Method and apparatus for wireless communication

Abstract

The present application provides a method and apparatus for wireless communication, which contribute to a terminal device in an NTN cell performing neighbor cell measurements, the method including a step of the terminal device performing neighbor cell measurements in the NTN cell based on a first parameter, the first parameter being associated with one or more of the following information: a distance between the terminal device and a network device corresponding to the NTN cell, a height above ground of the network device corresponding to the NTN cell, an azimuth angle of an antenna of the network device corresponding to the NTN cell, and a sub-area within the NTN cell.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This application claims priority to a Chinese patent application bearing application number 2023100977735 and entitled "Method and Apparatus for Wireless Communication," filed with the China Patent Office on February 1, 2023, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0002] TECHNICAL FIELD This application relates to the field of communications, and more particularly to methods and apparatus for wireless communications. [Background technology]

[0003] Non-terrestrial network (NTN) systems have high mobility. In systems where the coverage area of ​​an NTN cell is stationary relative to the ground (e.g., a quasi-terrestrial fixed system), a terminal device can perform neighbor cell measurements based on the reference position of the serving cell provided by the network device.

[0004] However, in systems where NTN cells move with the network device (e.g., quasi-terrestrial mobile cells), changes in the coverage area of ​​the serving cell may be detrimental to the performance of neighbor cell measurements by the terminal device. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The present application provides a method and apparatus for wireless communication. Hereinafter, various aspects according to embodiments of the present application will be described. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In a first aspect, a method for wireless communication is provided, comprising: a terminal device performing neighbor cell measurements in an NTN cell based on a first parameter, the first parameter being associated with one or more pieces of information: a distance between the terminal device and a network device corresponding to the NTN cell; a height above ground of the network device corresponding to the NTN cell; an azimuth angle of an antenna of the network device corresponding to the NTN cell; and a sub-area within the NTN cell.

[0007] In a second aspect, a method for wireless communication is provided, comprising a step of a network device transmitting a first parameter to a terminal device, the first parameter being used by the terminal device to perform neighbor cell measurements in an NTN cell, the first parameter being associated with one or more pieces of information: a distance between the terminal device and the network device, a height of the network device above ground, an azimuth angle of an antenna of the network device, and a sub-area within the NTN cell.

[0008] In a third aspect, there is provided an apparatus for wireless communication, the apparatus being a terminal device, the terminal device including a measurement unit for performing neighbor cell measurements in an NTN cell based on a first parameter, the first parameter being associated with one or more pieces of information: a distance between the terminal device and the network device, a height of the network device above ground, an azimuth angle of an antenna of the network device, and a sub-area within the NTN cell.

[0009] In a fourth aspect, there is provided an apparatus for wireless communication, the apparatus being a network device, the network device including a transmitting unit for transmitting a first parameter to the terminal device, the first parameter being used by the terminal device to perform neighbor cell measurements in an NTN cell, the first parameter being associated with one or more pieces of information including a distance between the terminal device and the network device, a height of the network device above ground, an azimuth angle of an antenna of the network device, and a sub-area within the NTN cell.

[0010] In a fifth aspect, there is provided a communication device including a memory and a processor, wherein the memory is used to store a program, and the processor is used to call the program in the memory to perform the method according to the first or second aspect.

[0011] In a sixth aspect, there is provided an apparatus including a processor for calling a program from a memory to perform a method according to the first or second aspect.

[0012] In a seventh aspect, there is provided a chip including a processor for calling a program from a memory to cause a device in which the chip is attached to carry out a method according to the first or second aspect.

[0013] In an eighth aspect, there is provided a computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon a program for causing a computer to execute the method according to the first or second aspect.

[0014] In a ninth aspect, there is provided a computer program product comprising a program for causing a computer to carry out a method according to the first or second aspect.

[0015] In a tenth aspect, there is provided a computer program causing a computer to carry out the method according to the first or second aspect.

[0016] In the embodiments of the present application, the terminal device can perform neighbor cell measurement in the NTN cell based on the first parameter and its association information, and the first parameter can indicate the timing at which the terminal device triggers neighbor cell measurement based on the sub-region information where the terminal device is located or the more accurate relative position information between the terminal device and the network device, thereby improving the effect of the terminal device performing neighbor cell measurement. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0017] [Figure 1] 1 illustrates a wireless communication system applied to an embodiment of the present application. [Figure 2] 1 is an NTN system applied to an embodiment of the present application. [Figure 3] 1 is another NTN system applied to an embodiment of the present application. [Figure 4] 1 is a schematic diagram of a method for wireless communication according to an embodiment of the present application; [Figure 5] 1 is a schematic diagram of an NTN cell division method according to an embodiment of the present application. [Figure 6] FIG. 5 is a structural schematic diagram of a possible realization of the method shown in FIG. 4; [Figure 7] 1 is a schematic diagram of a possible implementation of determining the sub-area in which a terminal device of a moving cell is located; [Figure 8] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of another NTN cell division method according to an embodiment of the present application. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of yet another NTN cell division method according to an embodiment of the present application. [Figure 10] 1 is a structural schematic diagram of a device for wireless communication according to an embodiment of the present application; [Figure 11] FIG. 2 is a structural schematic diagram of another device for wireless communication according to an embodiment of the present application; [Figure 12] 1 is a structural schematic diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application; DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0018] Hereinafter, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application will be described with reference to the drawings of the embodiments of the present application, and it is obvious that the described embodiments are only some of the embodiments of the present application, and not all of the embodiments. All other embodiments that a person skilled in the art can obtain based on the embodiments of the present application without any creative work fall within the scope of protection of the present application.

[0019] Embodiments of the present application may be applied to various communication systems, such as a global system of mobile communications (GSM) system, a code division multiple access (CDMA) system, a wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) system, a general packet radio service (GPRS), a long term evolution (LTE) system, an advanced long term evolution (LTE-A) system, a new radio (NR) system, an evolution of an NR system, an LTE-based access to unlicensed spectrum (LTE-U) system, an NR-based access to unlicensed spectrum (NR-U) system, an NTN system, a universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), a wireless local area network (WLAN), a wireless fidelity (WFI), a wireless local area network (WLAN), a wireless cellular ... The present invention may be applicable to wireless fidelity (WiFi) and fifth-generation (5G) communication systems. Embodiments of the present application may also be applicable to other communication systems, such as future communication systems. The future communication systems may be, for example, sixth-generation (6G) mobile communication systems or satellite communication systems.

[0020] Conventional communication systems have a limited number of supported connections and are easy to implement. However, with the development of communication technology, communication systems can support not only conventional cellular communication but also one or more other types of communication. For example, a communication system can support one or more of device-to-device (D2D) communication, machine-to-machine (M2M) communication, machine-type communication (MTC), vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication, and vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, etc., and embodiments of the present application can also be applied to communication systems supporting the above communication methods.

[0021] The communication system in the embodiments of the present application can be applied to a carrier aggregation (CA) scenario, a dual connectivity (DC) scenario, and a standalone (SA) networking scenario.

[0022] The communication system according to the embodiment of the present application may be applied to an unlicensed spectrum, which may also be considered a shared spectrum, or may be applied to a licensed spectrum, which may also be considered a dedicated spectrum.

[0023] Embodiments of the present application may be applied to terrestrial networks (TN) systems and NTN systems, which may include, for example, 4G-based NTN systems, NR-based NTN systems, internet of things (IoT)-based NTN systems, and narrowband internet of things (NB-IoT)-based NTN systems.

[0024] A communication system may include one or more terminal devices, which may also be referred to as user equipment (UE), access terminal, user unit, user station, mobile station, mobile station (MS), mobile terminal (MT), remote station, remote terminal, mobile device, user terminal, terminal, wireless communication device, user agent, or user equipment.

[0025] In some embodiments, the terminal device may be a station (ST) in a WLAN, a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a personal digital assistant (PDA) device, a handheld device with wireless communication capabilities, a computing device or other processing device connected to a wireless modem, an in-vehicle device, a wearable device, a terminal device in a next generation communication system (e.g., an NR system) or a terminal device in a future public land mobile network (PLMN), etc.

[0026] In some embodiments, a terminal device may refer to a device that provides a user with voice and / or data connectivity. For example, the terminal device may be a handheld device with wireless connectivity, an in-vehicle device, etc. As some specific examples, the terminal device may be a mobile phone, a tablet PC (Pad), a laptop, a palmtop computer, a mobile internet device (MID), a wearable device, a virtual reality (VR) device, an augmented reality (AR) device, a wireless terminal in industrial control, a wireless terminal in self-driving, a wireless terminal in remote medical surgery, a wireless terminal in a smart grid, a wireless terminal in transportation safety, a wireless terminal in a smart city, a wireless terminal in a smart home, etc.

[0027] In some embodiments, the terminal device may be located on land, for example, the terminal device may be located indoors or outdoors, in some embodiments, the terminal device may be located on water, for example, on a steamship, in some embodiments, the terminal device may be located in the air, for example, on an airplane, a balloon, or a satellite.

[0028] In addition to the terminal device, the communication system may further include one or more network devices. The network device in the present embodiment may be a device for communicating with the terminal device, and the network device may also be referred to as an access network device or a radio access network device. The network device may be, for example, a base station. The network device in the present embodiment may refer to a radio access network (RAN) node (or device) that allows the terminal device to access the wireless network. The base station may broadly cover or be replaced with various names such as a Node B (Node B), evolved Node B (eNB), next generation Node B (gNB), relay station, access point, transmitting and receiving point (TRP), transmission point (TP), primary base station MeNB, secondary base station SeNB, multi-standard radio (MSR) node, home base station, network controller, access node, radio node, access point (AP), transmission node, transceiver node, base band unit (BBU), remote radio unit (RRU), active antenna unit (AAU), remote radio head (RRH), central unit (CU), distributed unit (DU), positioning node, etc. The base station may be a macro base station, a micro base station, a relay node, a donor node, or the like, or a combination thereof. A base station may also refer to a communication module, modem or chip installed within the aforementioned device or equipment.The base station may also be a mobile switching center and a device that performs the function of a base station in D2D, V2X, and M2M communications, a network side device in a 6G network, a device that performs the function of a base station in a future communication system, etc. The base station may support networks of the same or different access technologies. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific technologies adopted by the network devices and the specific device forms.

[0029] The base station may be fixed or mobile. For example, a helicopter or a drone may be configured as a mobile base station, and one or more cells may move based on the location of the mobile base station. In another example, a helicopter or a drone may be configured as a device for communicating with another base station.

[0030] In some deployments, the network device in the embodiments of the present application may refer to a CU or a DU, or may include a CU and a DU. The gNB may further include an AAU.

[0031] By way of non-limiting example, in some embodiments of the present application, a network device may have mobile characteristics, e.g., the network device may be a mobile device. In some embodiments of the present application, the network device may be a satellite or balloon station. In some embodiments of the present application, the network device may also be a base station located at a location such as on land or in a body of water.

