Method and apparatus for maintaining uplink time alignment - Patents.com

Abstract

An embodiment of the present invention provides a method and device for maintaining uplink time alignment, which includes the steps of: a terminal device receiving configuration information of a Timing Advance Group (TAG) identifier configured by a network device for a serving cell and / or intermediate device (node / entity) (S301); and the terminal device controlling a time at which a Medium Access Control (MAC) entity considers that a serving cell and / or intermediate device belonging to a Timing Advance Group (TAG) associated with the Timing Advance Group identifier performs uplink time alignment (S302).

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] FIELD OF THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention relate to the field of communications technology. [Background technology]

[0002] In the RRC (Radio Resource Control) connected state, the network device (gNB) is responsible for maintaining the Timing Advance (TA) to maintain L1 synchronization. Serving cells with the same TA applicable to the UL (uplink) and using the same timing reference cell are grouped into one Timing Advance Group (TAG). Each TAG includes at least one serving cell with an uplink configured, and the mapping from each serving cell to one TAG is configured by the RRC.

[0003] For a primary TAG, the user equipment (UE) uses the PCell (primary cell) as a timing reference and may use an SCell (secondary cell) in some cases in addition to shared frequency channel access. For a secondary TAG, the UE may use any activated secondary cell of this TAG as a timing reference cell, but does not necessarily change it.

[0004] TA updates are signaled by the gNB to the UE via MAC CE (Medium Access Control Control Element) commands. These commands restart a TAG-specific timer, which indicates whether L1 is synchronized or not synchronized / out of sync. That is, if the timer is running, it is considered L1 synchronized, otherwise it is considered L1 not synchronized. In case of L1 not synchronized, uplink transmissions can only be sent with MSG1 / MSGA (Message 1 / Message A).

[0005] Typically, the RRC configures a timeAlignmentTimer (per TAG) to maintain UL time alignment and controls the time at which the MAC entity considers the uplink time to be aligned for serving cells belonging to the associated TAG.

[0006] When a TAC (Timing Advance Command) MAC CE is received, the specified TAG is N TA If the MAC entity is already maintaining a timeAlignmentTimer associated with this specified TAG, then the MAC entity starts or restarts the timeAlignmentTimer associated with this specified TAG.

[0007] When a TAC is received in a Random Access Response (RAR) message of a serving cell belonging to a TAG or in an MSGB of a particular cell, the MAC entity shall start or restart the timeAlignmentTimer associated with this TAG if the random access preamble is not one selected by the MAC entity from the contention-based random access preambles; otherwise, when the timeAlignmentTimer associated with this TAG is not running, the MAC entity shall start the timeAlignmentTimer associated with this TAG and stop the timeAlignmentTimer for this TAG when the contention resolution is deemed not successful or when the contention resolution requested by the SI is deemed successful after HARQ feedback of a MAC PDU containing the UE Contention Resolution ID MAC CE has been sent; otherwise, the MAC entity shall ignore this received TAC.

[0008] Upon receiving an Absolute Timing Advance Command in response to an MSGA transmission containing a C-RNTI MAC CE, the MAC entity starts or restarts the timeAlignmentTimer associated with the PTAG (Primary TAG).

[0009] If the timeAlignmentTimer times out, proceed as follows:

[0010] When this timeAlignmentTimer is associated with a PTAG, the MAC entity shall flush all HARQ buffers of all serving cells, notify RRC to release PUCCH (if configured) of all serving cells, notify RRC to release SRS (if configured) of all serving cells, clear all configured downlink assignments and configured uplink grants, clear all PUSCH resources for semi-persistent CSI reporting, consider all active timeAlignmentTimers to have timed out, and maintain NTA for all TAGs.

[0011] Otherwise, if this timeAlignmentTimer is associated with a STAG (secondary TAG), for all serving cells belonging to this TAG, the MAC entity shall flush all HARQ buffers, notify RRC to release PUCCH (if configured), notify RRC to release SRS (if configured), clear all configured downlink assignments and configured uplink grants, clear all PUSCH resources for semi-persistent CSI reporting, and maintain NTA for this TAG.

[0012] If a MAC entity stops uplink transmission of an SCell due to exceeding the maximum time difference of uplink transmissions between TAGs of this MAC entity or exceeding the maximum time difference of uplink transmissions between TAGs of any MAC entity of this UE, this MAC entity shall consider the timeAlignmentTimer associated with this SCell to have timed out.

[0013] To achieve uplink time alignment maintenance, RRC configures MAC parameters of a cell group using the IE MAC-CellGroupConfig, which includes the configuration of a TAG to call the IE TAG-Config to indicate the tag-Id and the corresponding timeAlignmentTimer. Also, the IE ServingCellConfig is used to configure (add or modify) a serving cell for the UE and includes the tag-Id.

[0014] Table 1 below shows the IE MAC-CellGroupConfig.

[0015] [Table 1] Table 2 below shows the field descriptions of the IE MAC-CellGroupConfig.

[0016] [Table 2] Here, the interpretation of MCG-Only is shown in Table 3.

[0017] [Table 3] Table 4 below shows the IE TAG-Config.

[0018] [Table 4] Table 5 below shows the field descriptions of the TAG.

[0019] [Table 5] Table 6 below shows the IE ServingCellConfig.

[0020] [Table 6] The above description of the background art is merely for the purpose of explaining the configuration of the present invention more clearly and completely, and is provided for the understanding of those skilled in the art. These configurations described in the background art of the present invention should not be construed as being well known to those skilled in the art. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0021] According to the findings of the inventors of the present invention, the current NR (New Radio) supports two TRP operations, including the following two scenarios: (1) two TRPs belong to the same cell; and (2) two TRPs belong to different cells, one of which is the serving cell and the other of which is another cell with a different PCI. In scenario (1), different TRPs belong to the same TAG, and the UE maintains one timeAlignmentTimer; that is, all TRPs have the same synchronization / asynchronous status, and the TAC is applied to the timing adjustment of uplink transmissions of all TRPs. Scenario (2) is not currently considered. On the other hand, in the Repeater scenario, no distinction is made between whether the UE communicates with the network device via a repeater, i.e., the case where the UE reaches the network device via a repeater and the case where the UE reaches the network device directly without going through a repeater belong to the same TAG and the synchronization status is the same.

[0022] Therefore, when operating with an additional node / device / entity (e.g., TRP / Repeater), the following problems exist in the prior art, i.e., when the synchronous / asynchronous state of the uplink with or without the additional node / device / entity is the same and TAC is applied to timing adjustment of all uplink transmissions with or without the additional node / device / entity.

