whole or in part. The computer may be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, the computer instructions may be transmitted from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wire (e.g., coaxial cable, optical fiber, or digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, radio wave, or microwave) transmission. The computer-readable storage medium may be any available medium accessible by a computer, or may be a data storage device integrating one or more available media, such as a server or data center. The media available may be magnetic media (e.g., floppy disks, hard disks, or magnetic tapes), optical media (e.g., high-density digital video discs (DVDs)), or semiconductor media (e.g., solid state drives (SSDs)).

[0383] In the embodiments of this application, terms such as "example" or "for example" are intended to represent providing an example, illustration, or explanation. Any embodiment or design manner described in this application as an "example" should not be described as preferred or having more advantages than another embodiment or design manner. Strictly speaking, the term "example" is intended to present a concept in a particular way.

[0384] It should be understood that the term "embodiment" used throughout this specification means that the particular feature, structure, or characteristic associated with this embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present application. Thus, all references to embodiments in this specification do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. In addition, the particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.

[0385] It should be understood that the sequential numbers of the above processes do not refer to the execution order in various embodiments of the present application. The execution order of the processes should be determined according to the functions and internal logic of the processes and should not be construed as any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of the present application. The names of all nodes and messages in the present application are merely names set to facilitate the description in the present application and may be different in an actual network. The names of various nodes and messages in the present application should not be understood as being limited. On the contrary, any names having the same or similar functions as the nodes or messages used in the present application are considered as methods or equivalent replacements of the present application and fall within the protection scope of the present application.

[0386] It should be further understood that in this application, "when" and "if" mean that the UE or base station performs the corresponding processing in the intended situation, and are not intended to limit the time, do not necessarily require the UE or base station to perform the decision-making action during implementation, and do not imply any other restriction.

[0387] It should be noted that in the embodiments of the present application, "presetting", "preconfiguration", etc. may be implemented by pre-storing corresponding codes or tables in a device (e.g., a terminal device) or in another manner that may indicate relevant information. The specific implementation of "presetting", "preconfiguration", etc. is not limited in the present application, and may be, for example, a predetermined rule or a predetermined constant in the embodiments of the present application.

[0388] Additionally, the terms "system" and "network" may be used interchangeably herein. The term "and / or" herein describes only an associative relationship for describing related objects and indicates that three relationships may exist. For example, A and / or B may represent the following three cases: when only A exists, when both A and B exist, and when only B exists.

[0389] As used herein, the phrase "at least one of" or "at least a portion of" refers to all or any combination of the listed items. For example, "at least one of A, B, and C" or "at least one of A, B, or C" can refer to the following six cases: when only A is present, when only B is present, when only C is present, when both A and B are present, when both B and C are present, and when A, B, and C are all present. As used herein, "at least one" means one or more. "Multiple" means two or more.

[0390] In the embodiments of the present application, it should be understood that "B corresponding to A" indicates that B is associated with A and B can be determined based on A. However, it should be further understood that determining B based on A does not mean that B is determined based only on A. B may alternatively be determined based on A and / or other information. The terms "include," "have," and variations thereof all mean "including but not limited to," unless specifically emphasized otherwise.

[0391] It should be understood that in the various embodiments of the present application, the first, second, and various numerals are merely for distinction purposes for ease of explanation and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of the present application, e.g., to distinguish between different pieces of information.

[0392] Those skilled in the art can realize that, in combination with the examples described in the embodiments disclosed herein, the units and algorithm steps can be implemented by electronic hardware or by a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether a function is performed by hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can implement the described functions using various methods for each specific application, but the implementation should not be considered to exceed the scope of this application.

[0393] For the purpose of easy description, it is clearly understood by those skilled in the art that the detailed working processes of the aforementioned systems, devices and units should be referred to the corresponding processes of the aforementioned method embodiments, and the details will not be described again in this specification.