[0032] In an embodiment of the present application, a network device can provide a service to a cell, and a terminal device communicates with the network device through transmission resources (e.g., frequency domain resources, i.e., spectrum resources) used by the cell, and the cell may be a cell corresponding to the network device (e.g., a base station), and the cell may belong to a macro base station or a base station corresponding to a small cell, where the small cell may include a metro cell, a micro cell, a pico cell, a femto cell, etc., and these small cells are characterized by a small coverage range and low transmission power and are adapted to provide high-rate data transmission services.

[0033] 1 is a schematic diagram of a communication system architecture according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 1, the communication system 100 may include a network device 110, which may be a device that communicates with terminal devices 120 (also referred to as communication terminals or terminals). The network device 110 may provide communication coverage in a particular geographic area and communicate with terminal devices located within the coverage area.

[0034] The communication system 100 shown in FIG. 1 exemplarily illustrates one network device and two terminal devices, and in some embodiments of the present application, the communication system 100 may include multiple network devices, and the coverage range of each network device may include other numbers of terminal devices, and this is not limited to the embodiments of the present application.

[0035] Illustratively, Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of the NTN system. The NTN system 200 shown in Figure 2 uses a satellite 210 as an airborne platform. As shown in Figure 2, the satellite radio access network includes the satellite 210, a service link 220, a feeder link 230, a terminal device 240, a gateway 250, and a network 260 including a base station and a core network.

[0036] Satellite 210 is a space-based vehicle. Service link 220 refers to the link between satellite 210 and terminal device 240. Feeder link 230 refers to the link between gateway 250 and satellite 210. Earth-based gateway 250 connects satellite 210 to a base station or core network, the specifics of which are determined based on the architecture choice.

[0037] The NTN architecture shown in Figure 2 is a bent-pipe transponder architecture, in which the base station is located on Earth behind the gateway 250, and the satellite 210 functions as a relay. The satellite 210 acts as a repeater, forwarding signals from the feeder link 230 to the service link 220, or forwarding signals from the service link 220 to the feeder link 230. In other words, the satellite 210 does not have base station functionality, and communication between the terminal device 240 and the base stations in the network 260 must be performed using the satellite 210.

[0038] For example, Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of another architecture of an NTN system. The NTN system 300 shown in Figure 3 also uses a satellite 310 as an airborne platform. The difference from Figure 2 is that in Figure 3, a base station 312 is provided on the satellite 310, and the network 360 behind the gateway 350 only includes a core network.

[0039] The NTN architecture shown in Figure 3 is a regenerative transponder architecture. In this architecture, a satellite 310 carries a base station 312 and can be directly connected to an Earth-based core network by using a link. The satellite 310 has the functionality of a base station, and a terminal device 340 can communicate directly with the satellite 310. Therefore, the satellite 310 may be referred to as a network device.

[0040] The communication system of the architecture shown in Figures 2 and 3 may include multiple network devices, and the coverage range of each network device may include other numbers of terminal devices, and the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto.

[0041] In the embodiments of the present application, the wireless communication systems shown in Figures 1 to 3 may further include other network entities such as a mobility management entity (MME), an access and mobility management function (AMF), etc., and the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto.

[0042] It should be understood that in the embodiments of the present application, a device having a communication function in a network / system can be referred to as a communication device. Taking the communication system 100 shown in Figure 1 as an example, the communication device may include a network device 110 and a terminal device 120 having a communication function, where the network device 110 and the terminal device 120 may be the above-mentioned specific devices, and detailed descriptions will be omitted here. The communication device may also include other devices in the communication system 100, such as other network entities such as a network controller, a mobility management entity, etc., and the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto.

[0043] For ease of understanding, some related technical knowledge regarding the embodiments of the present application will be explained first. Hereinafter, the related technologies can be arbitrarily combined with the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application as optional means, and they all fall within the protection scope of the embodiments of the present application. The embodiments of the present application include at least some of the following contents:

[0044] As communication technology develops, communication systems (e.g., 5G) have the market potential to integrate satellite and terrestrial network infrastructure. For example, 5G standards have made NTN, including the satellite segment, part of the 5G connectivity infrastructure of the well-known 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP®).

[0045] Communication satellites are classified by orbital height into low Earth orbit (LEO), medium Earth orbit (MEO), geostationary Earth orbit (GEO), and high elliptical orbit (HEO). LEO is an orbit centered on the Earth with an altitude of 2,000 km or less, or with at least 11.25 periods per day and an eccentricity of less than 0.25. Most artificial objects in outer space are located in LEO. LEO satellites move around the Earth at high speed (mobility) but on predictable or determinable orbits.

[0046] Satellites at different orbital altitudes have different orbital periods.

[0047] LEO: Typical altitudes are 250km to 1,500km, with orbital periods of 90 to 120 minutes.

[0048] MEO: Typical altitudes are 5,000km to 25,000km, with orbital periods of 3 hours to 15 hours.

[0049] GEO: Altitude is approximately 35,786 km, and the orbital period is 24 hours.

[0050] NTN refers to a network or network segment that uses radio frequency (RF) resources on a satellite or unmanned aerial system (UAS) platform. Typical NTN scenarios for accessing terminal devices involve NTN transparent payloads or NTN regenerative payloads. Figures 2 and 3 above show two NTN system architectures, taking satellites as examples. The bent-pipe transponder architecture shown in Figure 2 corresponds to the NTN transparent payload, while the regenerative transponder architecture shown in Figure 3 corresponds to the NTN regenerative payload.

[0051] In satellite-based NTN systems, the coverage area of ​​a serving cell is generally relatively large. The diameter of an NTN cell is at least 50 km. In some embodiments, an NTN cell can cover multiple cities where TN cells are deployed, as well as remote areas or ocean regions where TN cells are not deployed.

[0052] In the NTN system, both the satellite and the unmanned aerial vehicle system have high mobility. The cell projected by the satellite onto the ground may be fixed relative to the ground or may move with the satellite. Taking the serving cell corresponding to the LEO satellite as an example, the cell projected by the LEO satellite onto the ground usually includes two modes: a fixed cell and a moving cell.

[0053] A stationary cell relative to the Earth may refer to a serving cell whose geographical area it covers is fixed. For example, different LEO satellites can cover the same area on Earth by adjusting the antenna pointing angles, and if one LEO satellite can no longer cover the area, another LEO satellite will take over. For satellites in geosynchronous orbit (GSO), the cell projected onto the Earth may also be a fixed cell.

[0054] A moving cell may refer to a serving cell whose covered geographical area changes. For example, a cell projected onto the ground by a LEO satellite may move along with the satellite. Generally, when the antenna of a LEO satellite is perpendicular to the ground, the cell projected onto the ground by the LEO satellite is a moving cell. Whether the LEO satellite is an independent base station or a relay base station, the moving cell moves along with the LEO satellite, and the relative distance between the LEO satellite and the terminal device is constantly changing. After a certain period of time, the signal from the LEO satellite may no longer cover the terminal device, and if the network deployment is relatively smooth, the next LEO satellite will cover the terminal device. Because the satellite system is spherical, the next LEO satellite may come from various angles.

[0055] The satellite's projected position in a direction perpendicular to the Earth's surface may be called the nadir, or may be called the reference position or reference point. The locus of the satellite reference position on the Earth's surface is usually aligned with the satellite's orbit. That is, the locus of the satellite reference point on the Earth's surface can be considered as a projection of the satellite's motion orbit.

[0056] The operational parameters of a satellite can be represented by ephemeris data. Ephemeris data generally comes in two forms: orbital parameters and position, velocity, and time (PVT) parameters. Either the orbital parameters or PVT parameters of a satellite can indicate the satellite's position coordinates relative to the Earth. A terminal device can determine the future operational trajectory of the satellite using the ephemeris data, and thereby determine whether measurements or handovers are required.

[0057] The NTN system may include a quasi-terrestrial fixed system and a mobile unit system. Regarding the theme of cell measurement and reselection enhancement, different systems have different solutions. For example, in the case of time-based cell reselection in a quasi-terrestrial fixed system, the network device can provide the terminal device with the time when its common cell will stop serving. All idle / inactive terminal devices in the cell can perform cell reselection before the cell stop time. For example, in the case of location-based measurement initiation in a quasi-terrestrial fixed system, the network device can provide the terminal device with the reference position and distance threshold of the serving cell. If the distance between the terminal device and the reference position of the current serving cell is greater than the distance threshold, the terminal device needs to perform neighbor cell measurements.

[0058] Taking the Rel-17 specification as an example, the specification specifies a location-based measurement initiation rule and a time-based measurement initiation rule for NTN quasi-terrestrial fixed cells. For the location-based measurement initiation rule, a distance threshold and a reference position of the serving cell (i.e., the terrestrial cell center) are introduced. If the distance between the terminal device and the reference position of the serving cell is less than the distance threshold and meets the conventional signal reception condition, the terminal device may not perform priority-based neighbor cell measurement. The signal reception condition may be a reference signal received power (RSRP) condition or a reference signal received quality (RSRQ) condition. Priority-based neighbor cell measurement refers to performing neighbor cell measurement based on NR intra- or inter-frequencies with equal or lower priority, or on inter-radio access technology (RAT) frequencies with lower priority. For the time-based measurement initiation rule, a cell outage time of the serving cell, i.e., the time when the cell stops covering the current area, is introduced. If a cell outage time is set, the terminal device must start measuring neighboring cells before the cell outage time, regardless of whether it meets the above location conditions or the conventional RSRP / RSRQ conditions.

[0059] However, the solutions described above that are applicable to semi-terrestrial fixed systems are not applicable to mobile unit systems.

[0060] In a mobile unit system, the coverage area of ​​an NTN cell moves along with the network device. Even if the terminal device is fixed, the relative position between the terminal device and the network device changes. That is, in a mobile unit system, the positions of both the terminal device and the serving cell may change. Taking a mobile cell of a low-earth orbit (LEO) satellite as an example, the speed of a typical LEO satellite is 7.56 km / s. As the LEO satellite moves, its footprint slides across the Earth. Considering that the diameter of an NTN cell is at least 50 km, this means that all idle / inactive terminal devices in the cell must be allocated in 6.61 seconds. This means that all terminal devices in the cell must reselect another resident cell, and new terminal devices will also reside in the cell. The above solution is disadvantageous to the terminal device's ability to perform neighbor cell measurement or cell reselection because the information provided by the network device to the terminal device for triggering cell measurement / reselection may be inaccurate.

[0061] As mentioned above, NTN cells usually cover a much larger area than TN cells. NTN cells cover a large number of low-mobility NB-IoT terminal devices. In the case of terrestrial mobile cells, even though the movement of NB-IoT terminal devices is slow, the movement of the network device obviously changes the distance between the network device and the terminal device. Therefore, for terminal devices in mobile cells, the terminal device needs more accurate information to perform neighbor cell measurements before the network device stops serving.