[0023] (1) The frequencies used by the additional nodes / devices / entities may be different. For example, one TRP operates in FR1 and provides coverage to the terminal, while another TRP operates in FR2 and provides broadband services to the terminal. Alternatively, the locations of different additional nodes / devices / entities may be different, i.e., the transmission paths between the terminal and other additional nodes / devices / entities may be different. In this case, the UL transmissions of the terminals at different additional nodes / devices / entities may exceed the maximum time difference of uplink transmissions, causing the uplink transmission of one additional node / device / entity to be stopped. This may prevent the network from providing sufficient bandwidth to the terminal.

[0024] (2) The L1 synchronization / asynchronous state determined by the timer does not match the synchronization state of the actual UL transmission by the additional node / device / entity, causing interference, resulting in decoding failure and service interruption.

[0025] In view of at least one of the above problems, embodiments of the present invention provide a method and apparatus for maintaining uplink time alignment. [Means for solving the problem]

[0026] In one aspect of an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an uplink time alignment maintaining device configured in a terminal device, the device including: a receiving unit that receives configuration information of a timing advance group (TAG) identifier configured by a network device for a serving cell and / or an intermediate device; and a control unit that controls the time at which a medium access control (MAC) entity considers that a serving cell and / or an intermediate device belonging to a timing advance group (TAG) associated with the timing advance group identifier will perform uplink time alignment.

[0027] Another aspect of an embodiment of the present invention provides an apparatus for maintaining uplink time alignment configured in a network device, the apparatus including: a configuration unit for configuring a timing advance group (TAG) identifier for a serving cell and / or an intermediate device, the TAG identifier being used to identify a timing advance group of a terminal device, wherein the terminal device uses a timer to control the time at which a medium access control (MAC) entity considers that a serving cell and / or an intermediate device belonging to a timing advance group (TAG) associated with the timer has performed uplink time alignment.

[0028] Another aspect of an embodiment of the present invention provides a communication system including a terminal device and a network device, wherein the terminal device receives configuration information of a timing advance group (TAG) identifier configured by the network device for a serving cell and / or an intermediate device, and controls the time at which a medium access control (MAC) entity considers that a serving cell and / or an intermediate device belonging to a timing advance group (TAG) associated with the timing advance group identifier will perform uplink time alignment, and / or the network device configures a timing advance group (TAG) identifier for a serving cell and / or an intermediate device, the TAG identifier being used to identify the timing advance group of the terminal device, and the terminal device uses a timer to control the time at which a medium access control (MAC) entity considers that a serving cell and / or an intermediate device belonging to a timing advance group (TAG) associated with the timer will perform uplink time alignment.

[0029] One of the advantageous effects of the embodiment of the present invention is as follows: By maintaining an independent uplink synchronization state for uplink transmissions sent by a terminal via additional nodes / devices / entities whose operating frequencies or deployment locations are different from those of the network device, it is possible to avoid the stop of uplink transmissions caused by the UL transmissions of terminals in different additional nodes / devices / entities exceeding the maximum time difference of uplink transmissions, and to avoid interference in the network device.

[0030] As shown in the following description and drawings, specific embodiments of the present invention are disclosed in detail to illustrate ways in which the principles of the present invention can be employed. However, the scope of the present invention is not limited to these embodiments. The present invention encompasses all modifications, alterations, and equivalents within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

[0031] Features described and / or shown in one embodiment may be used in the same or similar manner in one or more other embodiments, may be combined with features in other embodiments, or may be substituted for features in other embodiments.

[0032] It should be noted that in this text, the term "comprise / have" means the presence of a feature, element, step or component, and does not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, steps or components. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0033] Elements and features depicted in one drawing and one embodiment of an example of the invention may be combined with elements and features shown in one or more drawings or embodiments, and in the drawings, like reference numerals may indicate corresponding elements in multiple drawings and may indicate corresponding elements used in more than one embodiment. [Figure 1] Schematic diagram of a Repeater / RIS deployment scenario. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of multi-TRP operation. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an example of a method for maintaining uplink time alignment according to Example 1 of the present invention; [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of an example of a method for maintaining uplink time alignment according to Example 2 of the present invention; [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of an example of an apparatus for maintaining uplink time alignment according to a third embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of an example of an apparatus for maintaining uplink time alignment according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 7] 1 is a schematic diagram of an example of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 8] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] 1 is a schematic diagram of a network device according to an embodiment of the present invention; DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0034] The above and other features of the present invention will become apparent from the following description. In the specification and drawings, specific embodiments of the present invention are disclosed in detail, and some of the embodiments in which the principles of the present invention can be adopted are shown. However, the present invention is not limited to the described embodiments. The present invention includes all modifications, variations, and equivalents within the scope of the appended claims. Below, various embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. These embodiments are merely illustrative and do not limit the present invention.

[0035] In embodiments of the present invention, the terms "first," "second," etc. are used in titles to distinguish between different elements, but do not represent the spatial arrangement or temporal order of these elements, and these elements are not limited to these terms. The term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the terms listed in the associated list. The terms "comprise," "include," "have," etc. refer to the presence of listed features, elements, elements, or components, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, elements, or components.

[0036] In the embodiments of the present invention, the singular forms "one," "the," etc., include the plural and should be understood broadly as "one kind" or "one class," and are not limited to "one." Furthermore, the term "said" should be understood to include both the singular and the plural, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Furthermore, the term "described in" should be understood to mean "described at least in part," and the term "based on" should be understood to mean "based at least in part," unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

[0037] In embodiments of the present invention, the terms "communication network" or "wireless communication network" may refer to a network conforming to any communication standard, such as, for example, Long Term Evolution (LTE), Long Term Evolution Advanced (LTE-A, LTE-Advanced), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA), etc.

[0038] Additionally, communications between devices in a communications system may occur according to any stage of communications protocol, including, but not limited to, 1G (generation), 2G, 2.5G, 2.75G, 3G, 4G, 4.5G, and 5G, New Radio (NR), and / or other currently known or future developed communications protocols.

[0039] In an embodiment of the present invention, the term "network device" refers to a device in a communication system that allows a terminal device to access the communication system and provides a service to the terminal device, and may include, but is not limited to, a base station (BS), an access point (AP), a transmission reception point (TRP), a broadcast transmitter, a mobility management entity (MME), a gateway, a server, a radio network controller (RNC), a base station controller (BSC), etc.

[0040] Among them, the base station may include, but is not limited to, a Node B (NodeB or NB), an evolved Node B (eNodeB or eNB), a 5G base station (gNB), etc., as well as a remote radio head (RRH), a remote radio unit (RRU), a relay or a low-power node (e.g., femto, pico, etc.), an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, an IAB-DU, or an IAB-donor. The term "base station" may include some or all of these functions, and each base station may provide communication coverage for a specific geographic area. The term "cell" may refer to a base station and / or its coverage area depending on the context in which the term is used. The terms "cell" and "base station" may be interchangeable unless confusion arises.

