Method and apparatus for controlling terminal device connections

Abstract

[0009] An embodiment of the present disclosure discloses a method and apparatus for controlling a connection of a terminal device, applicable to a terminal device-to-network (U2N) relay scenario, the method including: when a first terminal device in a connected state receives a first message sent from a second terminal device, the first terminal device determines whether to initiate a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration based on a first condition, where the first terminal device is a remote terminal device in the U2N relay scenario and the second terminal device is a relay terminal device in the U2N relay scenario. By implementing the embodiment of the present disclosure, it is possible to avoid triggering unnecessary connection reconfiguration upon receiving a notification message sent from the relay terminal device, thereby saving resources and avoiding resource waste.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of communications technology, and in particular to a method and apparatus for controlling connections of terminal devices. [Background technology]

[0002] To support direct communication between terminal devices (also called User Equipment, UE) and UEs, the Sidelink communication method has been introduced, and the interface between UEs is PC-5. A UE is not directly connected to a network device (e.g., a base station) and can communicate with the network device through the relay of another UE. Here, a UE not connected to a network device is called a remote UE, and a UE providing relay functionality is called a relay UE. The remote UE and relay UE communicate via Sidelink, and this architecture is called U2N (UE to NW) relay.

[0003] A direct link and an indirect link can be established between a remote UE and a network device (e.g., a base station). A direct link is a link in which the remote UE is directly connected to the network device, and an indirect link is a link in which the remote UE is indirectly connected to the network device via an intermediate UE. The remote UE can maintain a connection with the network device via the direct link and the indirect link simultaneously. This function is called multipath connection, and it enables the remote UE to support multipath transmission, thereby improving transmission speed and transmission reliability. Note that to support multipath connection, the remote UE must be in a connected state.

[0004] In the prior art, when a relay UE encounters a connection problem such as a radio link failure, handover, cell reselection, or radio resource control (RRC) connection failure, it sends a notification message to the connected remote UE via sidelink. When a connected remote UE receives the notification message sent from the relay UE, the remote UE triggers a reestablishment to ensure normal communication. However, this often results in unnecessary connection reestablishment. Therefore, there is currently a lack of effective means to control remote UE connections in U2N relay scenarios. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] An embodiment of the present disclosure provides a method and apparatus for controlling a connection of a terminal device, which is applicable to a relay scenario from a terminal device to a network (UE to NW, also referred to as U2N), and determines whether a terminal device in a connected state needs to initiate a radio resource control (RRC) re-establishment based on a condition, thereby avoiding triggering unnecessary connection re-establishment upon receiving a notification message sent from a relay terminal device, thereby saving resources and avoiding resource waste. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a method for controlling a connection of a terminal device, executed by a first terminal device, and applied to a terminal device-to-network relay scenario, the method comprising: determining whether to initiate radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration based on a first condition in response to a first message being received by the first terminal device in a connected state and transmitted from a second terminal device; The present invention provides a method for controlling a connection of a terminal device, wherein the first terminal device is a remote terminal device in a relay scenario from the terminal device to a network, and the second terminal device is a relay terminal device in a relay scenario from the terminal device to a network.

[0007] In this technical solution, a terminal device in a connected state determines whether it needs to initiate RRC reestablishment based on conditions, thereby avoiding triggering unnecessary connection reestablishment upon receiving a notification message sent from a relay terminal device, thereby saving resources and avoiding resource waste.

[0008] In one implementation, the first condition is that multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, and the step of determining whether to initiate radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration based on the first condition includes: not initiating RRC reestablishment if it is determined that the first terminal device is configured for multipath transmission; or and initiating RRC reestablishment when it is determined that multipath transmission is not configured for the first terminal device.

[0009] In one possible implementation, determining that a network device is setting up a multipath bearer to the first terminal device; and and determining that a network device has set up both a direct bearer and an indirect bearer to the first terminal device, thereby determining that multipath transmission is set up for the first terminal device.

[0010] In one implementation, the first condition includes that a multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device and an indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, and the step of determining whether to initiate a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration based on the first condition includes: If it is determined that a multipath transmission is configured on the first terminal device and an indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, not initiating an RRC reestablishment; or Initiating RRC reestablishment when multipath transmission is not configured in the first terminal device and / or when it is determined that an indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path; The indirect path is a path in which the first terminal device is indirectly connected to a network device via the second terminal device.

[0011] In another implementation, the first condition includes that a multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, an indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path, and a failure recovery function is configured in the first terminal device, and the step of determining whether to initiate a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration based on the first condition includes: If it is determined that a multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, and an indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path, and a fault recovery function is configured in the first terminal device, not initiating RRC reestablishment; or The method includes initiating an RRC reestablishment when it is determined that multipath transmission is not configured in the first terminal device, and / or that an indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, and / or that a failure recovery function is not configured in the first terminal device.

[0012] In one possible implementation, determining that the indirect path is to be used to carry a signaling radio bearer (SRB); determining that the first terminal device triggered an RRC connection reestablishment after a failure occurred in the indirect path; determining that the indirect path is a master transmission path of an SRB; determining that the indirect path is a path for maintaining an RRC connection; determining that the indirect path is an anchor path; and and determining that a cell connected by the indirect path is a master cell of the first terminal device, thereby determining that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path.

[0013] In one possible implementation, it is determined that a fault recovery function is configured in the first terminal device by determining that a timer is running, the timer being a timer that is started after the first terminal device reports link fault information to a network device, and the link fault information is used to indicate that a link fault has occurred in a direct link or an indirect link in the multipath transmission.

[0014] In one implementation, the first message is a notification message sent by the second terminal device to the connected first terminal device via a sidelink in a first case, or the first message includes the notification message, and an indication type in the notification message is radio link failure, and in the first case: If a radio link failure occurs, If a handover occurs, When cell reselection occurs, and When an RRC connection failure occurs, any one of the following is included.

[0015] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a communication device, the communication device having some or all of the functions of a terminal device that implements the method described in the first aspect. For example, the functions of the communication device may include some or all of the functions of the embodiments of the present application, or may include a function for independently implementing any one of the embodiments of the present application. The functions may be implemented by hardware, or may be implemented by hardware executing corresponding software, and the hardware or software may include one or more units or modules corresponding to the functions.

[0016] In one implementation, the configuration of the communication device may include a transceiver module and a processing module, the processing module configured to support the communication device to perform corresponding functions in the above method, the transceiver module configured to support communication between the communication device and other devices, and the communication device may further include a storage module coupled to the transceiver module and the processing module for storing computer programs and data required for the communication device.

[0017] As examples, the processing module may be a processor, the transmitting and receiving module may be a transceiver or a communication interface, and the storage module may be a memory.

[0018] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a communications device, the communications device including a processor, the processor executing the method of the first aspect when invoking a computer program in a memory.

[0019] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a communications device, the communications device including a processor and a memory, wherein a computer program is stored in the memory, and the processor executes the computer program stored in the memory to cause the communications device to perform the method of the first aspect.