[0062] To solve some of the above problems, an embodiment of the present application proposes a method for wireless communication, in which a terminal device is instructed to perform neighbor cell measurements based on a first parameter related to location information of the terminal device. The location information of the terminal device can indicate a relative location relationship between the terminal device and a serving cell, which can help the terminal device to better perform measurements / handovers, etc. For ease of understanding, the main technical solutions of the embodiment of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to FIG. 4.

[0063] Figure 4 is constructed in terms of the interaction between the terminal device and the network device: the terminal device determines when to trigger neighbor cell measurements by communicating with the network device.

[0064] The terminal device may be any of the aforementioned terminal devices communicating with network devices in an NTN cell, or may be a terminal device communicating in another land mobile cell, In some embodiments, the terminal device may be a communication device with low mobility in NB-IoT.

[0065] In some embodiments, the terminal device may be a communication device in an idle or inactive state in the NTN cell. The terminal device may receive broadcast information or system information transmitted from the network device. In some embodiments, the terminal device may be a communication device in an active state. The terminal device may receive broadcast information or system information transmitted from the network device, and may also receive dedicated signaling transmitted from the network device. The dedicated signaling may reduce consumption of public resources.

[0066] The network device may be a communication device that is provided with network services by the NTN cell in which the terminal device is located. For example, the network device may be a satellite that functions as an independent base station or an unmanned aerial system that functions as a relay base station.

[0067] The NTN cell may be a serving cell whose coverage area is stationary relative to the earth, such as a quasi-earth fixed cell, or a serving cell whose coverage area moves with the network device, such as a quasi-earth mobile cell, but is not limited thereto.

[0068] Referring to FIG. 4, in step S410, the terminal device receives a first parameter sent from the network device.

[0069] The first parameter is used to instruct the terminal device to perform neighbor cell measurements. The first parameter may indicate a relative positional relationship between the terminal device and the current serving cell, allowing the terminal device to determine whether the terminal device is in an edge region of the serving cell and thereby better trigger neighbor cell measurements. The first parameter may be associated with one or more pieces of information. The information may be the distance between the terminal device and the network device. The distance may be referred to as a service link distance and is represented by L. The threshold value of the service link distance is related to the coverage range of the NTN cell. The information may be the height of the network device from the ground. The height may be referred to as the height of the network device in a direction perpendicular to the ground. The information may be the azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device. The azimuth angle is used to determine the coverage area of ​​the NTN cell. The information may be a sub-area within the NTN cell. The sub-area may include multiple virtual areas that further divide the NTN.

[0070] The azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device may be the set azimuth angle of the antenna or the azimuth angle corresponding to the network device. In some embodiments, the azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device may be the maximum azimuth angle that can be set for the antenna or the azimuth angle at which the network service is currently being provided. Therefore, the azimuth angle of the antenna may be referred to as the maximum azimuth angle or the beam antenna angle. For example, if the NTN cell is a quasi-earth-fixed cell, the azimuth angle of the satellite antenna can be adjusted based on the maximum azimuth angle to accommodate the coverage range of the NTN cell. In some embodiments, the azimuth angle of the antenna may refer to the azimuth angle of the network device or the satellite. For example, if a satellite in the NTN system functions as a relay base station, the azimuth angle of the antenna is the azimuth angle of the satellite. Based on the azimuth angle of the satellite, relative position information between the terminal device and the satellite can be determined, and the coverage area of ​​the corresponding NTN cell can also be determined.

[0071] A reasonable sub-area division scheme may be advantageous for a terminal device to perform measurements / handovers. The handover of a terminal device may include handovers between NTN-NTN, NTN-TN, etc. For example, the terminal device can determine whether the terminal device is located at the center of the coverage area of ​​an NTN cell based on the sub-area in which the terminal device is located, thereby reducing unnecessary measurements.

[0072] To align with the coverage division method of terrestrial TN cellular networks, sub-areas within an NTN cell are determined based on the coverage angle of the network device. The azimuth angle of the network device's antenna can determine the current coverage area of ​​the network device. In the coverage area, the included angle formed by the line connecting the network device to the coverage location and the perpendicular line of the network device to the ground is the coverage angle of the network device. That is, the coverage angle of a terminal device can be determined based on the ratio of the distance between the terminal device and the network device to the height of the network device above the ground. The coverage angle may also be called the offset angle. Terminal devices at different locations have different coverage angles. At the edge of the NTN cell, the coverage angle is equal to the azimuth angle of the antenna. Therefore, the coverage angle of the network device is less than or equal to the azimuth angle of the antenna.

[0073] In some embodiments, dividing an NTN cell based on coverage angles means determining multiple coverage angles for multiple corresponding sub-areas based on the azimuth angle of the antenna. The multiple coverage angles may or may not be an arithmetic progression. For example, if the azimuth angle of the antenna is 60 degrees, the coverage angles corresponding to the multiple sub-areas may be 15 degrees, 30 degrees, 45 degrees, and 60 degrees, respectively. That is, dividing the NTN cell into four sub-areas based on the azimuth angle, and determining one boundary of each sub-area by the coverage angles corresponding to the four sub-areas. For example, at the edge of the cell, the coverage angle of the satellite is α max and these angles are α1, α2, α3...α i where α1<α2<α3…<α i <α max is.

[0074] In a possible implementation, the sub-areas divided by the NTN may be circular or annular areas centered on the projection position of the network device in the direction perpendicular to the ground. If the NTN cell includes N sub-areas (N is a natural number greater than 1), the N coverage angles corresponding to the boundaries of the N sub-areas far from the center are determined by the following condition: 0<α i <α i+1 ≦α N where α i is the coverage angle corresponding to the boundary away from the center of the i-th subregion among N subregions, where i is a natural number ranging from 1 to N-1, and α N is the azimuth angle of the antenna.

[0075] In a possible implementation, the sub-areas divided by an NTN cell may or may not equally divide the coverage area of ​​the NTN cell. For example, if an NTN cell includes N sub-areas, the areas corresponding to the N sub-areas may equally divide the NTN cell. That is, the areas of the N sub-areas may be equal. Also, for example, the areas corresponding to the N sub-areas may be partially equal or not entirely equal.

[0076] In some embodiments, a sub-region within the NTN cell can be determined based on a projected position of the network device in a direction perpendicular to the ground. The projected position may be referred to as a first position. The NTN can determine a boundary of the sub-region based on the coverage angle, where the boundary of the sub-region includes a curve centered on the first position. The first position can be determined based on coordinates of the network device. For example, the terminal device can determine orbital parameters or PVT parameters of the network device based on ephemeris data corresponding to the network device, and these parameters can determine the coordinates of the network device's projection onto the ground. Based on the first position and the coverage angle, location information for multiple sub-regions of the NTN cell can be determined.

[0077] In some embodiments, when an NTN cell is divided based on coverage angles, other information may also be considered. That is, the virtual sub-areas in the NTN cell may be determined based on one or more other related information. The other related information may be the coordinates of a network device, the geographical environment of the NTN cell's coverage area, the distribution of TN cells in the NTN cell's coverage area, signal interaction limitations of the NTN cell, measurement requirements and / or handover requirements of a terminal device, or auxiliary information provided by a terminal device. For example, when an NTN cell is divided into N sub-areas, the value of N may be increased based on the other related information, thereby increasing the number of sub-areas and dividing the NTN cell more finely.

[0078] In a possible implementation, the sub-areas within the NTN cell may be adaptively adjusted based on the coordinates of the network device and the coverage situation of the TN. For example, if the coordinates indicate that the network device is in a densely populated area or there are many TN cells within the NTN cell, the number of sub-areas can be increased. Increasing the number of sub-areas allows for more accurate handover of the NTN cell to the TN cell.

[0079] In a possible implementation, the sub-areas within an NTN cell may be adaptively adjusted based on the geographical environment of the coverage area. For example, if the main area covered by an NTN cell is an ocean or desert, the number of sub-areas can be reduced. Since there are fewer TN cells in the area, the probability of handover to a TN cell is small.

[0080] In a possible implementation, the sub-areas within the NTN cell may be determined based on the signal interaction limitations of the NTN cell. For example, if there are many TN cells within the NTN cell, and there are many sub-areas, the terminal device needs to perform many signal interactions with the network device to meet the requirements for measurement or handover in different sub-areas. If the network device is a satellite, the transmission delay is large, and the number of sub-areas can be reduced to reduce the interaction.

[0081] In a possible implementation, the sub-areas within the NTN cell may be determined based on the measurement and / or handover requirements of the terminal device. For example, if the terminal device has high measurement or handover accuracy requirements to reduce power consumption, increasing the number of sub-areas can reduce the deviation of subsequent measurement and handover decisions.

[0082] In a possible implementation, the sub-regions within the NTN cell may be determined based on other auxiliary information provided by the terminal device. For example, the terminal device may provide the network device with information about its surrounding environment or location information determined in other ways. The network device may determine the number of sub-regions based on auxiliary information provided by multiple terminal devices.

[0083] As described above, in order to determine the division method of NTN cells and whether they are divided into several sub-areas, in addition to the coverage angle and position of the network device, the ground conditions covered by the NTN cell, the distribution conditions of TNs in the coverage area, communication requirements and auxiliary information provided by the terminal device may be taken into consideration, so that the division of NTN cells can be more accurate and more adapted to the geographical area covered.

[0084] Hereinafter, the NTN cell division method according to the embodiment of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to FIG.

[0085] Referring to FIG. 5, the projection position of the network device in a direction perpendicular to the ground is a first position 510, and the azimuth angle of the antenna is the maximum azimuth angle α max Based on the azimuth angle, the NTN cell is divided into three sub-regions, NTN1, NTN2, and NTN3. As shown in FIG. 5, the boundaries of the three sub-regions are centered on the first position 510. Specifically, boundary curve 520 of sub-region NTN1 is a circle centered on the first position 510. The boundary of sub-region NTN2 includes curve 520 and curve 530. Curve 530 is also a circle centered on the first position 510. Similarly, the boundary of sub-region NTN2 includes curve 530 and curve 540. Curve 540 is also a circle centered on the first position 510.

[0086] As shown in Figure 5, the coverage angle of the network device corresponding to the boundaries of the multiple sub-areas is less than or equal to the azimuth angle of the antenna. The coverage angle corresponding to the boundary curve 520 of the sub-area NTN1 is α1, and α1 is α max The coverage angles corresponding to the two boundaries of the sub-region NTN2 are α1 and α2, respectively, both of which are less than α max The coverage angle corresponding to the inner boundary curve 530 of the sub-region NTN3 is α2, and the coverage angle corresponding to the outer boundary curve 540 is α max is equal to.