[0041] In the embodiments of the present invention, the term "User Equipment" (UE) or "Terminal Equipment" (TE) refers to a device that accesses a communication network and receives network services via, for example, a network device. The terminal device may be fixed or mobile, and may also be referred to as a mobile station (MS), a terminal, a subscriber station (SS), an access terminal (AT), an IAB-MT, a station, etc.

[0042] The terminal device may include, but is not limited to, a cellular phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a wireless modem, a wireless communication device, a handheld device, a machine-type communication device, a laptop computer, a cordless phone, a smartphone, a smart watch, a digital camera, and the like.

[0043] For example, in a scenario such as the Internet of Things (IoT), the user equipment may be a monitoring or measuring device or apparatus, including, but not limited to, a Machine Type Communication (MTC) terminal, an in-vehicle communication terminal, a Device to Device (D2D) terminal, a Machine to Machine (M2M) terminal, etc.

[0044] Furthermore, the term "network side" or "network device side" refers to the side of a network, which may be a base station or may include one or more of the network devices described above. The term "user side" or "terminal side" or "terminal device side" refers to the side of a user or terminal, which may be a UE or may include one or more of the terminal devices described above. In this specification, unless otherwise specified, "device" may refer to either a network device or a terminal device.

[0045] In current communication systems, in order to increase coverage, etc., an additional node / device / entity having a simplified protocol stack / function is added between a network device (e.g., a gNB or a gNB-CU) and a terminal. The additional node / device / entity performs processing (e.g., amplification, routing, etc.) on signals / symbols received from the network device and passes them to the terminal. This additional node / device / entity may be a Repeater / RIS (Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface), a TRP, etc. For convenience of explanation, in embodiments of the present invention, the additional node / device / entity is collectively referred to as an intermediate device. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and any scenario in which an additional node / device / entity is used between a network device and a terminal is a scenario of an embodiment of the present invention.

[0046] The following describes an example scenario of the present invention with reference to an example, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0047] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a Repeater / RIS deployment scenario. As shown in Figure 1, the Repeater / RIS is a device that receives, processes, and transmits radiated or conducted RF carriers in both the downlink direction (from the network device BS to the terminal UE) and the uplink direction (from the terminal UE to the network device BS). In the case of a Repeater, the processing includes power amplification, and in the case of a RIS, the processing includes beamforming, propagation environment reconstruction, etc. In an operating band where only downlink or uplink is designated, transmission of only the designated uplink or downlink is repeated.

[0048] 2 is a schematic diagram of multi-TRP operation. A TRP is a part of a network device that receives signals from a terminal UE or transmits signals to a terminal UE.

[0049] As shown in Figure 2, in multi-TRP operation, one serving cell may schedule a UE from two TRPs to provide better PDSCH coverage, reliability, and / or data rate. For multi-TRP operation, there are two different operation modes: single DCI and multi-DCI. In the configuration provided by the TRC layer, uplink and downlink operation are controlled by the physical and MAC layers. In single DCI mode, a UE is scheduled by two TRPs via the same DCI. In multi-DCI mode, a UE is scheduled via independent DCI for each TRP. The two TRPs may belong to the same cell or different cells.

[0050] As shown in Figure 2, the gNB where TRP-2 is located is an additional node / device / entity, and the gNB where TRP-1 is located is a network device. TRP-2 and TRP-1 may belong to different gNBs or different cells of different gNBs, and they may exchange information via the X2 interface. Alternatively, TRP-2 and TRP-1 may be part of a gNB and belong to the same gNB or the same or different cells of the same gNB, and they may exchange information using an internal interface.

[0051] Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings and specific embodiments, in which the same expressions have the same meanings and therefore redundant explanations will be omitted.

[0052] Example 1 The embodiment of the present invention provides a method for maintaining uplink time alignment and is described from the terminal device side.

[0053] 3 is a schematic diagram of an example of a method for maintaining uplink time alignment according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 3, the method includes the following steps:

[0054] Step 301: A terminal device receives configuration information of a timing advance group (TAG) identifier configured by a network device for a serving cell and / or an intermediate device (node / entity).

[0055] Step 302: The terminal equipment controls how long the Medium Access Control (MAC) entity considers the Serving Cells and / or the intermediate device belonging to the Timing Advance Group (TAG) associated with the Timing Advance Group Identifier to be uplink time aligned (the terminal equipment controls how long the MAC entity considers the Serving Cells and / or the intermediate device belonging to the associated TAG to be uplink time aligned).

[0056] It should be noted that the above-mentioned FIG. 3 merely illustrates an example of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the execution order of various steps may be appropriately adjusted, some other steps may be added, or some steps may be removed. Those skilled in the art can make appropriate modifications based on the above content, and are not limited to the description of the above-mentioned FIG. 3.

[0057] In the above embodiment, the network device configures a TAG identifier for a serving cell and / or intermediate device, and the terminal device controls the time at which the MAC entity considers that the serving cell and / or intermediate device belonging to the TAG associated with the TAG identifier performs uplink time alignment. This prevents uplink transmissions by the terminal device at different intermediate devices from exceeding the maximum time difference of uplink transmissions, thereby solving the problem that the network device cannot provide sufficient bandwidth for the terminal device. This also solves the problem that the L1 synchronous / asynchronous state determined by the timer does not match the synchronous state of actual uplink transmissions via the intermediate device, thereby avoiding service interruptions.

[0058] In some embodiments, serving cells and / or intermediate devices that have the same timing advance (TA) applicable uplink (UL) and use the same timing reference downlink (DL) are grouped into one timing advance group (TAG) or configured with the same TAG identifier.

[0059] In the above embodiment, the Timing Advance Group (TAG) includes at least one cell in which an uplink is configured or at least one intermediate device in which an uplink is configured.

[0060] In the above embodiment, if the intermediate device is associated with a primary cell, the TAG in which the intermediate device is located is the primary TAG, otherwise it is the secondary TAG.

[0061] For example, if only one intermediate device is associated with the primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which the intermediate device is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG).

[0062] Also, for example, when at least two intermediate devices are associated with a primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which a specified intermediate device among the at least two intermediate devices is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG), or the timing advance group (TAG) in which an intermediate device among the at least two intermediate devices whose timing advance group (TAG) identifier is 0 is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG), or the timing advance group (TAG) in which the first intermediate device among the at least two intermediate devices whose timing advance group (TAG) identifier is configured is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG).

[0063] In the above two examples, for non-shared frequency channel access, the primary timing advance group (TAG) may use the primary cell or an intermediate device associated with the primary cell as a timing reference, and for shared frequency channel access, the primary timing advance group (TAG) may use the primary cell or an intermediate device associated with the primary cell, or the secondary cell or an intermediate device associated with the secondary cell as a timing reference.

[0064] Also, for example, if the intermediate device is not associated with a primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which the intermediate device is located is a secondary timing advance group (TAG).

[0065] In this example, the secondary timing advance group (TAG) may use the activated secondary cell or an intermediate device associated with the activated secondary cell as a timing reference.