[0020] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a communications device, the communications device including a processor and an interface circuit, the interface circuit configured to receive and transmit code instructions to the processor, the processor configured to execute the code instructions to cause the communications device to perform the method of the first aspect above.

[0021] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a computer-readable storage medium for storing instructions for use by the terminal device, the instructions, when executed, causing the terminal device to perform the method of the first aspect.

[0022] In a seventh aspect, the present disclosure further provides a computer program product comprising a computer program which, when executed on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method of the first aspect above.

[0023] In an eighth aspect, the present disclosure provides a chip system, the chip system including at least one processor and an interface, for supporting a terminal device to realize the functions according to the first aspect, for example, for supporting determining or processing at least one of data and information according to the above method. In one possible design, the chip system further includes a memory for storing computer programs and data required by the terminal device. The chip system may be constituted by a chip or may include a chip and other individual components.

[0024] In a ninth aspect, the present disclosure provides a computer program which, when executed on a computer, causes the computer to carry out a method according to the first aspect above. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0025] In order to more clearly describe the technical solutions in the embodiments or background art of the present disclosure, the drawings that need to be used in the embodiments or background art of the present disclosure are described below. [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] 1 is a schematic flowchart of a method for controlling connection of a terminal device provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure; [Figure 3] 4 is a flowchart of a method for controlling a connection of a terminal device according to an exemplary embodiment; [Figure 4] 4 is a flowchart of a method for controlling a connection of a terminal device according to an exemplary embodiment; [Figure 5] 4 is a flowchart of a method for controlling a connection of a terminal device according to an exemplary embodiment; [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a communication device provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a schematic configuration diagram of another communication device provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 8] 1 is a schematic diagram of a chip provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0026] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, where the same or similar reference numerals always represent the same or similar elements, or elements having the same or similar functions. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are illustrative and intended to be used to explain the present disclosure, but should not be understood as limiting the present disclosure. In the description of the present disclosure, unless otherwise specified, " / " means "or," for example, A / B means A or B. "And / or" in this specification is merely a way to describe the association of related objects and means that three relationships can exist, for example, A and / or B can mean three things: A exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, or B exists alone.

[0027] The terms used in the embodiments of the present disclosure are for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and are not intended to limit the embodiments of the present disclosure. As used in the embodiments of the present disclosure and the appended claims, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" are intended to include the plural forms unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

[0028] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, terms such as first, second, and third may be used to describe various pieces of information, but it should be understood that these pieces of information should not be limited to these terms. These terms are used only to distinguish between the same types of information. For example, first information may be referred to as second information without departing from the scope of the embodiments of the present disclosure. Similarly, second information may be referred to as first information. Depending on the context, for example, the word "upon..." used herein may be interpreted as "when..." or "when..." or "depending on the decision."

[0029]

[0023] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which the same or similar reference numerals always represent the same or similar elements. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are illustrative and are intended to be used to explain the present disclosure, but should not be understood as limiting the present disclosure.

[0030] To support direct communication between terminal devices (UEs), the sidelink communication method is introduced. The interface between UEs is PC-5. Sidelink supports three transmission methods: unicast, multicast, and broadcast, depending on the correspondence between the transmitting and receiving UEs. The transmitting UE transmits sidelink control information (SCI) on the physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) and the second-stage SCI on the physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), which includes the resource location for data transmission, source identifier, and target identifier. After receiving the SCI, the receiving UE determines whether to receive the corresponding data and which process it corresponds to based on the source UE identifier and destination UE identifier contained therein. In a unicast connection, each UE corresponds to one destination identifier. In a multicast connection, each UE can belong to one or more groups, and each group corresponds to one destination identifier. In broadcasting, every UE responds to at least one destination identifier.

[0031] A UE is not directly connected to a network device (e.g., a base station) but communicates with the network device through the relay of another UE. A UE that is not connected to a network device is called a remote UE, and a UE that provides relay functionality is called a relay UE. The remote UE and relay UE communicate via a sidelink. This architecture is called U2N (UE to NW, from the terminal device to the network) relay.

[0032] A direct link and an indirect link can be established between a remote UE and a network device (e.g., a base station). A direct link is a link in which the remote UE is directly connected to the network device, and an indirect link is a link in which the remote UE is indirectly connected to the network device via an intermediate UE. The remote UE can maintain a connection with the network device via both the direct link and the indirect link. This function is called multipath connection, and it enables the remote UE to support multipath transmission, thereby improving transmission speed and transmission reliability. Note that to support multipath connection, the remote UE must be in a connected state.

[0033] When a relay UE experiences any one of a radio link failure, handover, cell reselection, and RRC connection failure, it sends a notification message (NotificationMessageSidelink) to the connected remote UE via Sidelink. The relay UE carries an indication type (indicationType) in the notification message based on the event that triggers the notification message. In one implementation, when a radio link failure occurs in the relay UE, the indication type can be set to relay UE radio link failure (relayUE-UuRLF). When a handover occurs in the relay UE, the indication type is set to relay UE handover (relayUE-HO). When a cell reselection occurs in the relay UE, the indication type is set to relay UE cell reselection (relayUE-CellReselection). When a connection failure occurs in the relay UE, the indication type is set to relay UE RRC failure (relayUE-UuRRCFailure).

[0034] After receiving the notification message, the remote UE in the connected state triggers a reestablishment to ensure normal communication. However, in this case, unnecessary connection reestablishment often occurs. Therefore, currently, there is a lack of effective means for controlling remote UE connections in U2N relay scenarios.

[0035] Therefore, the embodiments of the present disclosure propose a method for controlling the connection of a remote UE in a U2N relay scenario. First, a communication system to which the embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied will be described below.

[0036] Referring to FIG. 1, FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. The communication system may include, but is not limited to, one network device and two terminal devices. The number and form of devices shown in FIG. 1 are merely examples and do not limit the embodiment of the present disclosure. In actual applications, two or more network devices may be included. The communication system shown in FIG. 1 is exemplified by including one network device 101 and two terminal device UEs (e.g., a first terminal device 102 and a second terminal device 103).

[0037] It should be noted that the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable to various communication systems, such as a long term evolution (LTE) system, a fifth generation (5G) mobile communication system, a 5G new air interface (NR) system, or other future new mobile communication systems. It should be noted that the sidelink in the embodiments of the present disclosure may also be referred to as a direct communication link.

[0038] The network device 101 in the embodiments of the present disclosure is a network-side entity used to transmit or receive signals. For example, the network device 101 may be an evolved base station (evolved NodeB, eNB), a transmission reception point (TRP), a next-generation base station (gNB) in an NR system, a base station in other future mobile communication systems, or an access node in a wireless fidelity (WiFi) system. The embodiments of the present disclosure do not limit the specific technology and device form used by the network device. The network device provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure may be configured with a centralized unit (CU) and distributed units (DUs). The CU may also be referred to as a control unit. Using a CU-DU configuration, the protocol layers of a network device, for example, a base station, are separated, with some protocol layer functions configured and centrally controlled in the CU and the remaining or all protocol layer functions distributed to the DUs, and the DUs are centrally controlled by the CU.