[0087] The coverage angle corresponding to the terminal device in the sub-region is within the coverage angle range corresponding to the sub-region boundary, for example, the coverage angle corresponding to the terminal device in the sub-region NTN1 is less than or equal to α1.

[0088] It should be understood that the concentric circle division scheme shown in Figure 5 is merely exemplary, and other division schemes based on coverage angles are also applicable to the present application. For example, multiple elliptical sub-regions can be determined based on the coverage angles of network devices in multiple directions.

[0089] The NTN cell division method described with reference to Figure 5 can be applied to quasi-earth fixed cells and quasi-earth mobile cells. The relative position change between the terminal device and the network device varies depending on the cell type, as will be explained in detail later.

[0090] The NTN cell division scheme shown in Figure 5 can be unified with the coverage division of the terrestrial TN cellular network. This division scheme allows the NTN network to better integrate with the terrestrial cellular system and reduce measurement blind spots. In addition to the division based on azimuth angle, the NTN cell division scheme of the antenna may also include other divisions, which will be briefly described later with reference to Figures 8 and 9.

[0091] Returning to step S410 shown in FIG. 4, the first parameter may be used to instruct the terminal device to perform neighbor cell measurements based on location information of the terminal device in the NTN cell. The location information may be used to determine relative location information between the terminal device and the corresponding network device. In some embodiments, the relative location information may be used to determine whether the terminal device is in an edge region of the current serving cell. For example, the terminal device may determine the time to reach the edge based on the distance between the terminal device and the network device associated with the first parameter. In some embodiments, the relative location information may be used to determine the subregion in which the terminal device is located. Different measurement / handover modes may be configured for the subregions within the NTN cell, and the terminal device may perform reasonable measurements based on the subregion information in which it is located.

[0092] The relative location information between the terminal device and the network device may include a relative distance or a relative angle between the terminal device and the network device. In some embodiments, the first parameter can directly indicate the relative location information by associating multiple pieces of information. For example, the first parameter may be the distance between the terminal device and the network device. In some embodiments, the terminal device can determine the relative location information based on the multiple pieces of associated information. For example, the first parameter can determine the coverage angle of the network device corresponding to the terminal device based on the distance between the terminal device and the network device and the height of the network device above ground.

[0093] In some embodiments, the first parameter may be directly the one or more pieces of association information. For example, the first parameter received by the terminal device may be the height of the network device above the ground, the azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device, or the division method of the sub-areas. In some embodiments, the first parameter may be other information used to obtain the one or more pieces of association information. For example, the first parameter may be ephemeris data corresponding to a serving satellite. Satellite orbit parameters in the ephemeris data are available, allowing the terminal device to grasp and predict the position of the serving satellite and the position coordinates of the satellite nadir in real time. The terminal device can determine relative position information with respect to the serving satellite using these data. For another example, the first parameter may be related information about a sub-area within an NTN cell. The terminal device can use these related information to determine the sub-area in which it is located, thereby determining the relative positional relationship between the terminal device and the network device. For another example, the first parameter may be a reference signal transmitted from the network device. The terminal device can determine the distance between the terminal device and the network device based on the received RSRP.

[0094] In step S420, the terminal device performs neighbor cell measurements in the NTN cell based on the first parameter.

[0095] The neighbor cell measurement may also be referred to as a neighbor cell measurement. The neighbor cell measurement may include a measurement for a neighbor cell or a related measurement for triggering the neighbor cell measurement. When the terminal device performs the neighbor cell measurement, the neighbor cell may be an NTN cell or a TN cell, and is not limited thereto.

[0096] In some embodiments, the terminal device performing neighbor cell measurements may be to prepare for cell reselection, i.e., after the terminal device triggers neighbor cell measurements, the measurement results of the neighbor cells can be used by the terminal device to perform cell reselection.

[0097] As described above, the first parameter may indicate a relative positional relationship between the terminal device and the serving cell, and the association information of the first parameter may be used to determine the relative positional relationship and indicate whether the terminal device should trigger neighbor cell measurements.

[0098] The terminal device can perform neighbor cell measurements based on multiple trigger factors, which may be time, distance, angle, or the sub-region in which the terminal device is located.

[0099] In some embodiments, the terminal device may trigger neighbor cell measurement based on time. In a possible implementation, the terminal device may determine the time to reach the edge of the NTN cell based on the first parameter and determine whether to trigger neighbor cell measurement based on the time. For example, in the case of a quasi-terrestrial fixed cell, the serving cell may provide a service outage time. The terminal device may combine the service outage time and its own movement information to set a time measurement threshold, and if the time to reach the edge of the NTN cell is less than the time measurement threshold, the terminal device may trigger neighbor cell measurement. For example, in the case of a quasi-terrestrial mobile cell, when relative movement between the terminal device and the serving cell occurs, the terminal device may similarly determine whether to trigger neighbor cell measurement based on the time measurement threshold.

[0100] In a possible implementation, the first parameter may be determined based on the ratio of the distance between the terminal device and the network device to the height of the network device from the ground. For example, if the height of the network device from the ground is D and the distance between the terminal device and the network device is L, the ratio (D / L) can determine the coverage angle α of the network device corresponding to the terminal device. Specifically, α=arccos(D / L).

[0101] In one possible implementation, the network device may notify the terminal device of the first parameter via broadcast information / system information / dedicated signaling. The terminal device may determine a second parameter based on the first parameter, and the second parameter is used to indicate the time at which the terminal device will reach the edge of the NTN cell. For example, if the first parameter includes ephemeris data of the network device, the terminal device may determine the distance to the network device and the height of the network device above ground based on the ephemeris data, and thereby determine the corresponding coverage angle. To obtain the time at which the terminal device will reach the edge of the NTN cell, the second parameter may be determined based on the azimuth angle of the antenna. The azimuth angle of the antenna and the coverage angle corresponding to the terminal device can determine the time required for the terminal device to reach the edge of the cell, and thereby determine whether to perform neighbor cell measurements.

[0102] For example, the time t at which an end device reaches the edge of an NTN cell is given by the formula: t=(α N -α n ) / Δγ can be determined by, where α N is the azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device (α max ), α n is the coverage angle of the network device corresponding to the position of the terminal device, Δγ is the relative angular velocity, Δγ = γ1 - γ2, where γ1 is the angular velocity of the network device and γ2 is the angular velocity of the Earth's rotation.

[0103] In another possible implementation, the terminal device may further set a time measurement threshold, and if the time it takes for the terminal device to reach the edge of the NTN cell is less than the time measurement threshold, it can trigger neighbor cell measurements. The time measurement thresholds of different terminal devices may be the same or different.

[0104] In another possible implementation, the network device can notify the terminal device of the division method of the NTN cell. The coverage area of ​​the NTN cell is large, and the calculation and communication of the time when all terminal devices in the NTN area reach the edge of the NTN cell respectively requires a relatively large amount of calculation. The terminal device can also determine whether to trigger neighbor cell measurement based on the time interval in which the time when the terminal device reaches the edge of the NTN cell is located. Taking the three sub-areas shown in Figure 1 as an example, regardless of whether the terminal device is in NTN1, NTN2, or NTN3, the time t required for the terminal device to reach the edge of the cell is determined by the following conditions: t=(α N -α i ) / Δγ where α N is the azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device (α max ), α i is the coverage angle corresponding to the boundary of the i-th sub-region among the N sub-regions away from the first position, where i is a natural number ranging from 1 to N-1, Δγ is the relative angular velocity, Δγ = γ1 - γ2, where γ1 is the angular velocity of the network device, and γ2 is the angular velocity of the Earth's rotation.

[0105] As can be seen, the time required for terminal devices in different sub-regions to reach the edge of the cell may be different, and the time to reach the edge of the cell can be used to trigger neighbor cell measurements in quasi-terrestrial fixed and quasi-terrestrial mobile cells.

[0106] Specifically, if an NTN cell includes N sub-areas, each boundary of the N sub-areas corresponds to one time, and therefore the N sub-areas can correspond to N time intervals. Two boundaries of the sub-areas including the edges of the NTN cell can correspond to one time range, and the terminal device can set the time measurement threshold based on the time range. That is, the range of the time measurement threshold can correspond to the sub-areas including the edges of the NTN cell. The terminal device performs the neighbor cell measurement at the start time of the time measurement threshold. The sub-area including the edges of the NTN cell may also be called the extreme sub-area.

[0107] For example, the network device can provide the terminal device with the vertical distance of the network device to the ground, the distance between the terminal device and the network device, and the azimuth angle of the antenna through broadcast information / system information / dedicated signaling. The terminal device can calculate the coverage angle range of the sub-area where the terminal device is located based on the service link distance and the vertical height of the satellite to the ground. The formula t=(α N -α i ) / Δγ gives the time it takes for the terminal device to reach the edge of the cell from the sub-region in which it is located, thereby initiating measurements and / or handover.

[0108] Take the sub-area division scheme shown in Figure 5 as an example. The NTN cell is divided into three areas: NTN1, NTN2, and NTN3. The times required to reach these three area edges are t1, t2, and t3, respectively. The terminal device can set a time threshold for triggering measurements. The time threshold is determined based on the NTNx annular range closest to the edge obtained by dividing the NTN cell. If the time measurement threshold is t, the value of t corresponding to Figure 5 is [t2, t3]. At t2, the terminal device begins to perform evaluation of normal neighboring cells and prepare for cell reselection. Therefore, in the time interval [t2, t3], the terminal device begins to perform measurements of normal neighboring cells and prepare for the next cell reselection.

[0109] In some embodiments, the terminal device may trigger neighbor cell measurement based on distance. The terminal device determines the distance between itself and the network device based on a first parameter and determines whether to trigger neighbor cell measurement based on the distance. For example, in the case of a quasi-terrestrial fixed cell, the network device may provide the terminal device with a reference position for calculating distance. The terminal device may trigger neighbor cell measurement based on a distance threshold provided by the network device, or may trigger neighbor cell measurement in combination with its own movement information. The terminal device may also estimate when the serving cell will cease providing coverage at its current location based on the reference position and the distance threshold. Terminal devices with different distances to the edge of the cell have different service outage times. For example, in the case of a quasi-terrestrial mobile cell, the terminal device can determine the distance from the terminal device to the edge of the cell based on relative movement conditions and trigger neighbor cell measurement accordingly.

[0110] In one possible implementation, based on the cell division scheme shown in Figure 5, the terminal device may determine the distance between itself and the network device based on the first parameter, and determine the distance between the edge of the cell and the network device based on the azimuth angle of the antenna. Comparing the two distances can indicate the distance between the terminal device and the edge of the NTN cell, thereby determining whether to trigger neighbor cell measurement. As shown in Figure 5, if the distance between the edge of the NTN cell and the network device is L max , the distance L between the terminal device and the network device is L max For example, one threshold can be set, L and L max is less than the threshold, trigger neighbor cell measurements.