[0066] In an embodiment of the present invention, the terminal device may use a timer corresponding to the timing advance group (TAG) to control the time at which the medium access control (MAC) entity considers that the serving cells and / or intermediate devices belonging to the timing advance group (TAG) are performing uplink time alignment.

[0067] In the above embodiment, the timer is used to indicate L1 synchronization or asynchronous / out of synchronization. For example, if the timer is running, it is considered L1 synchronization, and if not, it is considered L1 asynchronous. If L1 asynchronous, uplink transmission can be sent only by MSG1 / MSGA.

[0068] In some embodiments, when the terminal device receives a Timing Advance Command (TAC) Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE), the specified Timing Advance Group (TAG) is already set to the parameter N. TAWhen maintaining the specified timing advance group (TAG), the medium access control (MAC) entity starts or restarts the timer associated with the specified timing advance group (TAG).

[0069] In some embodiments, when a timing advance command (TAC) is received in a random access response (RAR) message of a serving cell or intermediate device belonging to a timing advance group (TAG), or in MSG B of a special cell or intermediate device associated therewith, If the random access preamble is not selected by the MAC entity from among the contention-based random access preambles, the MAC entity starts or restarts the timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG); otherwise, if the timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG) is not running, the MAC entity starts the timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG); if contention resolution is deemed not successful or contention resolution requested by the System Information (SI) is deemed successful after Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) feedback for a MAC PDU including a UE Contention Resolution ID MAC CE has been transmitted, the MAC entity stops the timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG); otherwise, the MAC entity ignores the received Timing Advance Command (TAC).

[0070] In some embodiments, if the MAC entity stops uplink transmission of a secondary cell (SCell) and / or its associated intermediate device due to exceeding the maximum time difference of uplink transmissions between timing advance groups (TAGs) of the MAC entity or exceeding the maximum time difference of uplink transmissions between timing advance groups (TAGs) of any one of the MAC entities of the terminal device, the MAC entity considers that a timer associated with the secondary cell and / or its associated intermediate device has timed out.

[0071] In an embodiment of the present invention, when the timer times out, if the timer is associated with a Primary Timing Advance Group (PTAG), the MAC entity: Flushing all Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) buffers of all serving cells and all intermediate devices; Informing a Radio Resource Control (RRC) entity to release the Physical Uplink Control Channels (PUCCHs) of all serving cells and all intermediate devices (if the PUCCHs are configured); Informing a Radio Resource Control (RRC) entity to release the Sounding Reference Signals (SRS) of all serving cells and all intermediate devices (if such SRS are configured); clearing all configured downlink assignments and configured uplink grants; Clearing all physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) resources for semi-persistent channel state information (CSI) reporting; all active time consistency timers are deemed to have timed out; and All Timing Advance Group (TAG) parameters N TA The method may perform at least one of:

[0072] In an embodiment of the present invention, when the timer times out, if the timer is associated with a Secondary Timing Advance Group (STAG), for all serving cells and intermediate devices belonging to the Timing Advance Group (TAG), the MAC entity: Flushing all Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) buffers; Informing a Radio Resource Control (RRC) entity to release a Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) if the PUCCH is configured; Informing a Radio Resource Control (RRC) entity to release a Sounding Reference Signal (SRS) if the SRS is configured; clearing all configured downlink assignments and configured uplink grants; Clearing all Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) resources for semi-persistent Channel State Information (CSI) reporting; and Parameter N of the Timing Advance Group (TAG) TA The method may perform at least one of:

[0073] In an embodiment of the present invention, the timer may be an existing timer, i.e., the timeAlignmentTimer used in the existing standard, or a newly introduced timer, such as T1. The present invention is not limited to the configuration method of the newly introduced timer T1, and like the timeAlignmentTimer, it may be configured using a new field or IE, or may use a choose structure, for example, it may be configured in an alternative manner between the existing timeAlignmentTimer and T1, and the description thereof will be omitted here.

[0074] The above-described embodiments are merely examples of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited thereto. Appropriate modifications may be made based on the above-described embodiments. For example, each of the above-described embodiments may be used alone, or one or more of the above-described embodiments may be used in combination.

[0075] According to the method of the embodiment of the present invention, by maintaining an independent uplink synchronization state for uplink transmissions sent by a terminal via additional nodes / devices / entities whose operating frequencies or deployment locations are different from those of the network device, it is possible to avoid the stop of uplink transmissions due to the UL transmissions of terminals in different additional nodes / devices / entities exceeding the maximum time difference of uplink transmissions, and to avoid interference in the network device.

[0076] <Example 2> The embodiments of the present invention provide a method for maintaining uplink time alignment, and will be described from the perspective of a network device. Also, the second embodiment is a process on the network device side corresponding to the first embodiment, and the description of the same content as the first embodiment will be omitted.

[0077] 4 is a schematic diagram of an example of a method for maintaining uplink time alignment according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 4, the method for maintaining uplink time alignment according to an embodiment of the present invention includes the following steps:

[0078] Step 401: A network device configures a timing advance group (TAG) identifier for a serving cell and / or intermediate device (node / entity), and the TAG identifier is used to identify a timing advance group of a terminal device, where the terminal device uses a timer to control the time at which a medium access control (MAC) entity considers that the serving cell and / or intermediate device belonging to the timing advance group (TAG) associated with the timer performs uplink time alignment.

[0079] It should be noted that the above-mentioned FIG. 4 merely illustrates an example of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the execution order of various steps may be appropriately adjusted, some other steps may be added, or some steps may be removed. Those skilled in the art can make appropriate modifications based on the above content, and are not limited to the description of the above-mentioned FIG. 4.

[0080] In the above embodiment, the contents relating to the terminal device have already been explained in the first embodiment, so the explanation thereof will be omitted here.

[0081] In some embodiments, serving cells and / or intermediate devices that have the same timing advance (TA) applicable uplink (UL) and use the same timing reference downlink (DL) are grouped into one timing advance group (TAG) or configured with the same TAG identifier.

[0082] In some embodiments, the timing advance group (TAG) includes at least one cell for which an uplink is configured or at least one intermediate device for which an uplink is configured.

[0083] In some embodiments, if only one intermediate device is associated with the primary cell, the Timing Advance Group (TAG) in which the intermediate device is located is the primary Timing Advance Group (TAG).

[0084] In some embodiments, when at least two intermediate devices are associated with a primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which a specified intermediate device of the at least two intermediate devices is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG), or the timing advance group (TAG) in which an intermediate device of the at least two intermediate devices whose timing advance group (TAG) identifier is 0 is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG), or the timing advance group (TAG) in which the first intermediate device of the at least two intermediate devices whose timing advance group (TAG) identifier is configured is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG).