[0039] In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the first terminal device 102 and the second terminal device 103 are each a user-side entity for receiving or transmitting a signal, such as a mobile phone. The terminal device may also be called a terminal, user equipment (UE), mobile station (MS), mobile terminal (MT), etc. The terminal device may be an automobile with a communication function, a smart car, a mobile phone, a wearable device, a tablet, a computer with a wireless transmission and reception function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal device in industrial control, a wireless terminal device in self-driving, a wireless terminal device in remote medical surgery, a wireless terminal device in smart grid, a wireless terminal device in transportation safety, a wireless terminal device in smart city, a wireless terminal device in smart home, etc. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific technology used by the terminal device and the specific device configuration.

[0040] 1, the first terminal device 102 and the second terminal device 103 communicate via a Sidelink direct link. In some embodiments, the first terminal device 102 is not directly connected to the network device 101, but realizes communication with the network device 101 through relaying by the second terminal device 103. The first terminal device 102 that is not connected to the network device 101 is called a remote UE, and the second terminal device 103 that provides a relay function is called a relay UE. The remote UE and the relay UE communicate with each other via Sidelink in unicast, and such an architecture is called U2N (UE to NW) relaying.

[0041] In some embodiments, a direct link and an indirect link can be established between the first terminal device 102 and the network device 101. The direct link is a link in which the first terminal device 102 and the network device 101 are directly connected, and the indirect link is a link in which the first terminal device 102 is indirectly connected to the network device 101 via the second terminal device 103. Note that the first terminal device 102 here is used as a remote UE, and the second terminal device 103 is used as a relay UE. In this way, the remote UE can maintain a connection with the network device via both the direct link and the indirect link. Such a function is called multipath connection, and enables the remote UE to support multipath transmission, thereby improving transmission speed and transmission reliability. Note that to support multipath connection, the remote UE must be in a connected state.

[0042] The first terminal device 102 is a remote UE, and the second terminal device 103 is a relay UE. The bearer of the remote UE may be transmitted only via a direct path and is called a direct bearer, may be transmitted only via an indirect path and is called an indirect bearer, or may be transmitted both via a direct path and an indirect path and is called a multipath bearer. The cell to which the remote UE is directly connected and the cell to which the relay UE is connected may be the same or different.

[0043] In some embodiments, in a multi-path scheme, the two paths are split into a master path and a secondary path.

[0044] In some embodiments, when multiple cell groups, i.e., a Master Cell Group (MCG) and a Secondary Cell Group (SCG), are configured in the second terminal device, if the second terminal device experiences a radio link failure in one cell group, the second terminal device can transmit failure information to the network device via another cell group, and the network device can reconfigure a new cell for the failed cell group to restore communication. The failure information includes the cause of the failure and the terminal device's latest measurement results for the cell. In one implementation, when a first terminal device is connected to a network device via both a direct link and an indirect link, if a failure occurs in one of the direct link and the indirect link, the first terminal device can report failure information of the corresponding link to assist the network in restoring the failed link. In this way, the first terminal device can have a failure recovery function, which enables the network-side device to timely restore the failed link and reduce the delay in data transmission on the failed link.

[0045] It should be understood that the communication system described in the embodiments of the present disclosure is intended to more clearly explain the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present disclosure, and does not limit the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure. Those skilled in the art can recognize that with the evolution of system architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied to similar technical problems.

[0046] The method and apparatus for controlling connection of a terminal device provided by the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

[0047] Referring to FIG. 2, FIG. 2 is a schematic flowchart of a method for controlling a connection of a terminal device provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. Note that the method according to the embodiment of the present disclosure is applicable to a terminal device-to-network (U2N) relay scenario, and the method can be executed by a first terminal device. Note that the first terminal device here is a remote UE in the U2N relay scenario, and the second terminal device is a relay UE in the U2N relay scenario. A direct link and an indirect link can be established between the remote UE and the network device. A direct link is a link through which the remote UE is directly connected to the network device, and an indirect link is a link through which the remote UE is indirectly connected to the network device via a relay UE. The remote UE can maintain a connection with the network device via both the direct link and the indirect link. This function, called multipath connection, enables the remote UE to support multipath transmission, thereby improving transmission speed and transmission reliability. Note that to support multipath connection, the remote UE must be in a connected state.

[0048] As shown in FIG. 2, the method can include, but is not limited to, the following step 201: In step 201, in response to a first message sent by a first terminal device in a connected state from a second terminal device, it is determined whether to initiate a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration based on a first condition.

[0049] Optionally, a first terminal device in a connected state receives a first message sent from a second terminal device, and the first terminal device can determine whether an RRC reestablishment needs to be initiated, for example, can determine whether an RRC reestablishment needs to be initiated based on a first condition.

[0050] In some embodiments, the first message may be a notification message sent by the second terminal device to the connected first terminal device via a sidelink in a first case. Alternatively, in some other embodiments, the first message may include the notification message and an indication type. The indication type may indicate a cause of the link between the second terminal device and the network device being lost (i.e., the first case). For example, the indication type may be a radio link failure. The first case may include any one of a radio link failure, a handover, a cell reselection, and an RRC connection failure.

[0051] In one possible implementation, for example, the first message is the notification message, and when any one of a radio link failure, a handover, a cell reselection, and an RRC connection failure occurs in the second terminal device, the second terminal device transmits the notification message (NotificationMessageSidelink) to a connected remote UE via a sidelink. A first terminal device in a connected state receives the notification message transmitted from the second terminal device, and can determine whether to initiate RRC reestablishment, and optionally, can determine whether to initiate RRC reestablishment based on a first condition.

[0052] In another possible implementation, for example, when a second terminal device experiences any one of a radio link failure, a handover, a cell reselection, and an RRC connection failure, the second terminal device transmits a first message to a connected remote UE via a sidelink. The first message may include the notification message. The second terminal device may also include an indication type in the first message based on an event that triggers the notification message. For example, when a first terminal device in a connected state receives the first message from the second terminal device and the indication type included in the first message is a radio link failure, the first terminal device may determine whether to initiate RRC reestablishment based on a first condition. That is, a first terminal device in a connected state receives the first message sent from the second terminal device, and the instruction type included in the first message is a radio link failure. In this case, it can be considered that a radio link failure has occurred in the second terminal device, and the first terminal device in a connected state can determine whether or not RRC reestablishment needs to be initiated based on the first condition.

[0053] By implementing the embodiments of the present disclosure, a terminal device in a connected state can determine whether it needs to initiate RRC reestablishment, thereby avoiding triggering unnecessary connection reestablishment and interrupting the connection when receiving a notification message sent from a relay terminal device, thereby saving resources and avoiding resource waste.