[0394] It should be understood that in some embodiments provided in the present application, the disclosed systems, devices, and methods may be implemented in other ways. For example, the described device embodiments are merely examples. For example, the division into units is merely a logical division of function, and may be otherwise implemented in actual implementation. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not implemented. In addition, the shown or discussed mutual couplings or direct couplings or communication connections may be implemented using some interfaces. Indirect couplings or communication connections between devices or units may be implemented in electronic, mechanical, or other forms.

[0395] The units described as separate parts may or may not be physically separate, and the parts shown as units may or may not be physical units, and may be located in one place or distributed over multiple network units. Some or all of the units may be selected based on actual requirements to achieve the objectives of the solutions of the embodiments.

[0396] In addition, the functional units of the embodiments of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, each of the units may exist physically alone, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit.

[0397] When a function is implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, the function may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application may essentially be implemented, or a portion contributing to the prior art may be implemented, or some of the technical solutions may be implemented in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions that instruct a computer device (which may be a personal computer, a server, or a network device) to perform all or part of the steps of the method described in the embodiments of the present application. The aforementioned storage medium includes any medium that can store program code, such as a USB flash drive, a removable hard disk, a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk, or an optical disk.

[0398] The above description is merely a specific implementation of the present application and is not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present application. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in the present application shall fall within the scope of protection of the present application. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present application shall be subject to the scope of protection of the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0399] 1. Situation and steps 2. Situation and steps 3 Status, random access messages 4. Status and Messages 100 Communication Systems 110 Network Devices 120 Terminal Devices 200 Communication Methods 300 Communication Methods 400 Communication Method 600 equipment 610 Transceiver Unit 611 receiving unit 612 transmitting unit 620 Processing Unit 700 Communication Equipment 710 processor 720 Transceiver 730 memory 800 equipment 810 Processing Circuit 820 Transceiver Circuit 830 Storage medium 1020 Transceiver

Claims

1. 1. A communication method, comprising: obtaining first information, the first information being used to change a state of a primary communication module of a terminal device, the terminal device including the primary communication module and a secondary communication module; switching the main communication module from a first state to a second state based on the first information, the first states including the main communication module being in an idle state, an inactive state, and a connected state; A communication method, including:

2. the first information includes a first condition, the first condition is used to evaluate the quality of a first service area of ​​the terminal device, the first service area is a service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in the first state; The step of switching the main communication module from a first state to a second state based on the first information includes: The method of claim 1 , comprising switching the main communication module from the first state to the second state if the quality of the first service area satisfies the first condition.

3. The first condition is as follows: The fluctuation of the quality of the first service area within a first time threshold is less than a first fluctuation threshold, wherein the first time threshold is greater than a time threshold for a low mobility criterion or the first fluctuation threshold is less than a fluctuation threshold for a low mobility criterion; The quality of the first coverage area is greater than a first quality threshold, the first quality threshold being greater than a threshold on a cell center basis; and 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the quality of the first service area is greater than a second quality threshold, the second quality threshold being greater than a threshold in an S criterion, and including at least one of the following: greater than a second quality threshold.

4. The method according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the terminal device stops performing measurements on a high priority frequency if the quality of the first coverage area satisfies the first condition.

5. The method comprises:

5. The method of claim 2, further comprising the step of sending second information to the network device, the second information being used to request a change in the state of the main communication module or indicating that the state of the main communication module is to change.

6. The method comprises:

6. The method of claim 2, further comprising the step of receiving third information from the network device, the third information instructing the network device to permit the terminal device to switch the main communication module from the first state to the second state.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first information instructs the main communication module to switch from the first state to the second state.

8. The method comprises:

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising the step of transmitting a measurement result of a first service area to the network device, the first service area being the service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in the first state.

9. The method comprises:

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of transmitting fourth information to the network device, the fourth information indicating that the terminal device has a tendency to enter the idle state when leaving the connected state, or has a tendency to enter the inactive state when leaving the connected state, or has a tendency to enter the second state when leaving the connected state.