[0085] In the above embodiments, for non-shared frequency channel access, the primary timing advance group (TAG) may use the primary cell or an intermediate device associated with the primary cell as a timing reference, and for shared frequency channel access, the primary timing advance group (TAG) may use the primary cell or an intermediate device associated with the primary cell, or the secondary cell or an intermediate device associated with the secondary cell as a timing reference.

[0086] In some embodiments, if the intermediate device is not associated with a primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which the intermediate device resides is a secondary timing advance group (TAG).

[0087] In the above embodiment, the secondary timing advance group (TAG) may use the activated secondary cell or an intermediate device associated with the activated secondary cell as a timing reference.

[0088] The above-described embodiments are merely examples of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited thereto. Appropriate modifications may be made based on the above-described embodiments. For example, each of the above-described embodiments may be used alone, or one or more of the above-described embodiments may be used in combination.

[0089] According to the method of the embodiment of the present invention, by maintaining an independent uplink synchronization state for uplink transmissions sent by a terminal via additional nodes / devices / entities whose operating frequencies or deployment locations are different from those of the network device, it is possible to avoid the stop of uplink transmissions due to the UL transmissions of terminals in different additional nodes / devices / entities exceeding the maximum time difference of uplink transmissions, and to avoid interference in the network device.

[0090] Example 3 An embodiment of the present invention provides an apparatus for maintaining uplink time alignment. The apparatus may be, for example, a terminal device, or one or more elements or components configured in the terminal device. The same content as in the first embodiment will not be described again.

[0091] 5 is a schematic diagram of an example of an apparatus for maintaining uplink time alignment according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 5, an apparatus 500 for maintaining uplink time alignment includes the following components:

[0092] The receiving unit 501 receives configuration information of a timing advance group (TAG) identifier configured by a network device for a serving cell and / or an intermediate device (node / entity).

[0093] The control unit 502 controls the time at which a medium access control (MAC) entity considers that serving cells and / or intermediate devices belonging to a timing advance group (TAG) associated with the timing advance group identifier perform uplink time alignment.

[0094] In some embodiments, serving cells and / or intermediate devices that have the same timing advance (TA) applicable uplink (UL) and use the same timing reference downlink (DL) are grouped into one timing advance group (TAG) or configured with the same TAG identifier.

[0095] In some embodiments, the timing advance group (TAG) includes at least one cell for which an uplink is configured or at least one intermediate device for which an uplink is configured.

[0096] In some embodiments, if only one intermediate device is associated with the primary cell, the Timing Advance Group (TAG) in which the intermediate device is located is the primary Timing Advance Group (TAG).

[0097] In some embodiments, when at least two intermediate devices are associated with a primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which a specified intermediate device of the at least two intermediate devices is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG), or the timing advance group (TAG) in which an intermediate device of the at least two intermediate devices whose timing advance group (TAG) identifier is 0 is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG), or the timing advance group (TAG) in which the first intermediate device of the at least two intermediate devices whose timing advance group (TAG) identifier is configured is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG).

[0098] In the above embodiment, for non-shared frequency channel access, the primary timing advance group (TAG) uses the primary cell or an intermediate device associated with the primary cell as a timing reference, and for shared frequency channel access, the primary timing advance group (TAG) uses the primary cell or an intermediate device associated with the primary cell, or the secondary cell or an intermediate device associated with the secondary cell as a timing reference.

[0099] In some embodiments, if the intermediate device is not associated with a primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which the intermediate device resides is a secondary timing advance group (TAG).

[0100] In the above embodiment, the secondary timing advance group (TAG) uses the activated secondary cell or an intermediate device associated with the activated secondary cell as a timing reference.

[0101] In some embodiments, the control unit 502 uses a timer corresponding to the timing advance group (TAG) to control the time at which a medium access control (MAC) entity considers that serving cells and / or intermediate devices belonging to the timing advance group (TAG) perform uplink time alignment.

[0102] In the above embodiment, when the terminal device receives a Timing Advance Command (TAC) Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE), the specified Timing Advance Group (TAG) is already set to the parameter N. TA When maintaining the specified timing advance group (TAG), the medium access control (MAC) entity starts or restarts the timer associated with the specified timing advance group (TAG).

[0103] In the above embodiment, when a timing advance command (TAC) is received in a random access response (RAR) message of a serving cell or intermediate device belonging to a timing advance group (TAG), or in MSG B of a special cell or intermediate device associated therewith, If the random access preamble is not selected by the MAC entity from among the contention-based random access preambles, the MAC entity starts or restarts the timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG); otherwise, if the timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG) is not running, the MAC entity starts the timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG); if contention resolution is deemed not successful or contention resolution requested by the System Information (SI) is deemed successful after Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) feedback for a MAC PDU including a UE Contention Resolution ID MAC CE has been transmitted, the MAC entity stops the timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG); otherwise, the MAC entity ignores the received Timing Advance Command (TAC).

[0104] In the above embodiment, if the MAC entity stops uplink transmission of a secondary cell (SCell) and / or its associated intermediate device due to exceeding the maximum time difference in uplink transmission between timing advance groups (TAGs) of the MAC entity or exceeding the maximum time difference in uplink transmission between timing advance groups (TAGs) of any one of the MAC entities of the terminal device, the MAC entity considers that a timer associated with the secondary cell and / or its associated intermediate device has timed out.

[0105] In the above embodiment, when the timer times out, if the timer is associated with a Primary Timing Advance Group (PTAG), the MAC entity: Flushing all Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) buffers of all serving cells and all intermediate devices; Informing a radio resource control (RRC) entity to release physical uplink control channels (PUCCHs) of all serving cells and all intermediate devices; notifying a radio resource control (RRC) entity to release sounding reference signals (SRS) of all serving cells and all intermediate devices; clearing all configured downlink assignments and configured uplink grants; Clearing all physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) resources for semi-persistent channel state information (CSI) reporting; all active time consistency timers are deemed to have timed out; and All Timing Advance Group (TAG) parameters N TA and maintaining at least one of:

[0106] In the above embodiment, when the timer times out, if the timer is associated with a Secondary Timing Advance Group (STAG), for all serving cells and intermediate devices belonging to the Timing Advance Group (TAG), the MAC entity: Flushing all Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) buffers; Informing a radio resource control (RRC) entity to release a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH); notifying a radio resource control (RRC) entity to release a sounding reference signal (SRS); clearing all configured downlink assignments and configured uplink grants; Clearing all Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) resources for semi-persistent Channel State Information (CSI) reporting; and Parameter N of the Timing Advance Group (TAG)TA and maintaining at least one of:

[0107] The above-described embodiments are merely examples of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited thereto. Appropriate modifications may be made based on the above-described embodiments. For example, each of the above-described embodiments may be used alone, or one or more of the above-described embodiments may be used in combination.

[0108] It should be noted that the above description only describes components or modules relevant to the present invention, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The apparatus for maintaining uplink time alignment 500 may further include other components or modules. For specific details of these components or modules, please refer to the related art.