[0111] In one possible implementation, the terminal device may determine a second parameter based on the first parameter. The second parameter can be used to indicate the distance between the terminal device and the edge of the NTN cell. The terminal device can determine whether to trigger neighbor cell measurement based on the distance between the terminal device and the edge of the NTN cell. Specifically, the terminal device can set a distance threshold, and trigger neighbor cell measurement when the distance between the terminal device and the edge of the cell is less than the threshold. For example, the terminal device can determine the edge of the NTN cell based on the azimuth angle of the antenna. The terminal device can determine the distance between the first position and the edge of the cell based on the service link distance and the height of the network device above ground, thereby determining the distance to the edge of the cell.

[0112] In one possible implementation, the second parameter may be determined based on other information. This other information may be an offset determined by the network device based on a reference position, ephemeris data of the network device, the moving speed of the network device, the movement trajectory of the network device, or movement information of the terminal device. The offset, ephemeris data, moving speed, and movement trajectory related to the network device may be referred to as first information. The terminal device may receive the first information through broadcast information, system information, or dedicated signaling of the network device. Various pieces of information in the first information may be converted into each other. For example, the movement trajectory of the network device may be determined by the ephemeris data, and the offset may be determined by the moving speed of the network device.

[0113] For example, the second parameter may be determined based on the terminal device's movement information and the time it takes to reach the edge of the NTN cell. The time it takes for the terminal device to reach the edge of the NTN cell can be determined by the first parameter or another method. Specifically, the terminal device can calculate the distance to the edge of the cell based on its own speed and the time it takes to reach the edge of the cell. The terminal device can know when to start distance-based measurements based on the distance and speed information.

[0114] For example, the second parameter can determine an offset of the network device in a period based on the movement trajectory and moving speed of the network device. Based on the offset, real-time location information of the network device can be determined. The terminal device can determine the distance between itself and the real-time location information. Whether to trigger neighbor cell measurement can be determined based on the distance and the coverage area of ​​the network device.

[0115] In one possible implementation, the network device may notify the terminal device of ephemeris data through broadcast information / system information / dedicated signaling during continuous movement. The terminal device can obtain the position of the network device moving at different times based on the ephemeris data. For example, the position of the network device's nadir at a first time point may be called a reference position, and the position of the nadir at a second time point can be determined based on the reference position and an offset. Thus, the terminal device can calculate the real-time reference position of the network device and the terminal device's current real-time position. Based on the position information, the terminal device can determine the time when it will reach the edge of the cell, and thereby determine when to start cell measurement and cell handover.

[0116] For example, the reference position of the network device is a first projection position of the network device corresponding to a first time point and a second projection position of the network device corresponding to a second time point, and the offset is the distance between the second projection position and the first projection position, which can be used to determine the distance between the terminal device and the network device at the second time point. The first projection position and the second projection position can determine the movement trajectory of the network device.

[0117] As another example, the distance between the terminal device and the network device at the second time point may be determined based on location information of the terminal device, which may be determined by observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA), global navigation satellite system (GNSS) aiding information, or other positioning information.

[0118] For ease of understanding, one possible implementation of the distance-based measurement triggering means will be specifically described below using a near-Earth mobile cell as an example, with reference to Figure 6. Figure 6 is a plan view of an NTN cell.

[0119] As shown in FIG. 6, the network device moves along its movement trajectory. At a first time point, the first projection position of the network device is the reference position shown in FIG. 6, and the coverage area is area A. At a second time point, the second projection position of the network device is the satellite nadir shown in FIG. 6, and the coverage area of ​​the network device is area B. As shown in FIG. 6, the terminal device belongs to the coverage ranges of area A and area B, respectively. The vertical distance from the terminal device to the movement trajectory of the network device can be represented by K, where K is usually a constant. Using the movement trajectory of the network device as a reference, θ1 and θ2 in FIG. 6 are the angles between the line connecting the reference position and the terminal device on the plan view and the line connecting the reference position and the satellite nadir, respectively, and the angle between the line connecting the satellite nadir and the terminal device on the plan view and the line connecting the reference position and the satellite nadir. d1 is the distance from the reference position to the terminal device, and d2 is the distance from the satellite nadir to the terminal device.

[0120] From the first time point to the second time point, the network device moves from the reference position to the point directly below the satellite. At the first time point, the terminal device is within region A and can determine the sub-region to which it belongs, and can also calculate the distance from the edge and the distance from the reference position. For example, the terminal device may determine d1 and θ1 by communicating with the network device. Also, for example, the terminal device may determine θ1 by OTDOA positioning, GNSS aiding information, or other positioning information. At the second time point, the terminal device does not determine the location of the network device. Device Device

[0121] As can be seen from the above, K is a constant, and K can be expressed as K=d1sinθ1=d2sinθ2. Therefore, the distance d2 between the terminal device and the network device at the second time point satisfies the condition: d2=d1sinθ1 / sinθ2 where d1 represents the distance between the terminal device and the network device at the first time point, d2 represents the distance between the terminal device and the network device at the second time point, θ1 represents the angle between the line connecting the terminal device and the reference position and the movement trajectory, θ2 represents the angle between the line connecting the terminal device and the second projection position and the movement trajectory, and θ2 satisfies the condition: θ2=180-arctg[d1sinθ1 / (L offset -d1cosθ1)] where L offset represents an offset based on the reference position of the network device at the second point in time.

[0122] When the terminal device acquires d2, it indicates that it can acquire the distance from the edge of the cell when the terminal device is in region B. The satellite's moving speed can also determine the service time of region B. Based on the edge distance and service time, the terminal device can determine when or from what distance to start measuring neighboring cells.

[0123] In some embodiments, the terminal device may trigger neighbor cell measurements based on the angle. In a possible implementation, the terminal device may determine a relative angle with the network device based on the first parameter. The relative angle may be the coverage angle of the network device corresponding to the terminal device. The coverage angle of the network device may be the included angle formed by a line connecting the network device to the covered location and a line perpendicular to the ground of the network device. The coverage angle is typically equal to or less than the azimuth angle of the antenna. α in FIG. 6 max is the coverage angle corresponding to the edge of the network device, and the coverage angle is equal to the azimuth angle of the antenna. For example, in the case of a quasi-earth mobile cell, the coverage angle corresponding to the terminal device changes with the relative movement between the network device and the terminal device. The terminal device can determine whether to trigger neighbor cell measurement based on the difference between the coverage angle and the azimuth angle of the antenna.

[0124] In a possible implementation, the terminal device may determine a second parameter based on the first parameter, and the second parameter is used to indicate a coverage angle of a network device corresponding to the terminal device. The terminal device can determine whether to trigger neighbor cell measurement based on the coverage angle corresponding to the terminal device.

[0125] In another possible implementation, when the network device and the terminal device move to a specific relative position at a specific time, the network device may notify the terminal device of the ephemeris data through broadcast information / system information / dedicated signaling. The terminal device obtains the offset angle of the current terminal device relative to the network device, that is, the corresponding coverage angle, according to the distance of the current service link and the height of the network device from the ground. For example, when the distance of the service link of the terminal device m is L, m , when the height is D, the coverage angle corresponding to the terminal device is α m =arccos(D / L m ) The maximum coverage angle of a network device is α max =arccos(D / L max ) For example, in a satellite orbit, it can be determined that the height of each satellite's nadir point from the satellite is the same. α m <α max If α m >α max If , it can be determined that the terminal device has already left the coverage area of ​​the satellite, and therefore, neighbor cell measurements can be triggered based on the coverage angle corresponding to the terminal device.

[0126] In another possible implementation, when an NTN cell includes N sub-areas determined based on coverage angles, N angle areas corresponding one-to-one to the N sub-areas may be determined according to the azimuth angle of the antenna. When the coverage angle corresponding to the terminal device is included in the angle area including the azimuth angle of the antenna, the terminal device triggers neighbor cell measurement. That is, when the coverage angle corresponding to the terminal device is within the last sub-area including the edge, the terminal device triggers neighbor cell measurement.

[0127] Taking the three divided sub-regions in FIG. 5 as an example, the coverage angles corresponding to the outer boundaries of the three sub-regions are α1, α2, and α3, respectively. α1=arccos(D / L1), α2=arccos(D / L2), and α3=arccos(D / L3). Here, α3=α max , L3=L max The angle range corresponding to sub-area NTN1 is [0,α1], the angle range corresponding to sub-area NTN2 is [α1,α2], and the angle range corresponding to sub-area NTN3 is [α2,α3]. If the coverage angle corresponding to the terminal device is within the [α2,α3] range, the terminal device can start measuring neighboring cells. [α2,α3] corresponds to sub-area NTN3, which may also be called the relaxed measurement range.

[0128] In some embodiments, the terminal device may trigger neighbor cell measurements based on the sub-area it is located in. In a possible implementation, if the sub-area division scheme of the NTN cell can indicate the distance between the terminal device and the edge of the NTN, the terminal device may determine whether to trigger neighbor cell measurements based on the sub-area it is located in. For example, in the case of a near-earth mobile cell, as the serving cell position changes, the sub-area in which the terminal device is located when stationary also changes.

[0129] In a possible implementation, the terminal device may determine the sub-area in which it is located based on the first parameter, and determine whether to trigger neighbor cell measurement based on the sub-area in which it is located. For example, the terminal device may determine which sub-area of ​​the NTN cell it belongs to based on the current service link distance and the height of the network device from the ground. As the network device moves, when the terminal device moves to the sub-area at the extreme edge of the NTN cell, neighbor cell measurement may be triggered, and the time to reach the edge of the cell may be calculated, thereby determining whether a handover or measurement operation occurs. Taking FIG. 5 as an example, when the terminal device is in sub-area NTN3, neighbor cell measurement may be triggered.

[0130] For ease of understanding, a possible implementation will be described below with reference to FIG. 7, taking a sub-earth mobile cell as an example.

[0131] As shown in FIG. 7, at time T0, the terminal device belongs to sub-area NTN2 of area A. As the network device moves, at time T1, the terminal device belongs to sub-area NTN3 of area B. At this time, the terminal device needs to recalculate the service time in area B and the distance from the edge of the cell. The terminal device can determine relevant parameters of the network device by periodically receiving broadcast / upper layer signaling messages of the network device. Relevant parameters include the radius of the cell and the offset of the network device shown in FIG. 7. Based on these parameters, the terminal device can recalculate the time when it will reach the edge of the cell and determine whether an operation such as handover or measurement should occur.