[0054] In some embodiments, the first condition may be that multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device. The first terminal device may determine whether to initiate RRC reestablishment based on the first condition. If the first terminal device satisfies the first condition, RRC reestablishment may not be initiated. If the first terminal device does not satisfy the first condition, RRC reestablishment must be initiated. Optionally, FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a method for controlling connection of a terminal device according to an exemplary embodiment. The method according to the embodiments of the present disclosure is applicable to a terminal device-to-network (U2N) relay scenario, and the method can be performed by a first terminal device, and the first terminal device is in a connected state. The first terminal device here is a remote UE in the U2N relay scenario, and the second terminal device is a relay UE in the U2N relay scenario. As shown in FIG. 3, the method may include, but is not limited to, the following steps 301 and 302.

[0055] In step 301, a first message sent from a second terminal device is received.

[0056] In one implementation, after a first terminal device in a connected state receives a first message transmitted from a second terminal device, the first terminal device determines whether or not RRC reestablishment needs to be initiated by determining whether or not multipath transmission is configured.

[0057] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, step 301 can be implemented in any one of the manners in each embodiment of the present disclosure, and the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto, and the description will be omitted. For example, a first message sent from a first terminal device can be received in the manner of the above-mentioned step 201. The first message can be a notification message, or the first message can include a notification message and an instruction type, and the instruction type can indicate the cause of the link between the second terminal device and the network side device being lost.

[0058] In step 302, it is determined that the first terminal device is configured for multipath transmission, and does not initiate RRC reestablishment.

[0059] Optionally, when it is determined that multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, the first terminal device can be considered to support multipath transmission, and the first terminal device can be directly connected to the network device via a direct path in the multipath transmission and indirectly connected to the network device via an indirect path in the multipath transmission. When any one of a radio link failure, a handover, a cell reselection, and an RRC connection failure occurs in the second terminal device, a first message can be sent to the first terminal device. After the first terminal device receives the first message sent from the second terminal device, since multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, the first terminal device can also be directly connected to the network device via a link of the direct path in the multipath transmission (i.e., a direct link), and the first terminal device can continue to maintain a connection with the network device, so the first terminal device does not need to initiate RRC reestablishment, thereby avoiding the remote UE from performing unnecessary connection reestablishment and interrupting the connection when receiving information indicating a radio link failure sent from the relay UE.

[0060] In one possible implementation, if the first terminal device determines that the network device has set up a multipath bearer for the first terminal device, it can determine that multipath transmission is set up for the first terminal device.

[0061] In another possible implementation, if the first terminal device determines that the network device has set up both a direct bearer and an indirect bearer to the first terminal device, it can determine that multipath transmission is set up for the first terminal device.

[0062] By implementing an embodiment of the present disclosure, if it is determined that multipath transmission is configured on the first terminal device, RRC reestablishment does not need to be initiated, thereby preventing the remote UE from performing unnecessary connection reestablishment and interrupting the connection when receiving information sent from the relay UE to indicate a radio link failure, thereby saving resources and avoiding resource waste.

[0063] Optionally, some embodiments of the present disclosure determine that the first terminal device is not configured for multipath transmission and initiate RRC reestablishment.

[0064] Alternatively, after a first terminal device in a connected state receives a first message sent from a second terminal device, the first terminal device may determine that multipath transmission is not configured in the first terminal device and may consider that the first terminal device does not have a multipath transmission function. If any one of a radio link failure, a handover, a cell reselection, and an RRC connection failure occurs in the second terminal device, the first terminal device may send a first message to the first terminal device. After the first terminal device receives the first message sent from the second terminal device, the first terminal device needs to initiate RRC reestablishment because the first terminal device does not have a multipath transmission function, in order to ensure a normal connection with the network device and a normal communication of the terminal device.

[0065] In some embodiments, the first condition may include that the first terminal device is configured with multipath transmission and an indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path. The first terminal device may determine whether to initiate RRC reestablishment based on the first condition. If the first terminal device satisfies the first condition, it may not initiate RRC reestablishment. If the first terminal device does not satisfy the first condition, it must initiate RRC reestablishment. Optionally, FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a method for controlling a connection of a terminal device according to an exemplary embodiment. The method according to the embodiments of the present disclosure is applicable to a terminal device-to-network (U2N) relay scenario, and the method can be performed by a first terminal device, and the first terminal device is in a connected state. The first terminal device here is a remote UE in the U2N relay scenario, and the second terminal device is a relay UE in the U2N relay scenario. As shown in FIG. 4, the method may include, but is not limited to, the following steps 401 and 402.

[0066] In step 401, a first message sent from a second terminal device is received.

[0067] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, step 401 can be implemented in any one of the manners in each embodiment of the present disclosure, and the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto, and the description thereof will be omitted. For example, a first message sent from a first terminal device can be received in the manner of the above-mentioned step 201. The first message can be a notification message, or the first message can include a notification message and an instruction type, and the instruction type can indicate the cause of the link between the second terminal device and the network side device being lost.

[0068] In one implementation, after a first terminal device in a connected state receives a first message sent from a second terminal device, the first terminal device determines whether a multipath transmission is set up and determines whether an indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, thereby determining whether an RRC reestablishment needs to be initiated.

[0069] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, step 401 can be implemented in any one of the manners in each embodiment of the present disclosure, and the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto, and the description thereof will be omitted.

[0070] In step 402, it is determined that the first terminal device is configured for multipath transmission and the indirect path in the multipath transmission is not the master path, and RRC reestablishment is not initiated. Here, an indirect path is a path in which a first terminal device is indirectly connected to a network device via the second terminal device. If the indirect path is determined not to be the master path, it becomes a secondary path.

[0071] Optionally, when it is determined that multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, the first terminal device can be deemed to support multipath transmission, so that the first terminal device can be directly connected to the network device via a direct path in the multipath transmission and can indirectly connect to the network device via an indirect path in the multipath transmission. When any one of a radio link failure, a handover, a cell reselection, and an RRC connection failure occurs in the second terminal device, a first message is sent to the first terminal device. After the first terminal device receives the first message sent from the second terminal device, because multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device and the indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, the first terminal device can also be directly connected to the network device via a link of a direct path in the multipath transmission (i.e., a direct link), and the first terminal device can continue to maintain its connection with the network device, so the first terminal device does not need to initiate RRC reestablishment, thereby avoiding the remote UE from performing unnecessary connection reestablishment and interrupting the connection when receiving information indicating a radio link failure sent from the relay UE.

[0072] Optionally, in some embodiments of the present disclosure, the first terminal device is not configured for multipath transmission and / or determines that an indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path, and initiates RRC reestablishment.

[0073] In one implementation, after a first terminal device in a connected state receives a first message sent from a second terminal device, if the first terminal device determines that multipath transmission is not configured on the first terminal device and / or that an indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path, the first terminal device needs to initiate RRC reestablishment to ensure normal communication of the terminal device.

[0074] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the first terminal device can determine that an indirect path in a multipath transmission is a master path by any one of determining that the indirect path is used to transmit a signaling radio bearer (SRB), determining that the first terminal device triggered an RRC connection reestablishment after a failure occurred in the indirect path, determining that the indirect path is a master transmission path for the SRB, determining that the indirect path is a path for maintaining an RRC connection, determining that the indirect path is an anchor path, and determining that a cell connected by the indirect path is a master cell of the first terminal device.