[0109] 5 only exemplarily illustrates the connection relationships or signal directions between various components or modules, but it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various related technologies, such as bus connections, can be used. The various components or modules described above may be implemented by hardware devices, such as a processor, a memory, a transmitter, and a receiver, and the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0110] According to the device of the embodiment of the present invention, by maintaining an independent uplink synchronization state for uplink transmissions sent by a terminal via an additional node / device / entity whose operating frequency or location is different from that of the network device, it is possible to avoid the stop of uplink transmissions due to the UL transmissions of terminals in different additional nodes / devices / entities exceeding the maximum time difference of uplink transmissions, and to avoid interference in the network device.

[0111] Example 4 An embodiment of the present invention provides an apparatus for maintaining uplink time alignment. The apparatus may be, for example, a network device, or one or more elements or components configured in the network device. The same content as in the second embodiment will not be described again.

[0112] 6 is a schematic diagram of an example of an apparatus for maintaining uplink time alignment according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 6, an apparatus 600 for maintaining uplink time alignment includes the following components:

[0113] The configuration unit 601 configures a timing advance group (TAG) identifier for a serving cell and / or an intermediate device (node / entity), and the TAG identifier is used to identify the timing advance group of a terminal device.

[0114] Here, the terminal device uses a timer to control the time at which a medium access control (MAC) entity considers that serving cells and / or intermediate devices belonging to the timing advance group (TAG) associated with the timer will perform uplink time alignment.

[0115] In some embodiments, serving cells and / or intermediate devices that have the same timing advance (TA) applicable uplink (UL) and use the same timing reference downlink (DL) are grouped into one timing advance group (TAG) or configured with the same TAG identifier.

[0116] In some embodiments, the timing advance group (TAG) includes at least one cell for which an uplink is configured or at least one intermediate device for which an uplink is configured.

[0117] In some embodiments, if only one intermediate device is associated with the primary cell, the Timing Advance Group (TAG) in which the intermediate device is located is the primary Timing Advance Group (TAG).

[0118] In some embodiments, when at least two intermediate devices are associated with a primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which a specified intermediate device of the at least two intermediate devices is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG), or the timing advance group (TAG) in which an intermediate device of the at least two intermediate devices whose timing advance group (TAG) identifier is 0 is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG), or the timing advance group (TAG) in which the first intermediate device of the at least two intermediate devices whose timing advance group (TAG) identifier is configured is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG).

[0119] In the above embodiment, for non-shared frequency channel access, the primary timing advance group (TAG) uses the primary cell or an intermediate device associated with the primary cell as a timing reference, and for shared frequency channel access, the primary timing advance group (TAG) uses the primary cell or an intermediate device associated with the primary cell, or the secondary cell or an intermediate device associated with the secondary cell as a timing reference.

[0120] In some embodiments, if the intermediate device is not associated with a primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which the intermediate device resides is a secondary timing advance group (TAG).

[0121] In the above embodiment, the secondary timing advance group (TAG) uses the activated secondary cell or an intermediate device associated with the activated secondary cell as a timing reference.

[0122] The above-described embodiments are merely examples of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited thereto. Appropriate modifications may be made based on the above-described embodiments. For example, each of the above-described embodiments may be used alone, or one or more of the above-described embodiments may be used in combination.

[0123] It should be noted that the above description only describes components or modules relevant to the present invention, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The apparatus 600 for maintaining uplink time alignment may further include other components or modules. For specific details of these components or modules, please refer to the related art.

[0124] 6 only exemplarily illustrates the connection relationships or signal directions between various components or modules, but it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various related technologies, such as bus connections, may be used. The various components or modules described above may be implemented by hardware devices, such as a processor, a memory, a transmitter, and a receiver, and the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0125] According to the device of the embodiment of the present invention, by maintaining an independent uplink synchronization state for uplink transmissions sent by a terminal via an additional node / device / entity whose operating frequency or location is different from that of the network device, it is possible to avoid the stop of uplink transmissions due to the UL transmissions of terminals in different additional nodes / devices / entities exceeding the maximum time difference of uplink transmissions, and to avoid interference in the network device.

[0126] <Example 5> An embodiment of the present invention further provides a communication system.

[0127] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of an example communication system 700 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0128] In some embodiments, communication system 700 includes terminal device 701 , intermediate device 702 and network device 703 .

[0129] In an embodiment of the present invention, the terminal device 701 receives configuration information of a Timing Advance Group (TAG) identifier configured by the network device 703 for a serving cell and / or intermediate device (node / entity) 702, and controls the time at which a Medium Access Control (MAC) entity considers that the serving cell and / or intermediate device belonging to the Timing Advance Group (TAG) associated with the Timing Advance Group identifier performs uplink time alignment; and / or The network device 703 configures a timing advance group (TAG) identifier for the serving cell and / or intermediate device (node / entity) 702, which is used to identify the timing advance group of the terminal device 701, and the terminal device 701 uses a timer to control the time at which the medium access control (MAC) entity considers that the serving cell and / or intermediate device belonging to the timing advance group (TAG) associated with the timer will perform uplink time alignment.

[0130] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a terminal device.

[0131] 8 is a schematic diagram of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 8, the terminal device 800 may include a processor 801 and a memory 802, where the memory 802 stores data and programs and is connected to the processor 801. It should be noted that this diagram is illustrative only and that other types of structures may be used to supplement or replace this structure to realize communication functions or other functions.

[0132] For example, the processor 801 may execute a program to implement the method described in the first embodiment.

[0133] As shown in Fig. 8, the terminal device 800 may further include a communication module 803, an input unit 804, a display 805, a power supply 806, etc. Here, the functions of the above units are the same as those of the prior art, and the description thereof will be omitted here. Note that the terminal device 800 does not need to include all the units shown in Fig. 8. Furthermore, the terminal device 800 may further include units not shown in Fig. 8, and prior art may be referred to.

[0134] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a network device.

[0135] 9 is a schematic diagram of a network device according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 9, the network device 900 may include a processor (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU)) 901 and a memory 902, and the memory 902 is connected to the processor 901. The memory 902 may store various data, and may further store an information processing program and execute the program under the control of the processor 901.

[0136] For example, the processor 901 may execute a program to implement the method described in the second embodiment.

[0137] 9, the network device 900 may further include a transceiver 903 and an antenna 904. The functions of the above components are similar to those of the prior art, and the description thereof will be omitted here. The network device 900 does not need to include all the units shown in FIG. 9. The network device 900 may further include units not shown in FIG. 9, and may refer to the prior art.

[0138] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a computer-readable program, which, when executed in a terminal device, causes the terminal device to perform the method described in embodiment 1.

[0139] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a storage medium having a computer-readable program stored therein, the program causing a terminal device to perform the method described in embodiment 1 when the program is executed.