[0132] In some embodiments, the terminal device may determine whether to trigger neighbor cell measurements based on the first parameter and a relaxation measurement region. The relaxation measurement region may correspond to multiple parameters, thereby determining multiple parameter ranges for triggering neighbor cell measurements. If the parameter corresponding to the terminal device is within the parameter range, the neighbor cell measurement is triggered. If the parameter corresponding to the terminal device is not within the parameter range, the terminal device does not need to perform any further calculations or measurements related to the neighbor cell measurements. By setting the relaxation measurement region, the number of measurements by the terminal device can be reduced, thereby reducing power consumption.

[0133] In a possible implementation, the relaxation measurement regions may correspond to the above-mentioned time parameter, distance parameter, and angle parameter, respectively. Based on the parameter ranges corresponding to the relaxation measurement regions, the terminal device can determine the parameters corresponding to the terminal device based on the first parameter, thereby determining whether it is necessary to trigger neighbor cell measurements.

[0134] For example, the relaxation measurement region may correspond to the coverage angle of the network device. Taking the coverage angle shown in FIG. 5 as an example, the parameter range corresponding to the relaxation measurement region can be set to [α2,α3]. The coverage angle corresponding to the terminal device is determined based on the first parameter. If the coverage angle corresponding to the terminal device does not belong to [α2,α3], the terminal device does not need to perform tests related to neighbor cell measurement, which contributes to reducing power consumption. If the coverage angle corresponding to the terminal device belongs to [α2,α3], neighbor cell measurement is triggered.

[0135] For example, the relaxation measurement region may correspond to the distance between the terminal device and the network device. A parameter range corresponding to the relaxation measurement region can be set to [L2, L3]. The distance between the terminal device and the network device may be determined directly based on the first parameter. Only when the distance between the terminal device and the network device belongs to the range [L2, L3], the terminal device triggers neighbor cell measurement.

[0136] In the above embodiment, the terminal device may determine whether to perform the relevant measurements for triggering neighbor cell measurements based on the sub-area in which it is located. That is, the terminal device may first determine which sub-area it is located in, and only perform the relevant measurements of time, distance, or angle for triggering neighbor cell measurements if it is located in the most extreme sub-area. Still using FIG. 5 as an example, if the terminal device is located in NTN2, the terminal device does not need to trigger neighbor cell measurements, nor does it need to calculate or measure parameters to compare with thresholds. Therefore, finer cell division allows the terminal device to make better measurements, improves the effectiveness of the terminal device performing neighbor cell measurements, and reduces unnecessary measurements, thereby reducing the power consumption of the terminal device.

[0137] As mentioned above, the NTN cell division scheme described in FIG. 5 can be applied to quasi-earth fixed cells and quasi-earth mobile cells.

[0138] For a quasi-terrestrial fixed cell, the coverage area of ​​the NTN cell can be divided into multiple sub-areas. For example, the coverage area of ​​the NTN cell of a quasi-terrestrial fixed cell can be divided into n equal sub-areas according to the scheme shown in Figure 5, or can be divided into several unequal sub-areas based on the degree and range of coverage of the TN.

[0139] In the case of a quasi-terrestrial fixed cell, the coverage range of the NTN cell does not change, but the relative distance between the network device and the terminal device changes constantly. After a certain period of time, the signal of the current network device may not be able to cover the terminal device. For example, if the service link distance L is longer than the maximum service link distance L, max and the coverage angle of the first network device corresponding to the terminal device is less than α max If the service link distance is greater than the maximum distance, or the coverage angle of the first network device corresponding to the terminal device is less than α max If the difference is greater than , the terminal device has already left the coverage area of ​​the first network device. The terminal device can communicate with a second network device that serves the area instead of the first network device. That is, in the case of a quasi-terrestrial fixed cell, if the location of the terminal device does not change, the terminal device will always be in the same sub-area. However, the network device serving the terminal device will change.

[0140] In the case of a quasi-earth mobile cell, the coverage range of the NTN cell changes as the network device moves. After cell division is performed on the NTN cell, the sub-area in which the terminal device is located changes as the network device moves. If the terminal device is fixed, the sub-area in which the terminal device is located changes. The terminal device determines the sub-area in which it is located and subsequent changes based on a message (e.g., the first message described above) sent from the network device. If the terminal device is in a moving state, the terminal device needs to periodically receive messages from the network device to determine the sub-areas in which it is currently and subsequently located, and thereby determine whether to trigger neighbor cell measurements and related measurements and calculations.

[0141] In some embodiments, the network device may provide the terminal device with the antenna beam angle of the cell center and the radius of the cell via broadcast information, system information, or dedicated signaling. The beam angle of the cell center can determine the direction of the satellite nadir and the distance of the service link. The network device may also provide the terminal device with NTN cell division, and the NTN may be divided into different sub-regions based on the geographic location and different antenna azimuth angles. The terminal device can calculate the coordinates of the reference position of the cell center based on the antenna azimuth angle and moving speed of the network device. The terminal device may also need to calculate the cell radius or cell edge threshold.

[0142] In some embodiments, when the network device moves, a time threshold T may be set. Every time T passes, the network device may provide reference information to the terminal device. The network device may provide updated ephemeris parameters or time-stamped ephemeris parameters to the moving cell. The network device may also provide multiple reference positions and their time information or moving speed to the moving cell. Once the terminal device can determine when it will reach the edge of the cell, it knows when to initiate cell measurements and cell handover.

[0143] As mentioned above, NTN cells may be divided into cells in other ways. Figures 8 and 9 show two possible division methods.

[0144] As shown in Fig. 8, the NTN cell is divided into eight equal sub-regions by four intersecting diameters. The eight sub-regions are sub-region a, sub-region b, sub-region c, sub-region d, sub-region e, sub-region f, sub-region g, and sub-region h. As shown in Fig. 8, sub-region a, sub-region b, and sub-region e each contain a TN cell.

[0145] 9, the NTN cell is divided into nine sub-regions in a cross-shaped manner, which are sub-region a, sub-region b, sub-region c, sub-region d, sub-region e, sub-region f, sub-region g, sub-region h, and sub-region i. As shown in FIG. 9, sub-region f and sub-region h each contain a TN cell.

[0146] If a TN unit exists in a sub-area in FIG. 8 and FIG. 9, it can be indicated by predetermined indication information. For example, the indication information may include that a bit corresponding to the sub-area of ​​the TN unit is set to 1, and otherwise set to 0. The area division rule and numbering rule may be pre-configured in the terminal device. In this way, the network device can indicate the location of the TN cell by simply providing a few bits to the terminal device. As a possible implementation, the network device may notify the terminal device of the indication information via broadcast, a system information block (SIB) message, or a radio resource control (RRC) message. Upon receiving the indication information, the terminal device can calculate the approximate area range of the TN cell based on the reference position and radius of the NTN cell.

[0147] Above, method embodiments of the present application have been described in detail with reference to Figures 4 to 9. Hereinafter, apparatus embodiments of the present application will be described in detail with reference to Figures 10 to 12. It should be understood that the descriptions of the apparatus embodiments correspond to the descriptions of the method embodiments, so that reference can be made to the method embodiments for parts not described in detail.

[0148] 10 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus for wireless communication according to one embodiment of the present application. The apparatus 1000 may be any of the terminal devices described above. The apparatus 1000 shown in FIG. 10 includes a measurement unit 1010.

[0149] The measurement unit 1010 can be used to perform neighbor cell measurements in an NTN cell based on a first parameter, where the first parameter is associated with one or more pieces of information: a distance between a terminal device and a network device in the NTN cell, a height above the ground of the network device in the NTN cell, an azimuth angle of an antenna of the network device in the NTN cell, and a sub-area within the NTN cell.

[0150] Optionally, the sub-region within the NTN cell is determined based on a coverage angle of a network device corresponding to the NTN cell, the coverage angle being less than or equal to the azimuth angle of the antenna.

[0151] Optionally, a projected position of the network device in a direction perpendicular to the ground is at a first location, the coverage angle corresponds to a boundary of the sub-area, and the boundary of the sub-area comprises a curve centered at the first location.

[0152] Optionally, the NTN cell includes N sub-regions, where N is a natural number greater than 1, and N coverage angles respectively corresponding to boundaries of the N sub-regions away from the first location satisfy the condition: 0<α i <α i+1 ≦α N where α i is the coverage angle corresponding to the boundary of the i-th subregion out of the N subregions, away from the first position, where i is a natural number ranging from 1 to N-1, and α N is the azimuth angle of the antenna.

[0153] Optionally, the NTN cell includes N sub-areas, where N is a natural number greater than 1, and the N sub-areas may or may not equally divide the coverage area of ​​the NTN cell.

[0154] Optionally, the sub-area within the NTN cell is further determined based on one or more of the following information: coordinates of the network device corresponding to the NTN cell, the geographical environment of the coverage area of ​​the NTN cell, the distribution status of TN cells in the coverage area of ​​the NTN cell, signal interaction limitations of the NTN cell, measurement requirements and / or handover requirements of the terminal device, and auxiliary information provided by the terminal device.

[0155] Optionally, the first parameter is determined based on a ratio of a distance between the terminal device and a network device corresponding to the NTN cell to a height.

[0156] Optionally, the apparatus 1000 further includes a determination unit that can be used to determine a second parameter based on the first parameter, the second parameter being used to indicate the time at which the terminal device reaches the edge of the NTN cell, and to determine whether to trigger neighbor cell measurements based on the second parameter.

[0157] Optionally, the second parameter is further determined based on information of one or more of an azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device and a sub-region within the NTN cell.

[0158] Optionally, the second parameter is determined based on the azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device, and the time t at which the terminal device reaches the edge of the NTN cell satisfies the condition: t=(α N -α n ) / Δγ where α N is the azimuth angle of the network device's antenna, α n is the coverage angle of the network device corresponding to the position of the terminal device, Δγ is the relative angular velocity, Δγ = γ1 - γ2, where γ1 is the angular velocity of the network device and γ2 is the angular velocity of the Earth's rotation.

[0159] Optionally, the NTN cell includes N subareas, where N is a natural number greater than 1, and the apparatus 1000 further includes a setting unit that can be used to set a time measurement threshold, where the time measurement threshold corresponds to a subarea among the N subareas that includes an edge of the NTN cell, and the measurement unit 1010 can further be used to perform neighboring cell measurements at the start time of the time measurement threshold.

[0160] Optionally, the boundaries of the N sub-areas are centered on a first position of the network device, the first position being a projection position of the network device in a direction perpendicular to the ground, the terminal device being in an i-th sub-area among the N sub-areas, where i is a natural number ranging from 1 to N-1, and the time t at which the terminal device reaches the edge of the NTN cell satisfies the condition: t=(α N -α i ) / Δγ where α N is the azimuth angle of the network device's antenna, α i is the coverage angle of the network device corresponding to the boundary of the i-th sub-region away from the first position, Δγ is the relative angular velocity, Δγ = γ1 - γ2, where γ1 is the angular velocity of the network device and γ2 is the angular velocity of the Earth's rotation.