[0075] In one possible implementation, if it is determined that the indirect path is used to transmit a signaling radio bearer (SRB), it is determined that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is the master path.

[0076] In another possible implementation, if it is determined that the first terminal device triggers an RRC connection reestablishment after a failure occurs in the indirect path, it is determined that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is the master path.

[0077] In another possible implementation, if it is determined that the indirect path is the master transmission path of the SRB, it is determined that the indirect path is the master path in the multipath transmission.

[0078] In another possible implementation, if it is determined that the indirect path is the path for maintaining the RRC connection, it is determined that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is the master path.

[0079] In another possible implementation, if the indirect path is determined to be the anchor path, then the indirect path in the multipath transmission is determined to be the master path.

[0080] In another possible implementation, if it is determined that the cell connected by the indirect path is the master cell of the first terminal device, it is determined that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is the master path.

[0081] In some embodiments, the first condition may include that multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, an indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path, and a failure recovery function is configured in the first terminal device. The first terminal device may determine whether to initiate RRC reestablishment based on the first condition. If the first terminal device satisfies the first condition, RRC reestablishment may not be initiated. If the first terminal device does not satisfy the first condition, RRC reestablishment must be initiated. Optionally, FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a method for controlling connection of a terminal device according to an exemplary embodiment. The method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is applicable to a terminal device-to-network (U2N) relay scenario, and the method can be performed by a first terminal device, and the first terminal device is in a connected state. The first terminal device here is a remote UE in the U2N relay scenario, and the second terminal device is a relay UE in the U2N relay scenario. As shown in FIG. 5, the method may include, but is not limited to, the following steps 501 and 502.

[0082] In step 501, a first message sent from a second terminal device is received.

[0083] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, step 501 can be implemented in any one of the manners in each embodiment of the present disclosure, and the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto, and the description thereof will be omitted. For example, a first message sent from a first terminal device can be received in the manner of the above-mentioned step 201. The first message can be a notification message, or the first message can include a notification message and an instruction type, and the instruction type can indicate the cause of the link between the second terminal device and the network side device being lost.

[0084] In one implementation, after a first terminal device in a connected state receives a first message sent from a second terminal device, it determines whether multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, determines whether an indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, and determines whether a failure recovery function is configured in the first terminal device, thereby determining whether RRC reestablishment needs to be initiated.

[0085] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, step 501 can be implemented in any one of the manners in each embodiment of the present disclosure, and the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto, and the description thereof will be omitted.

[0086] In step 502, it is determined that multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, and the indirect path in the multipath transmission is the master path, and a fault recovery function is configured in the first terminal device, and RRC reestablishment is not initiated.

[0087] Optionally, when it is determined that multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, the first terminal device can be considered to support multipath transmission, so that the first terminal device can be directly connected to the network device via a direct path in the multipath transmission and indirectly connected to the network device via an indirect path in the multipath transmission. When any one of a radio link failure, a handover, a cell reselection, and an RRC connection failure occurs in the second terminal device, a first message is sent to the first terminal device. When multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, the indirect path in the multipath transmission is the master path, but a failure recovery function is configured in the first terminal device, so that the first terminal device can use the failure recovery function to help the network recover the failed link. In this case, the first terminal device does not need to initiate RRC reestablishment, thereby preventing the remote UE from performing unnecessary connection reestablishment and interrupting the connection when receiving information indicating a radio link failure sent from the relay UE.

[0088] In one possible implementation, the first terminal device can determine that a failure recovery function is configured in the first terminal device by determining that a timer is running, the timer being a timer that is started after the first terminal device reports link failure information to the network device, and the link failure information is used to indicate that a link failure has occurred in a direct link or an indirect link in multipath transmission. That is, when the first terminal device determines that the timer is running, it determines that a failure recovery function is configured in the first terminal device.

[0089] Optionally, in some embodiments, the first terminal device initiates RRC reestablishment if it determines that multipath transmission is not configured on the first terminal device, and / or that an indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, and / or that a failure recovery function is not configured on the first terminal device.

[0090] In some embodiments, the implementation of the failure recovery function may be as follows: When a first terminal device is connected to a network device via both a direct link and an indirect link, if a failure occurs in one of the direct link and the indirect link, the first terminal device can help the network recover the failed link by reporting failure information of the corresponding link.

[0091] In one possible implementation, when a failure occurs in the indirect link, the first terminal device reports indirect link failure information to the network device via the direct link. The indirect link failure information may include at least one of indirect link failure cause information, terminal device information of the third terminal device, and a terminal device identifier of the second terminal device. Here, the terminal device information may include at least one of the terminal device identifier, a radio channel quality of a sidelink link between the first terminal device and the third terminal device, and a serving cell identifier of the third terminal device, and the third terminal device may be a terminal device that can establish an indirect link with the first terminal device.

[0092] Optionally, the indirect link failure cause includes at least one of: a radio link failure occurs in the sidelink link between the first terminal device and the second terminal device; a sidelink RLC entity notifying that transmission has reached a first maximum number of retransmissions; a T400 timer expiring; a sidelink MAC entity notifying that loss feedback has reached a maximum number of losses; a sidelink PDCP entity notifying that an integrity check of SL-SRB2 has failed; a sidelink PDCP entity notifying that an integrity check of SL-SRB3 has failed; a persistent LBT failure occurs in the sidelink link between the first terminal device and the second terminal device; a radio link failure occurs in the second terminal device; a connection failure occurs in the second terminal device; and the PC5-RRC connection between the first terminal device and the second terminal device is released.

[0093] In one possible implementation, when a failure occurs in the direct link, the first terminal device reports direct link failure information to the network device via the indirect link, wherein the direct link failure information includes direct link failure cause information, and the direct link failure cause information includes at least one of a radio link failure, a T310 timer expiration, a T312 timer expiration, an RLC retransmission reaching a second maximum retransmission count, a random access failure, a beam recovery failure, and a persistent LBT failure.

[0094] In the above embodiments provided by the present disclosure, the methods provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure are described from the perspective of a first terminal device. To realize each function in the above methods provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure, the first terminal device includes a hardware structure and a software module, and each function can be realized in the form of a hardware structure, a software module, or a combination of a hardware structure and a software module. Specific functions in each function can be implemented in the form of a hardware structure, a software module, or a combination of a hardware structure and a software module.

[0095] Referring to Fig. 6, Fig. 6 is a schematic configuration diagram of a communication device 60 provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. The communication device 60 shown in Fig. 6 may include a transceiver module 601 and a processing module 602. The transceiver module 601 may include a transmitting module and / or a receiving module, where the transmitting module is configured to realize a transmitting function, and the receiving module is configured to realize a receiving function, and the transceiver module 601 may realize the transmitting function and / or the receiving function.

[0096] The communication device 60 may be a terminal device (eg, the first terminal device in the method embodiment described above), or may be a device in the terminal device, or may be a device usable in conjunction with the terminal device.