10. The method comprises: receiving a first wake-up radio WUR using the secondary communication module, the first WUR being used to determine the quality of a second service area of ​​the terminal device, the second service area being a service area of ​​the terminal device when the primary communication module is in the second state; 10. The method of claim 1, further comprising: switching the main communication module from the second state to the first state if the quality of the second service area does not satisfy a second condition.

11. The second condition is as follows: The fluctuation of the quality of the second service area within a second time threshold is less than a second fluctuation threshold, wherein the second time threshold is greater than the time threshold for a low mobility criterion or the second fluctuation threshold is less than the fluctuation threshold for a low mobility criterion; The quality of the second coverage area is greater than a third quality threshold, the third quality threshold being greater than a threshold on a cell center basis; and The method of claim 10, wherein the quality of the second service area is greater than a fourth quality threshold, the fourth quality threshold being greater than a threshold in an S criterion, or greater than a fourth quality threshold.

12. The method comprises: The method of claim 10 or 11, further comprising receiving the second condition from the network device.

13. The method comprises:

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising the step of transmitting sixth information to the network device, the sixth information indicating that the state of the main communication module is to change.

14. 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the sixth information is an identifier of the terminal device when the main communication module is in the second state, or an identifier of the terminal device corresponding to the secondary communication module when the main communication module is in the second state.

15. The method comprises: listening to a second WUR using the secondary communication module, wherein the second WUR instructs the terminal device to receive a paging message using the main communication module; 10. The method of claim 1, further comprising: switching the main communication module from the second state to the first state when the second WUR is detected by listening.

16. The method comprises:

16. The method of claim 10, further comprising: receiving first configuration information from the network device, the first configuration information being used to configure the first WUR and / or the second WUR, the first configuration information including fifth information, the fifth information indicating that the first WUR is used for measurement and / or the second WUR is used for wakeup.

17. When the main communication module switches from the second state to the first state, the method further comprises:

17. The method according to claim 10, further comprising: switching from the second state to the idle state or the inactive state based on an RRC release message or an RRC reconfiguration message, wherein the RRC release message or the RRC reconfiguration message indicates that the first state should be selected as the idle state or the inactive state when the terminal device switches from the second state to the first state.

18. 18. The method of claim 1, wherein the terminal device does not listen to or update system information when the main communication module is in the second state.

19. The method comprises:

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising: sending seventh information to the network device, the seventh information instructing the terminal device not to listen to or update the system information or to stop listening to or updating the system information when the main communication module is in the second state.

20. After the step of switching the main communication module from the second state to the first state, the method further comprises:

20. The method of claim 18 or 19, further comprising the steps of performing cell selection and receiving the system information in the selected cell.

21. 21. The method of claim 1, wherein when the main communication module is in the first state, the secondary communication module is in a third state or a fourth state, the third state including the secondary communication module being in an on state, a running state, or an active state, and the fourth state including the secondary communication module being in an off state, a hibernation state, or an inactive state.

22. 1. A communication method, comprising: determining first information, the first information being used by the terminal device to switch a primary communication module from a first state to a second state, the first states including the primary communication module being in an idle state, an inactive state, and a connected state, the terminal device including the primary communication module and a secondary communication module; transmitting the first information to the terminal device; A communication method, including:

23. The first information includes a first condition, the first condition is used to evaluate the quality of a first service area of ​​the terminal device, the first service area is a service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in the first state, and the first condition is one of the following: The fluctuation of the quality of the first service area within a first time threshold is less than a first fluctuation threshold, wherein the first time threshold is greater than a time threshold for a low mobility criterion or the first fluctuation threshold is less than a fluctuation threshold for a low mobility criterion; The quality of the first coverage area is greater than a first quality threshold, the first quality threshold being greater than a threshold on a cell center basis; and 23. The method of claim 22, wherein the quality of the first service area is greater than a second quality threshold, the second quality threshold being greater than a threshold in an S criterion, and including at least one of the following: greater than a second quality threshold.