[0161] Optionally, the determination unit is further configured to determine a second parameter based on the first parameter, the second parameter being used to indicate a coverage angle of a network device corresponding to the terminal device, and to determine whether to trigger neighbor cell measurement based on the second parameter.

[0162] Optionally, the NTN cell includes N sub-areas, where N is a natural number greater than 1, and the azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device is used to determine N angle areas that correspond one-to-one to the N sub-areas of the NTN cell, and the measurement unit 1010 is further used to trigger neighbor cell measurement when the coverage angle of the network device corresponding to the terminal device is included in the angle area including the azimuth angle of the antenna.

[0163] Optionally, the determination unit is further configured to determine a second parameter based on the first parameter, the second parameter being used to indicate a distance between the terminal device and an edge of the NTN cell, and to determine whether to trigger neighbor cell measurements based on the second parameter.

[0164] Optionally, the second parameter is further determined based on one or more of the following information: an offset determined by the network device corresponding to the NTN cell based on a reference position, ephemeris data of the network device corresponding to the NTN cell, a movement speed of the network device corresponding to the NTN cell, a movement trajectory of the network device corresponding to the NTN cell, and movement information of the terminal device.

[0165] Optionally, the first parameter is used to determine the time at which the terminal device reaches the edge of the NTN cell, and the second parameter is determined based on the movement information of the terminal device and the time at which it reaches the edge of the NTN cell.

[0166] Optionally, the NTN cell is a quasi-earth mobile cell, and the second parameter is related to an offset determined based on a reference position by a network device corresponding to the NTN cell, the reference position being a first projected position corresponding to a first time point of the network device, the offset being the distance between a second projected position corresponding to a second time point of the network device and the first projected position, and the offset is used to determine the distance between the terminal device and the network device at the second time point.

[0167] Optionally, the distance between the terminal device and the network device at the second time point is further determined based on location information of the terminal device.

[0168] Optionally, the movement trajectory of the network device is related to a first projection position and a second projection position, and the distance d2 between the terminal device and the network device at the second time point satisfies the condition: d2=d1sinθ1 / sinθ2 where d1 represents the distance between the terminal device and the network device at the first time point, d2 represents the distance between the terminal device and the network device at the second time point, θ1 represents the angle between the line connecting the terminal device and the reference position and the movement trajectory, and θ2 represents the angle between the line connecting the terminal device and the second projection position and the movement trajectory.

[0169] The included angle θ2 can be selected under the following conditions: θ2=180-arctg[d1sinθ1 / (L offset -d1cosθ1)] where L offset represents an offset based on the reference position of the network device at the second point in time.

[0170] Optionally, the first parameter is used to determine a sub-area in which the terminal device is located, and the determination unit is further used to determine whether to trigger neighbor cell measurement based on the sub-area in which the terminal device is located.

[0171] Optionally, the determination unit is further used to determine whether to trigger neighbor cell measurement based on the first parameter and the relaxed measurement area, where the relaxed measurement area is used to determine a parameter range for triggering neighbor cell measurement, and the first parameter is used to determine a parameter value corresponding to the terminal device and the parameter range.

[0172] 11 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus for wireless communication according to another embodiment of the present application. The apparatus 1100 may be any of the network devices described above. The apparatus 1100 shown in FIG. 11 includes a transmitting unit 1110.

[0173] The transmitting unit 1110 can be used to transmit a first parameter to a terminal device, the first parameter being used by the terminal device to perform neighbor cell measurements in the NTN cell, and the first parameter being associated with one or more pieces of information: a distance between the terminal device and a network device, a height of the network device from the ground, an azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device, and a sub-area within the NTN cell.

[0174] Optionally, the sub-regions within the NTN cell are determined based on a coverage angle of the network device, the coverage angle being less than or equal to the azimuth angle of the antenna.

[0175] Optionally, a projected position of the network device in a direction perpendicular to the ground is at a first location, the coverage angle corresponds to a boundary of the sub-area, and the boundary of the sub-area comprises a curve centered at the first location.

[0176] Optionally, the NTN cell includes N sub-regions, where N is a natural number greater than 1, and N coverage angles respectively corresponding to boundaries of the N sub-regions away from the first location satisfy the condition: 0<α i <α i+1 ≦α N where α i is the coverage angle corresponding to the boundary of the i-th subregion out of the N subregions, away from the first position, where i is a natural number ranging from 1 to N-1, and α N is the azimuth angle of the antenna.

[0177] Optionally, the NTN cell includes N sub-areas, where N is a natural number greater than 1, and the N sub-areas may or may not equally divide the coverage area of ​​the NTN cell.

[0178] Optionally, the sub-area within the NTN cell is further determined based on one or more of the following information: coordinates of the network device, the geographical environment of the coverage area of ​​the NTN cell, the distribution of terrestrial network TN cells in the coverage area of ​​the NTN cell, signal interaction limitations of the NTN cell, measurement and / or handover requirements of the terminal device, and auxiliary information provided by the terminal device.

[0179] Optionally, the first parameter is determined based on a ratio of a distance between the terminal device and the network device to a height.

[0180] Optionally, the transmitting unit 1110 is further used for transmitting first information to the terminal device, the first information being used for the terminal device to determine whether to trigger neighbor cell measurement, and the first information including one or more pieces of information: an offset determined by the network device based on a reference position, ephemeris data of the network device, a moving speed of the network device, and a movement trajectory of the network device.

[0181] Optionally, the first parameter and the first information are carried in one or more of broadcast information, system information, and dedicated signaling.

[0182] FIG. 12 shows a structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. The dashed lines in FIG. 12 indicate that the unit or module is optional. The device 1200 can be used to implement the method described in the above method embodiment. The device 1200 can be a chip, a terminal device, or a network device.

[0183] The device 1200 may include one or more processors 1210. The processor 1210 can support the device 1200 in implementing the methods described in the method embodiments above. The processor 1210 may be a general-purpose processor or a special-purpose processor. For example, the processor may be a central processing unit (CPU). Alternatively, the processor may be another general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic device, a discrete hardware component, or the like. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, or the processor may be any conventional processor, or the like.

[0184] The apparatus 1200 may further include one or more memories 1220. The memories 1220 may store programs that, when executed by the processor 1210, cause the processor 1210 to perform the methods described in the method embodiments above. The memory 1220 may be separate from the processor 1210 or may be integrated into the processor 1210.

[0185] The apparatus 1200 may further include a transceiver 1230. The processor 1210 may communicate with other devices or chips via the transceiver 1230. For example, the processor 1210 may transmit and receive data to and from other devices or chips via the transceiver 1230.

[0186] An embodiment of the present application further provides a computer-readable storage medium for storing a program, which can be applied to a terminal or a network device according to the embodiment of the present application, and the program can cause a computer to execute the method performed by the terminal or the network device according to each embodiment of the present application.

[0187] In some embodiments, the computer-readable storage medium may be any available medium that can be read by a computer, or a data storage device that integrates one or more available media, such as a server, a data center, etc. The available medium may be a magnetic medium (e.g., a floppy disk, a hard disk, a tape), an optical medium (e.g., a digital versatile disk (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., a solid state disk (SSD)).

[0188] An embodiment of the present application further provides a computer program product, the computer program product including a program, which is applicable to a terminal or a network device according to an embodiment of the present application, and the program causes a computer to execute the method performed by the terminal or the network device according to each embodiment of the present application.

[0189] The above embodiments may be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, all or in part may be implemented in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded into and executed by a computer, the computer generates all or some of the procedures or functions described in the embodiments of the present application. 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, fiber optic, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, radio, microwave, etc.).

[0190] The embodiments of the present application further provide a computer program, which is applicable to a terminal or a network device according to the embodiments of the present application, and causes a computer to execute the method executed by the terminal or the network device according to each embodiment of the present application.

[0191] In this application, the terms "system" and "network" may be used interchangeably. Furthermore, the terms used in this application are used only to interpret specific embodiments of the present application and are not intended to limit the present application. The terms "first," "second," "third," "fourth," etc. in the specification, claims, and drawings of this application are used to distinguish between different objects, not to describe a particular order. Furthermore, the terms "include," "have," and any variations thereof are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion.

[0192] In the embodiments of the present application, the "indication" mentioned may be a direct indication or an indirect indication, and may indicate that there is an association relationship. For example, when A indicates B, A may directly indicate B, for example, indicating that B can be obtained by A, or A may indirectly indicate B, for example, A indicates C, indicating that B can be obtained by C, and may indicate that there is an association relationship between A and B.

[0193] In the embodiments of the present application, the term "correspondence" may indicate that there is a direct or indirect correspondence relationship between the two, or that there is an association relationship between the two, or a relationship such as indicating and indicated, setting and set.

[0194] In the embodiments of the present application, the "protocol" may refer to a standard protocol in the communications field, and may include, for example, an LTE protocol, an NR protocol, and related protocols applied to future communications systems, but is not limited thereto in the present application.

[0195] In the embodiments of the present application, determining B based on A does not mean determining B based only on A, but B may be determined based on A and / or other information.

[0196] In the examples of the present application, the term "and / or" simply describes the relationship between related objects and indicates that three types of relationships exist, for example, A and / or B includes three cases: the presence of only A, the simultaneous presence of A and B, and the presence of only B. In addition, in this specification, the symbol " / " generally indicates that the related objects before and after it are in an "or" relationship.

[0197] It should be understood that in some embodiments of the present application, the disclosed systems, devices, and methods can be implemented in other forms. For example, the device embodiments described above are merely exemplary, and the division of the units is merely a logical function division. In actual implementation, other division schemes may be adopted, for example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not implemented. Furthermore, the shown or discussed mutual couplings or direct couplings or communication connections may be indirect couplings or communication connections via some interfaces, devices, or units, and may be in electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0198] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate, and the components shown as units may or may not be physical units, i.e., they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected based on actual needs to achieve the objectives of the means of this embodiment.

[0199] Furthermore, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit.

[0200] Although specific embodiments of the present application have been described above, the scope of protection of the present application is not limited thereto, and all modifications and substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art without departing from the technical scope disclosed in the present application fall within the scope of protection of the present application. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present application should be in accordance with the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. 1. A method for wireless communication, comprising: The method includes a step of performing, by a terminal device, neighbor cell measurements in a non-terrestrial network (NTN) cell based on a first parameter, the first parameter comprising: the distance between the terminal device and a network device corresponding to the NTN cell; the height above ground of the network device corresponding to said NTN cell; the azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device corresponding to the NTN cell; and a sub-region within the NTN cell; The method is associated with one or more pieces of information.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the sub-region within the NTN cell is determined based on a coverage angle of a network device corresponding to the NTN cell, the coverage angle being less than or equal to an azimuth angle of the antenna.