[0097] The communication device 60 is a terminal device (e.g., the first terminal device in the above-described method embodiment). The transceiver module 601 is configured to receive a first message sent from a second terminal device. The processing module 602 is configured to determine whether to initiate a radio resource control (RRC) reestablishment based on a first condition when the first message sent from the second terminal device is received by the first terminal device in a connected state. Here, the first terminal device is a remote terminal device in a relay scenario from the terminal device to a network, and the second terminal device is a relay terminal device in a relay scenario from the terminal device to a network.

[0098] In one implementation, the first condition is that multipath transmission is configured on the first terminal device, and the processing module 602 is configured to not initiate RRC reestablishment if it is determined that multipath transmission is configured on the first terminal device, or to initiate RRC reestablishment if it is determined that multipath transmission is not configured on the first terminal device.

[0099] In one possible implementation, the processing module 602 is further configured to determine that multipath transmission is configured for the first terminal device if it is determined that the network device has configured a multipath bearer for the first terminal device, or to determine that multipath transmission is configured for the first terminal device if it is determined that the network device has configured both a direct bearer and an indirect bearer for the first terminal device.

[0100] In one implementation, the first condition includes that multipath transmission is configured on the first terminal device and the indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, and the processing module 602 is configured to not initiate RRC reestablishment if it is determined that multipath transmission is configured on the first terminal device and the indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, or to initiate RRC reestablishment if multipath transmission is not configured on the first terminal device and / or it is determined that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path, and the indirect path is a path through which the first terminal device is indirectly connected to the network device via the second terminal device.

[0101] In another implementation, the first condition includes that multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, and an indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path, and a failure recovery function is configured in the first terminal device. The processing module 602 is configured to not initiate RRC reestablishment when it is determined that multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, and an indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path, and a failure recovery function is configured in the first terminal device, or to initiate RRC reestablishment when it is determined that multipath transmission is not configured in the first terminal device, and / or the indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, and / or a failure recovery function is not configured in the first terminal device.

[0102] In one possible implementation, the processing module 602 is further configured to: determine that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path if it is determined that the indirect path is used to transmit a signaling radio bearer (SRB); or determine that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path if it is determined that the first terminal device has triggered an RRC connection reestablishment after a failure occurs in the indirect path; or determine that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path if it is determined that the indirect path is a master transmission path for an SRB; or determine that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path if it is determined that the indirect path is a path for maintaining an RRC connection; or determine that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path if it is determined that the indirect path is an anchor path; or determine that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path if it is determined that the cell connected by the indirect path is a master cell of the first terminal device.

[0103] In another implementation, the processing module 602 is further configured to determine that a failure recovery function is set in the first terminal device if it is determined that a timer is running, the timer being a timer that was started after the first terminal device reported link failure information to the network device, and the link failure information indicating that a link failure has occurred in a direct link or an indirect link in the multipath transmission.

[0104] In one implementation, the first message is a notification message sent by the second terminal device to the connected first terminal device via a sidelink in a first case, or the first message includes a notification message, and the indication type in the notification message is a radio link failure. The first case includes any one of a case where a radio link failure occurs, a case where a handover occurs, a case where a cell reselection occurs, and a case where an RRC connection failure occurs.

[0105] Regarding the apparatus in the above embodiment, the specific manner in which each module performs the operation is described in detail in the method embodiment, and therefore will not be described in detail here.

[0106] 7, which is a schematic diagram of another communication device 70 provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. The communication device 70 may be a terminal device (e.g., the first terminal device in the above-mentioned method embodiment), or may be a chip, chip system, processor, etc. that supports the terminal device to implement the above-mentioned method. The device can implement the method described in the above-mentioned method embodiment, and specific details can be found in the description of the above-mentioned method embodiment.

[0107] The communication device 70 may include one or more processors 701. The processor 701 may be a general-purpose processor or a special-purpose processor. For example, the processor 701 may be a baseband processor or a central processing unit. The baseband processor may be used to process communication protocols and communication data, and the central processing unit may be used to control the communication device (e.g., a base station, a baseband chip, a terminal device, a terminal device chip, a DU or CU, etc.), execute computer programs, and process data of the computer programs.

[0108] Optionally, the communication device 70 may further include one or more memories 702, in which a computer program 704 is stored, and the processor 701 executes the computer program 704 to cause the communication device 70 to perform the method described in the above method examples. Optionally, data may be stored in the memory 702. The communication device 70 and the memory 702 may be provided separately or integrated.

[0109] Optionally, the communication device 70 may further include a transceiver 705 and an antenna 706. The transceiver 705 may also be referred to as a transceiver unit, transceiver, or transceiver circuit, and is configured to achieve a transmitting and receiving function. The transceiver 705 may include a receiver and a transmitter, and the receiver may also be referred to as a receiver or receiving circuit, and is configured to achieve a receiving function. The transmitter may also be referred to as a transmitter or transmitting circuit, and is configured to achieve a transmitting function.

[0110] Optionally, the communication device 70 may include one or more interface circuits 707 configured to receive and transmit code instructions to the processor 701. The processor 701 executes the code instructions to cause the communication device 70 to perform the methods described in the method embodiments above.

[0111] The communication apparatus 70 is a terminal device (e.g., the first terminal device in the method embodiments described above), and the processor 701 is configured to perform step 201 in Figure 2, step 302 in Figure 3, step 402 in Figure 4, or step 502 in Figure 5. The transceiver 705 is configured to perform step 301 in Figure 3, step 401 in Figure 4, or step 501 in Figure 5.

[0112] In one implementation, the processor 701 may include a transceiver for implementing the functions of reception and transmission. For example, the transceiver may be a transceiver circuit, an interface, or an interface circuit. The transceiver circuit, interface, or interface for implementing the functions of reception and transmission may be provided separately or integrated. The transceiver circuit, interface, or interface circuit described above may be used for reading and writing code / data, or the transceiver circuit, interface, or interface circuit described above may be used for transmitting or transferring signals.

[0113] In one implementation, the processor 701 can store a computer program, and when the computer program is executed by the processor 701, the communication device 70 can execute the method described in the above method examples. The computer program can be fixed in the processor 701, in which case the processor 701 can be realized by hardware.

[0114] In one implementation, the communication device 70 can include circuitry capable of performing the transmit or receive or communication functions of the method embodiments described above. The processors and transceivers described in this disclosure can be implemented in integrated circuits (ICs), analog ICs, radio frequency integrated circuits (RFICs), mixed-signal ICs, application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), printed circuit boards (PCBs), electronic devices, etc. The processors and transceivers can also be fabricated using various IC process technologies, such as complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS), n-type metal oxide semiconductor (nMOS), p-type metal oxide semiconductor (PMOS), bipolar junction transistor (BJT), bipolar CMOS (BiCMOS), silicon germanium (SiGe), gallium arsenide (GaAs), etc.