[0140] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a computer-readable program, which, when executed in a network device, causes the network device to perform the method described in embodiment 2.

[0141] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a storage medium having a computer-readable program stored thereon, the program causing a network device to perform the method described in embodiment 2 when the program is executed.

[0142] The above-described apparatus and method of the present invention may be realized by hardware or a combination of hardware and software. The present invention relates to a computer-readable program that, when executed by a logic unit, causes the logic unit to implement the above-described apparatus or components, or to implement the above-described various methods or steps. The present invention also relates to a storage medium for storing the above-described program, such as a hard disk, magnetic disk, optical disk, DVD, flash memory, etc.

[0143] Each processing method in each device described with reference to the embodiments of the present invention may be implemented by hardware, a software module executed by a processor, or a combination of both. For example, one or more of the functional block diagrams shown in the drawings, or one or more combinations of the functional block diagrams, may correspond to each software module in a computer program flow or each hardware module. These software modules may correspond to each step shown in the drawings. These hardware modules may be implemented by implementing these software modules in hardware, for example, using a field programmable gate array (FPGA).

[0144] The software module may be located in RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, hard disk, mobile hard disk, CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known to those skilled in the art. The storage medium may be connected to the processor so that the processor reads information from or writes information to the storage medium, or the storage medium may be a component of the processor. The processor and the storage medium may be located in an ASIC. The software module may be stored in the memory of the mobile terminal or in a memory card inserted into the mobile terminal. For example, if a device (e.g., a mobile terminal) uses a relatively large-capacity MEGA-SIM card or a large-capacity flash memory device, the software module may be stored in the MEGA-SIM card or the large-capacity flash memory device.

[0145] One or more functional blocks and / or one or more combinations of functional blocks in the functional block diagrams set forth in the figures may be implemented with a 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 any suitable combination thereof to perform the functions described herein. One or more functional blocks and / or one or more combinations of functional blocks in the functional block diagrams set forth in the figures may be implemented with, for example, a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a combination of multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in combination with a DSP communication, or any other configuration.

[0146] Although the present invention has been described above with reference to specific embodiments, the above description is merely illustrative and does not limit the scope of protection of the present invention. Various modifications and changes may be made to the present invention without departing from the spirit and principles of the present invention, and these modifications and changes are also within the scope of the present invention.

[0147] Furthermore, the following supplementary notes are disclosed regarding the embodiments including the above examples. (Appendix 1) 1. A method for maintaining uplink time alignment, comprising: A step in which a terminal device receives configuration information of a timing advance group (TAG) identifier configured by a network device for a serving cell and / or an intermediate device (node / entity); The method includes a step in which the terminal device controls the time at which a medium access control (MAC) entity considers that serving cells and / or intermediate devices belonging to a timing advance group (TAG) associated with the timing advance group identifier will perform uplink time alignment. (Appendix 2) The method described in Supplementary Note 1, wherein serving cells and / or intermediate devices having an uplink (UL) to which the same timing advance (TA) is applicable and using the same timing reference downlink (DL) are grouped into one timing advance group (TAG) or configured with the same TAG identifier. (Appendix 3) 3. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein the timing advance group (TAG) includes at least one cell configured with an uplink or at least one intermediate device configured with an uplink. (Appendix 4) If only one intermediate device is associated with a primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which the intermediate device is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG); A method according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 3, wherein, when at least two intermediate devices are associated with a primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which a specified intermediate device among the at least two intermediate devices is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG), or the timing advance group (TAG) in which an intermediate device among the at least two intermediate devices whose timing advance group (TAG) identifier is 0 is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG), or the timing advance group (TAG) in which a first intermediate device among the at least two intermediate devices whose timing advance group (TAG) identifier is configured is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG). (Appendix 5) For non-shared frequency channel access, a primary timing advance group (TAG) uses a primary cell or an intermediate device associated with the primary cell as a timing reference; 5. The method of claim 4, wherein for shared frequency channel access, a primary timing advance group (TAG) uses a primary cell or an intermediate device associated with the primary cell, or a secondary cell or an intermediate device associated with the secondary cell, as a timing reference. (Appendix 6) 6. The method of any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 5, wherein if the intermediate device is not associated with a primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which the intermediate device is located is a secondary timing advance group (TAG). (Appendix 7) The method of claim 6, wherein a secondary timing advance group (TAG) uses an activated secondary cell or an intermediate device associated with the activated secondary cell as a timing reference. (Appendix 8) A method according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 7, wherein the terminal device uses a timer corresponding to the timing advance group (TAG) to control the time at which a medium access control (MAC) entity considers that serving cells and / or intermediate devices belonging to the timing advance group (TAG) perform uplink time alignment. (Appendix 9) When the terminal device receives a timing advance command (TAC) medium access control (MAC) control element (CE), the specified timing advance group (TAG) is already set to parameter N. TA 9. The method of claim 8, wherein the medium access control (MAC) entity starts or restarts a timer associated with the specified timing advance group (TAG) when maintaining (Appendix 10) When a random access response (RAR) message of a serving cell or intermediate device belonging to a timing advance group (TAG) or a timing advance command (TAC) is received in MSG B of a special cell or intermediate device associated therewith, 10. The method of claim 8 or 9, wherein if the random access preamble is not selected by the MAC entity from contention-based random access preambles, the MAC entity starts or restarts a timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG); otherwise, if the timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG) is not running, the MAC entity starts the timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG); and if contention resolution is deemed not successful or contention resolution requested by System Information (SI) is deemed successful after Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) feedback for a MAC PDU including a UE Contention Resolution ID MAC CE is transmitted, the MAC entity stops the timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG); otherwise, the MAC entity ignores the received Timing Advance Command (TAC). (Appendix 11) 11. The method of any of Supplementary Notes 8 to 10, wherein if the MAC entity stops uplink transmission of a secondary cell (SCell) and / or an intermediate device associated therewith due to exceeding a maximum time difference in uplink transmission between timing advance groups (TAGs) of the MAC entity or exceeding a maximum time difference in uplink transmission between timing advance groups (TAGs) of any one of the MAC entities of the terminal device, the MAC entity considers that a timer associated with the secondary cell and / or an intermediate device associated therewith has timed out. (Appendix 12) If the timer times out, and the timer is associated with a Primary Timing Advance Group (PTAG), the MAC entity: Flushing all Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) buffers of all serving cells and all intermediate devices; Informing a radio resource control (RRC) entity to release physical uplink control channels (PUCCHs) of all serving cells and all intermediate devices; notifying a radio resource control (RRC) entity to release sounding reference signals (SRS) of all serving cells and all intermediate devices; clearing all configured downlink assignments and configured uplink grants; Clearing all physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) resources for semi-persistent channel state information (CSI) reporting; all active time consistency timers are deemed to have timed out; and All Timing Advance Group (TAG) parameters N TA 12. The method of any of claims 8 to 11, further comprising at least one of: maintaining (Appendix 13) When the timer times out, if the timer is associated with a Secondary Timing Advance Group (STAG), for all serving cells and intermediate devices belonging to the Timing Advance Group (TAG), the MAC entity: Flushing all Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) buffers; Informing a radio resource control (RRC) entity to release a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH); notifying a radio resource control (RRC) entity to release a sounding reference signal (SRS); clearing all configured downlink assignments and configured uplink grants; Clearing all Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) resources for semi-persistent Channel State Information (CSI) reporting; and Parameter N of the Timing Advance Group (TAG) TA 13. The method of any of claims 8 to 12, further comprising at least one of: maintaining (Appendix 14) 1. A method for maintaining uplink time alignment, comprising: a step of configuring a Timing Advance Group (TAG) identifier by a network device for a serving cell and / or an intermediate device (node / entity), the TAG identifier being used to identify a Timing Advance Group of a terminal device; A method in which the terminal device uses a timer to control the time at which a medium access control (MAC) entity considers that serving cells and / or intermediate devices belonging to a timing advance group (TAG) associated with the timer will perform uplink time alignment. (Appendix 15) The method described in Supplementary Note 14, wherein serving cells and / or intermediate devices having an uplink (UL) to which the same timing advance (TA) is applicable and using the same timing reference downlink (DL) are grouped into one timing advance group (TAG) or configured with the same TAG identifier. (Appendix 16) 16. The method of claim 14 or 15, wherein the timing advance group (TAG) includes at least one cell configured with an uplink or at least one intermediate device configured with an uplink. (Appendix 17) If only one intermediate device is associated with a primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which the intermediate device is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG); A method according to any one of Supplementary Notes 14 to 16, wherein, when at least two intermediate devices are associated with a primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which a specified intermediate device among the at least two intermediate devices is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG), or the timing advance group (TAG) in which an intermediate device among the at least two intermediate devices whose timing advance group (TAG) identifier is 0 is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG), or the timing advance group (TAG) in which a first intermediate device among the at least two intermediate devices whose timing advance group (TAG) identifier is configured is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG). (Appendix 18) For non-shared frequency channel access, a primary timing advance group (TAG) uses a primary cell or an intermediate device associated with the primary cell as a timing reference; 18. The method of claim 17, wherein for shared frequency channel access, a primary timing advance group (TAG) uses a primary cell or an intermediate device associated with the primary cell, or a secondary cell or an intermediate device associated with the secondary cell, as a timing reference. (Appendix 19) 17. A method according to any one of appendices 14 to 16, wherein if the intermediate device is not associated with a primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which the intermediate device is located is a secondary timing advance group (TAG). (Appendix 20) 20. The method of claim 19, wherein a secondary timing advance group (TAG) uses an activated secondary cell or an intermediate device associated with the activated secondary cell as a timing reference. (Appendix 21) 14. A terminal device comprising: a memory having a computer program stored therein; and a processor, the processor configured to execute the computer program to implement a method according to any one of claims 1 to 13. (Appendix 22) 21. A network device comprising: a memory having a computer program stored therein; and a processor, the processor configured to execute the computer program to implement a method according to any one of claims 14 to 20. (Appendix 23) A communication system including a terminal device and a network device, The terminal device receives configuration information of a Timing Advance Group (TAG) identifier configured by a network device for a serving cell and / or intermediate device (node / entity), and controls the time at which a Medium Access Control (MAC) entity considers that the serving cell and / or intermediate device belonging to the Timing Advance Group (TAG) associated with the Timing Advance Group identifier performs uplink time alignment; and / or A communication system in which the network device configures a timing advance group (TAG) identifier for a serving cell and / or intermediate device (node / entity), the TAG identifier is used to identify the timing advance group of a terminal device, and the terminal device uses a timer to control the time at which a medium access control (MAC) entity considers that a serving cell and / or intermediate device belonging to the timing advance group (TAG) associated with the timer will perform uplink time alignment.