3. 3. The method of claim 2, wherein a projected position of the network device in a direction perpendicular to the ground is at a first location, the coverage angle corresponds to a boundary of the sub-area, and the boundary of the sub-area comprises a curve centered at the first location.

4. The NTN cell includes N sub-areas, where N is a natural number greater than 1, and N coverage angles respectively corresponding to boundaries of the N sub-areas away from the first location are determined by the following condition: ０＜α ｉ ＜α ｉ＋１ ≦α Ｎ where α ｉ is the coverage angle corresponding to the boundary of the i-th subregion among the N subregions, which is distant from the first position, where i is a natural number ranging from 1 to N-1, and α Ｎ The method of claim 3 , wherein: is the azimuth angle of the antenna.

5. The method of claim 2 , wherein the NTN cell includes N sub-areas, where N is a natural number greater than 1, and the N sub-areas may or may not equally divide the coverage area of ​​the NTN cell.

6. A sub-region within the NTN cell further comprises: the coordinates of a network device corresponding to said NTN cell; the geographical environment of the NTN cell's coverage area; the distribution of terrestrial network TN cells in the coverage area of ​​the NTN cell; Limiting signal interactions of the NTN cells; Measurement and / or handover requirements of the terminal device, and auxiliary information provided by the terminal device; The method of claim 2 , wherein the determination is based on one or more pieces of information from:

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the first parameter is determined based on a ratio of the height to a distance between the terminal device and a network device corresponding to the NTN cell.

8. determining a second parameter based on the first parameter by the terminal device, the second parameter being used to indicate a time at which the terminal device will reach the edge of the NTN cell; The method of claim 7 , further comprising: the terminal device determining whether to trigger the neighbor cell measurement based on the second parameter.

9. The second parameter further comprises: the azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device; and a sub-region within the NTN cell; The method of claim 8 , wherein the determination is based on one or more pieces of information from:

10. The second parameter is determined based on the azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device, and the time t at which the terminal device reaches the edge of the NTN cell satisfies the condition: t=(a Ｎ -a ｎ ) / Dg where α Ｎ is the azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device, α ｎ is the coverage angle of the network device corresponding to the position of the terminal device, Δγ is the relative angular velocity, Δγ = γ １ -γ ２ and γ １ is the angular velocity of the network device, γ ２ 10. The method of claim 9, wherein is the angular velocity of the Earth's rotation.

11. The NTN cell includes N sub-areas, where N is a natural number greater than 1, and the step of determining whether to trigger the neighbor cell measurement by the terminal device based on the second parameter includes: a step of the terminal device setting a time measurement threshold, the time measurement threshold corresponding to a sub-area among the N sub-areas that includes an edge of the NTN cell; and the terminal device performing the neighbor cell measurement at a start time of the time measurement threshold.

12. The boundaries of the N sub-areas are centered on a first position of the network device, the first position being a projection position of the network device in a direction perpendicular to the ground, the terminal device being located in the i-th sub-area among the N sub-areas, where i is a natural number ranging from 1 to N-1, and the time t at which the terminal device reaches the edge of the NTN cell satisfies the condition: t=(a Ｎ -a ｉ ) / Dg where α Ｎ is the azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device, α ｉ is the coverage angle of the network device corresponding to the boundary of the i-th sub-region away from the first position, Δγ is the relative angular velocity, Δγ = γ １ -γ ２ and γ １ is the angular velocity of the network device, γ ２ The method of claim 11 , wherein is the angular velocity of the Earth's rotation.

13. the terminal device determining a second parameter based on the first parameter, the second parameter being used to indicate a coverage angle of the network device corresponding to the terminal device; The method of claim 7 , further comprising: the terminal device determining whether to trigger the neighbor cell measurement based on the second parameter.

14. The NTN cell includes N sub-areas, where N is a natural number greater than 1, and the azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device is used to determine N angle areas that correspond one-to-one to the N sub-areas of the NTN cell, and the step of the terminal device determining whether to trigger the neighbor cell measurement based on the second parameter includes:

14. The method of claim 13, comprising the step of the terminal device triggering the neighbor cell measurement when the coverage angle of the network device corresponding to the terminal device is included in an angle region that includes the azimuth angle of the antenna.

15. the terminal device determining a second parameter based on the first parameter, the second parameter being used to indicate a distance between the terminal device and an edge of the NTN cell; The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising the step of: the terminal device determining whether to trigger the neighbor cell measurement based on the second parameter.

16. The second parameter further comprises: an offset determined by a network device corresponding to the NTN cell based on a reference position; Ephemeris data of a network device corresponding to the NTN cell; the movement speed of the network device corresponding to the NTN cell; A movement trajectory of a network device corresponding to the NTN cell; and Movement information of the terminal device; The method of claim 15 , wherein the determination is based on one or more pieces of information from:

17. 17. The method of claim 16, wherein the first parameter is used to determine the time at which the terminal device reaches the edge of the NTN cell, and the second parameter is determined based on mobility information of the terminal device and the time at which the terminal device reaches the edge of the NTN cell.

18. 17. The method of claim 16, wherein the NTN cell is a quasi-earth mobile cell, the second parameter is related to an offset determined based on a reference position by a network device corresponding to the NTN cell, the reference position being a first projected position of the network device corresponding to a first time point, the offset being a distance between the first projected position and a second projected position of the network device corresponding to a second time point, and the offset is used to determine a distance between the terminal device and the network device at the second time point.

19. The method of claim 18 , wherein the distance between the terminal device and the network device at the second time point is further determined based on location information of the terminal device.

20. The movement trajectory of the network device is related to the first projected position and the second projected position, and the distance d between the terminal device and the network device at the second time point is ２ Condition: d ２ =d １ sinθ １ / sinθ ２ where d １ represents the distance between the terminal device and the network device at the first time point, and d ２ represents the distance between the terminal device and the network device at the second time point, and θ １ represents the angle between the line connecting the terminal device and the reference position and the movement trajectory, and θ ２ The method of claim 18 , wherein represents an included angle between a line connecting the terminal device and the second projection position and the movement trajectory.

21. The included angle θ ２ Condition: i ２ =180-arctg[d １ synth １ / (L ｏｆｆｓｅｔ -F １ cost １ )] where L ｏｆｆｓｅｔ 21. The method of claim 20, wherein {overscore (x)} represents an offset based on the reference position of the network device at the second time.

22. The first parameter is used to determine a sub-area in which the terminal device is located, and the method further comprises: The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising the step of determining whether to trigger the neighbor cell measurements based on a sub-area in which the terminal device is located.

23. The step of the terminal device performing neighbor cell measurements in an NTN cell based on a first parameter includes: The terminal device determines whether to trigger the neighbor cell measurement based on a first parameter and a relaxation measurement region; The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the relaxation measurement region is used to determine a parameter range for triggering the neighbor cell measurement, and the first parameter is used to determine a parameter value corresponding to the terminal device and the parameter range.

24. 1. A method for wireless communication, comprising: The method includes a step of transmitting a first parameter from a network device to a terminal device, the first parameter being used by the terminal device to perform neighbor cell measurements in a non-terrestrial network (NTN) cell, the first parameter comprising: the distance between the terminal device and the network device; the height of the network device above ground level; the azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device; and a sub-region within the NTN cell; The method is associated with one or more pieces of information.

25. 25. The method of claim 24, wherein the sub-regions within the NTN cell are determined based on a coverage angle of the network device, the coverage angle being less than or equal to an azimuth angle of the antenna.

26. 26. The method of claim 25, wherein a projected position of the network device in a direction perpendicular to the ground is at a first location, the coverage angle corresponds to a boundary of the sub-area, and the boundary of the sub-area comprises a curve centered at the first location.

27. The NTN cell includes N sub-areas, where N is a natural number greater than 1, and N coverage angles respectively corresponding to boundaries of the N sub-areas away from the first location are determined by the following condition: ０＜α ｉ ＜α ｉ＋１ ≦α Ｎ where α ｉ is the coverage angle corresponding to the boundary of the i-th subregion among the N subregions, which is distant from the first position, where i is a natural number ranging from 1 to N-1, and α Ｎ 27. The method of claim 26, wherein: is the azimuth angle of the antenna.

28. 26. The method of claim 25, wherein the NTN cell includes N sub-areas, where N is a natural number greater than 1, and the N sub-areas may or may not equally divide the coverage area of ​​the NTN cell.

29. A sub-region within the NTN cell further comprises: the coordinates of the network device; the geographical environment of the NTN cell's coverage area; the distribution of terrestrial network TN cells in the coverage area of ​​the NTN cell; Limiting signal interactions of the NTN cells; Measurement and / or handover requirements of the terminal device, and auxiliary information provided by the terminal device; 26. The method of claim 25, wherein the determination is based on one or more pieces of information from:

30. The method according to any one of claims 24 to 29, wherein the first parameter is determined based on a ratio of the height to a distance between the terminal device and the network device.

31. The method further includes a step of the network device transmitting first information to the terminal device, the first information being used by the terminal device to determine whether to trigger the neighbor cell measurement; The first information is an offset determined by the network device based on a reference position; ephemeris data of the network device; The speed at which the network device moves; and a movement trajectory of the network device; The method according to any one of claims 24 to 29, comprising one or more pieces of information:

32. 32. The method of claim 31, wherein the first parameter and the first information are carried in one or more of broadcast information, system information, and dedicated signaling.

33. 1. An apparatus for wireless communication, the apparatus being a terminal device, the terminal device comprising: a measurement unit for performing neighbor cell measurements in a non-terrestrial network NTN cell based on a first parameter, the first parameter comprising: the distance between the terminal device and a network device corresponding to the NTN cell; the height above ground of the network device corresponding to said NTN cell; the azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device corresponding to the NTN cell; and a sub-region within the NTN cell; The device is associated with one or more pieces of information.

34. 1. An apparatus for wireless communication, the apparatus being a network device, the network device comprising: A transmitting unit for transmitting first parameters to a terminal device, the first parameters being used by the terminal device to perform neighbor cell measurements in a non-terrestrial network (NTN) cell, the first parameters comprising: the distance between the terminal device and the network device; the height of the network device above ground level; the azimuth angle of the antenna of the network device; and a sub-region within the NTN cell; The device is associated with one or more pieces of information.

35. A communication device comprising: a memory; and a processor, wherein the memory is used to store a program; and the processor is used to call the program in the memory to execute the method of any one of claims 1 to 32.

36. A communications device, comprising a processor for calling a program from a memory to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 32.

37. A chip comprising a processor for calling a program from a memory to cause a device to which the chip is attached to carry out the method of any one of claims 1 to 32.

38. A computer readable storage medium having stored thereon a program for causing a computer to carry out the method according to any one of claims 1 to 32.

39. A computer program product comprising a program that causes a computer to carry out the method of any one of claims 1 to 32.

40. A computer program causing a computer to carry out the method according to any one of claims 1 to 32.

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