[0115] The communication device described in the above embodiment may be a terminal device (e.g., the first terminal device in the method embodiment described above), but the scope of the communication device described in this disclosure is not limited thereto, and the configuration of the communication device is not limited to that shown in FIG. 7. The communication device may be an independent device or part of a larger device. For example, the communication device may be: (1) An independent integrated circuit IC, or chip, or a chip system or subsystem. (2) A collection of one or more integrated circuits, optionally including a storage component for storing data and computer programs. (3) ASICs such as modems. (4) Modules that can be embedded within other devices. (5) Receivers, terminal devices, intelligent terminal devices, mobile phones, wireless devices, portable devices, mobile units, in-vehicle devices, network devices, cloud devices, artificial intelligence devices, etc. (6) Others.

[0116] When the communication device is a chip or a chip system, reference can be made to the schematic configuration diagram of the chip shown in Fig. 8. The chip shown in Fig. 8 includes a processor 801 and an interface 802. The number of processors 801 may be one or more, and the number of interfaces 802 may be more than one.

[0117] When the chip is used to realize the function of a terminal device in an embodiment of the present application (for example, the first terminal device in the above-mentioned method embodiment), The interface 802 is configured to receive a first message transmitted from a second terminal device, and the processor 801 is configured to determine whether to initiate a radio resource control (RRC) reestablishment based on a first condition when the first message transmitted from the second terminal device is received by the first terminal device in a connected state, wherein the first terminal device is a remote terminal device in a relay scenario from the terminal device to the network, and the second terminal device is a relay terminal device in the relay scenario from the terminal device to the network.

[0118] In one implementation, the first condition is that multipath transmission is configured on the first terminal device, and the processor 801 is configured to not initiate RRC reestablishment if it is determined that multipath transmission is configured on the first terminal device, or to initiate RRC reestablishment if it is determined that multipath transmission is not configured on the first terminal device.

[0119] In one possible implementation, the processor 801 is further configured to determine that multipath transmission is set up for the first terminal device if it is determined that the network device has set up a multipath bearer for the first terminal device, or to determine that multipath transmission is set up for the first terminal device if it is determined that the network device has set up both a direct bearer and an indirect bearer for the first terminal device.

[0120] In one implementation, the first condition includes that multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device and the indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, and the processor 801 is configured to not initiate RRC reestablishment if it is determined that multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device and the indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, or to initiate RRC reestablishment if multipath transmission is not configured in the first terminal device and / or it is determined that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path, and the indirect path is a path through which the first terminal device is indirectly connected to the network device via the second terminal device.

[0121] In another implementation, the first condition includes that multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, and an indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path, and a failure recovery function is configured in the first terminal device, and the processor 801 is configured to not initiate RRC reestablishment when it is determined that multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, and an indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path, and a failure recovery function is configured in the first terminal device, or to initiate RRC reestablishment when it is determined that multipath transmission is not configured in the first terminal device, and / or the indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, and / or a failure recovery function is not configured in the first terminal device.

[0122] In one possible implementation, the processor 801 is further configured to: determine that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path if it is determined that the indirect path is used to transmit a signaling radio bearer (SRB); or determine that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path if it is determined that the first terminal device has triggered an RRC connection reestablishment after a failure occurs in the indirect path; or determine that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path if it is determined that the indirect path is a master transmission path for an SRB; or determine that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path if it is determined that the indirect path is a path for maintaining an RRC connection; or determine that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path if it is determined that the indirect path is an anchor path; or determine that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path if it is determined that the cell connected by the indirect path is a master cell of the first terminal device.

[0123] In another implementation, the processor 801 is further configured to determine that a failure recovery function is set in the first terminal device if it is determined that a timer is running, the timer being a timer that is started after the first terminal device reports link failure information to the network device, and the link failure information is used to indicate that a link failure has occurred in a direct link or an indirect link in the multipath transmission.

[0124] In one implementation, the first message is a notification message sent by the second terminal device to the connected first terminal device via a sidelink in a first case, or the first message includes a notification message, wherein the indication type in the notification message is a radio link failure, and the first case includes any one of the following: a radio link failure occurs; a handover occurs; a cell reselection occurs; and an RRC connection failure occurs.

[0125] Optionally, the chip further includes a memory 803 for storing necessary computer programs and data.

[0126] Those skilled in the art can further understand that the various illustrative logical blocks and steps listed in the embodiments of the present disclosure can be realized by electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of the two. Whether such functions are realized by hardware or software depends on the specific application and overall system design requirements. Those skilled in the art can realize the functions using various methods for each specific application, but such realization should not be understood as exceeding the scope of protection of the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0127] The present disclosure further provides a computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored thereon, which, when executed by a computer, implement the functionality of any one of the method embodiments described above.

[0128] The present disclosure further provides a computer program product, which, when executed by a computer, realizes the functions of any one of the above method embodiments.

[0129] In the above embodiments, all or part of the embodiments may be implemented by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, all or part of the embodiments may be implemented in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer programs. When the computer programs are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions in the embodiments of the present disclosure are generated. The computer may be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer program may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, the computer program 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, fiber optics, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.). The computer-readable storage medium may be any available medium accessible by a computer, or a data storage device, including a server or data center, integrated with one or more available media. The available medium may be a magnetic medium (e.g., a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (e.g., a high-density digital video disc (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., a solid state disk (SSD)).

[0130] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the various numerals, such as first, second, etc., used in the present disclosure are merely for convenience of description and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of the present disclosure, and are also used to indicate chronological order.

[0131] In the present disclosure, "at least one" may also be described as "one" or "more," and "more" may be described as "two, three, four, or more, and is not limited in the present disclosure. In the embodiments of the present disclosure, for one technical feature, the technical feature is distinguished by "first," "second," "third," "A," "B," "C," and "D," etc., and there is no order of precedence or magnitude between the technical features described by "first," "second," "third," "A," "B," "C," and "D."

[0132] The correspondences shown in each table of the present disclosure may be set or predefined. The values ​​of the information in each table are merely examples and may be set as other values ​​and are not limited by the present disclosure. When setting the correspondences between information and each parameter, it is not necessary to set all of the correspondences shown in each table. For example, in the tables of the present disclosure, the correspondences shown in some rows may not be set. Furthermore, appropriate modifications such as division and merging can be performed based on the above tables. The names of the parameters shown in the titles of the above tables may be other names that can be understood by the communication device, and the values ​​or expressions of the parameters may also be other values ​​or expressions that can be understood by the communication device. When realizing the above tables, other data structures such as arrays, queues, containers, stacks, linear tables, pointers, linked lists, trees, graphs, structures, classes, heaps, or hash tables may also be used.

[0133] Predefined in this disclosure may be understood as defined, predefined, stored, pre-stored, pre-negotiated, pre-set, solidified, or pre-baked.

[0134] Those skilled in the art can recognize that the units and algorithm steps of each example described in accordance with the embodiments disclosed herein can be realized by electronic hardware or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are performed by hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to realize the described functions for each specific application, but such realization should not be considered beyond the scope of the present disclosure.

[0135] As can be clearly understood by those skilled in the art, for convenience and brevity of description, the specific operation processes of the above systems, devices and units can refer to the corresponding processes in the above-mentioned method embodiments and will not be described again here.