24. The method comprises:

24. The method of claim 22 or 23, further comprising the step of receiving second information from the terminal device, the second information being used to request a change in the state of the main communication module or indicating that the state of the main communication module is to change.

25. The method comprises:

25. The method of claim 22, further comprising the step of transmitting third information to the terminal device, the third information indicating that the terminal device is authorized to switch the main communication module from the first state to the second state.

26. 23. The method of claim 22, wherein the first information instructs the main communication module to switch from the first state to the second state.

27. The method comprises: receiving a measurement result of a first service area from the terminal device, the first service area being a service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in the first state; The step of transmitting the first information to the terminal device includes:

27. The method of claim 26, comprising transmitting the first information to the terminal device if the measurement result of the first service area satisfies a predetermined condition.

28. The method comprises: receiving fourth information from the terminal device, the fourth information indicating that the terminal device has a tendency to enter the idle state when leaving the connected state, or has a tendency to enter the inactive state when leaving the connected state, or has a tendency to enter the second state when leaving the connected state; The step of transmitting the first information to the terminal device includes:

28. The method of claim 22, comprising transmitting the first information to the terminal device when the fourth information indicates that the terminal device is likely to enter the second state when leaving the connected state.

29. The method comprises:

29. The method of claim 22, further comprising the step of sending a first wake-up radio WUR to the terminal device, the first WUR being used to determine the quality of a second service area of ​​the terminal device, the second service area being a service area of ​​the terminal device when the main communication module is in the second state.

30. The method comprises: sending a second condition to the terminal device, wherein the second condition is one of the following: The fluctuation of the quality of the second service area within a second time threshold is less than a second fluctuation threshold, wherein the second time threshold is greater than the time threshold for a low mobility criterion or the second fluctuation threshold is less than the fluctuation threshold for a low mobility criterion; The quality of the second coverage area is greater than a third quality threshold, the third quality threshold being greater than a threshold on a cell center basis; and 30. The method of claim 22, further comprising a step in which the quality of the second service area is greater than a fourth quality threshold, the fourth quality threshold being greater than a threshold in an S criterion, or greater than a fourth quality threshold.

31. The method comprises:

31. The method of claim 29 or 30, further comprising the step of sending sixth information to a network device, the sixth information indicating that the state of the main communication module is to change.

32. 32. The method of claim 31, wherein the sixth information is an identifier of the terminal device when the main communication module is in the second state, or an identifier of the terminal device corresponding to the secondary communication module when the main communication module is in the second state.

33. The method comprises:

29. The method of claim 22, further comprising the step of sending a second WUR to the terminal device, the second WUR instructing the terminal device to receive paging messages using the main communication module.

34. The method comprises:

34. The method of claim 33, further comprising the step of transmitting downlink control information DCI to the terminal device, the DCI including scheduling information for a paging message, the paging message being used to page the terminal device.

35. The method comprises:

35. The method of claim 29, further comprising the step of sending first configuration information to the terminal device, the first configuration information being used to configure the first WUR and / or the second WUR, the first configuration information including fifth information, the fifth information indicating that the first WUR is used for measurement and / or the second WUR is used for wake-up.

36. The method comprises:

36. The method according to claim 22, further comprising the step of transmitting an RRC release message or an RRC reconfiguration message to the terminal device to indicate that the first state should be selected as the idle state or the inactive state when the terminal device switches from the second state to the first state.

37. The method comprises:

37. The method of claim 22, further comprising receiving seventh information from the terminal device, the seventh information instructing the terminal device not to listen to or update system information or to stop listening to or updating system information when the main communication module is in the second state.

38. A communication device comprising a unit or module configured to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 21 or a unit or module configured to perform the method according to any one of claims 22 to 37.

39. 38. A computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor, perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 21 or any one of claims 22 to 37.

40. 38. A communications device comprising a processor and a storage medium, the storage medium storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 21 or any one of claims 22 to 37.

41. 38. A computer program product comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor, perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 21 or the method of any one of claims 22 to 37.

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