[0136] The above are only specific embodiments of the present disclosure, and the scope of protection of the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Those skilled in the art can easily think of modifications or replacements within the technical scope disclosed in the present disclosure, which should fall within the scope of protection of the present disclosure. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present disclosure should be subject to the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. 1. A method for controlling a connection of a terminal device, executed by a first terminal device, and applied to a terminal device-to-network relay scenario, said method comprising: determining whether to initiate a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration based on a first condition in response to receiving a first message transmitted from a second terminal device by the first terminal device in a connected state; The first terminal device is a remote terminal device in a relay scenario from the terminal device to a network, and the second terminal device is a relay terminal device in a relay scenario from the terminal device to a network; 10. A method for controlling a connection of a terminal device, comprising:

2. The first condition is that multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, and the step of determining whether to start radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration based on the first condition includes: not initiating RRC reestablishment if it is determined that the first terminal device is configured for multipath transmission; or Initiating RRC reestablishment when it is determined that multipath transmission is not configured on the first terminal device. The method for controlling the connection of a terminal device according to claim 1 .

3. determining that a network device is establishing a multipath bearer to the first terminal device; and determining that a network device has established both a direct bearer and an indirect bearer to the first terminal device; 3. The method for controlling the connection of a terminal device according to claim 2.

4. The first condition includes that multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device and an indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, and the step of determining whether to initiate radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration based on the first condition includes: If it is determined that multipath transmission is configured on the first terminal device and an indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, not initiating RRC reestablishment; or Initiating RRC reestablishment when multipath transmission is not configured in the first terminal device and / or when it is determined that an indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path; The indirect path is a path in which the first terminal device is indirectly connected to a network device via the second terminal device. The method for controlling the connection of a terminal device according to claim 1 .

5. The first condition includes that multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, an indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path, and a failure recovery function is configured in the first terminal device, and the step of determining whether to start radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration based on the first condition includes: If it is determined that a multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, and an indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path, and a fault recovery function is configured in the first terminal device, not initiating RRC reestablishment; or Initiating RRC reestablishment when it is determined that multipath transmission is not configured in the first terminal device, and / or an indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, and / or a failure recovery function is not configured in the first terminal device. The method for controlling the connection of a terminal device according to claim 1 .

6. determining that the indirect path is to be used to transport a signaling radio bearer (SRB); determining that the first terminal device triggered an RRC connection reestablishment after a failure occurred in the indirect path; determining that the indirect path is a master transmission path for an SRB; determining that the indirect path is a path for maintaining an RRC connection; determining that the indirect path is an anchor path; and determining that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path by any one of the following: determining that a cell connected by the indirect path is a master cell of the first terminal device; A method for controlling the connection of a terminal device according to claim 4 or 5.

7. determining that a failure recovery function is set in the first terminal device by determining that a timer is running, the timer being a timer that is started after the first terminal device reports link failure information to a network device, the link failure information being used to indicate that a link failure has occurred in a direct link or an indirect link in the multipath transmission; 6. The method for controlling connections of terminal devices according to claim 5.

8. the first message is a notification message sent by the second terminal device to the connected first terminal device via a sidelink in a first case, or The first message includes the notification message, and an indication type in the notification message is a radio link failure, and in the first case, If a radio link failure occurs, If a handover occurs, When cell reselection occurs, and When an RRC connection failure occurs, Method for controlling the connection of a terminal device according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

9. A communication apparatus applied to a first terminal device, comprising: a transceiver module configured to receive a first message sent from a second terminal device; a processing module configured to determine whether to initiate a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration based on a first condition when a first message transmitted from the second terminal device is received by the first terminal device in a connected state; The first terminal device is a remote terminal device in a relay scenario from a terminal device to a network, and the second terminal device is a relay terminal device in a relay scenario from the terminal device to a network. A communication device comprising:

10. The first condition is that multipath transmission is set in the first terminal device, and the processing module: If it is determined that the first terminal device is configured for multipath transmission, not initiating RRC reestablishment; or configured to initiate RRC reestablishment when it is determined that multipath transmission is not configured on the first terminal device; 10. The communication device according to claim 9.

11. The processing module further comprises: If it is determined that the network device has set up a multipath bearer to the first terminal device, determining that multipath transmission is set up for the first terminal device; or configured to determine that a multipath transmission is set up for the first terminal device if it is determined that the network device has set up both a direct bearer and an indirect bearer for the first terminal device; 11. The communication device according to claim 10.

12. The first condition includes that multipath transmission is set in the first terminal device, and an indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, and the processing module: If the first terminal device is configured with multipath transmission and it is determined that an indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, then not initiate RRC reestablishment; or configured to initiate RRC reestablishment when multipath transmission is not configured in the first terminal device and / or when it is determined that an indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path; The indirect path is a path in which the first terminal device is indirectly connected to a network device via the second terminal device.

10. The communication device according to claim 9.

13. The first condition includes that multipath transmission is set in the first terminal device, an indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path, and a failure recovery function is set in the first terminal device, and the processing module: If it is determined that multipath transmission is configured in the first terminal device, and an indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path, and a fault recovery function is configured in the first terminal device, do not initiate RRC reestablishment; or configured to initiate RRC reestablishment when it is determined that multipath transmission is not configured in the first terminal device, and / or that an indirect path in the multipath transmission is not a master path, and / or that a failure recovery function is not configured in the first terminal device; 10. The communication device according to claim 9.

14. The processing module further comprises: If it is determined that the indirect path is used to transmit a signaling radio bearer (SRB), then determining that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path; or If it is determined that the first terminal device triggers an RRC connection reestablishment after a failure occurs in the indirect path, determining that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path; or If it is determined that the indirect path is the master transmission path of the SRB, then determining that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is the master path; or If it is determined that the indirect path is a path for maintaining an RRC connection, determining that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path; or If the indirect path is determined to be an anchor path, determining that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path; or configured to determine that the indirect path in the multipath transmission is a master path when it is determined that the cell connected by the indirect path is a master cell of the first terminal device; 14. The communication device according to claim 12 or 13.

15. The processing module further comprises: configured to determine that a failure recovery function is configured in the first terminal device if it is determined that the timer is running; The timer is a timer that is started after the first terminal device reports link failure information to a network device, and the link failure information is used to indicate that a link failure has occurred in a direct link or an indirect link in the multipath transmission.

14. The communication device according to claim 13.

16. the first message is a notification message sent by the second terminal device to the connected first terminal device via a sidelink in a first case, or The first message includes the notification message, and an indication type in the notification message is a radio link failure, and in the first case, If a radio link failure occurs, If a handover occurs, When cell reselection occurs, and When an RRC connection failure occurs, The communication device according to any one of claims 9 to 15.

17. A communication device, a processor and a memory, wherein a computer program is stored in the memory, and the processor executes the computer program stored in the memory to cause the communication device to execute the method for controlling a connection of a terminal device according to any one of claims 1 to 8; A communication device comprising:

18. A computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon, When said instructions are executed, a method for controlling a connection of a terminal device according to any one of claims 1 to 8 is realized.

10. A computer-readable medium comprising:

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