Claims

1. An apparatus for maintaining uplink time alignment, configured in a terminal device, comprising: a receiving unit configured to receive configuration information of a timing advance group (TAG) identifier configured by a network device for an intermediate device, the intermediate device being a TRP of a serving cell for an inter-cell or intra-cell multi-DCI multi-TRP operation; a controller that uses a timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG) to control a time at which a Medium Access Control (MAC) entity considers a serving cell of a Timing Advance Group (TAG) associated with the configured Timing Advance Group identifier to perform uplink time alignment for the TAG; A device in which, when the MAC entity stops uplink transmission of a secondary cell (SCell) in which two TAGs are configured due to exceeding the maximum time difference in uplink transmission between timing advance groups (TAGs) of the MAC entity or exceeding the maximum time difference in uplink transmission between timing advance groups (TAGs) of any one of the MAC entities of the terminal device, the MAC entity considers the timer associated with the TAG to have timed out.

2. 2. The device of claim 1, wherein serving cells and / or intermediate devices having an uplink (UL) to which the same timing advance (TA) is applicable and using the same timing reference downlink (DL) are grouped into one timing advance group (TAG) or configured with the same TAG identifier.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the timing advance group (TAG) includes at least one cell configured with an uplink or at least one intermediate apparatus configured with an uplink.

4. If only one intermediate device is associated with the primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which the intermediate device is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG); 2. The device of claim 1, wherein, when at least two intermediate devices are associated with a primary cell, a timing advance group (TAG) in which a specified intermediate device among the at least two intermediate devices is located is a primary timing advance group (TAG), or a timing advance group (TAG) in which an intermediate device among the at least two intermediate devices whose timing advance group (TAG) identifier is 0 is located is a primary timing advance group (TAG), or a timing advance group (TAG) in which a first intermediate device among the at least two intermediate devices whose timing advance group (TAG) identifier is configured is located is a primary timing advance group (TAG).

5. For non-shared frequency channel access, a primary timing advance group (TAG) uses a primary cell or an intermediate device associated with the primary cell as a timing reference; 5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein for shared frequency channel access, a primary timing advance group (TAG) uses a primary cell or an intermediate device associated with the primary cell, or a secondary cell or an intermediate device associated with the secondary cell, as a timing reference.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein if the intermediate apparatus is not associated with a primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which the intermediate apparatus resides is a secondary timing advance group (TAG).

7. The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein a secondary timing advance group (TAG) uses an activated secondary cell or an intermediate device associated with the activated secondary cell as a timing reference.

8. a transmitter unit; 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein if the timer is not running, L1 is considered to be unsynchronized and the transmitter transmits only message 1 and message A for the TAG for which the timer is not running.

9. When the terminal device receives a Timing Advance Command (TAC) Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE), the specified Timing Advance Group (TAG) is already set to the parameter N. ＴＡ 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the medium access control (MAC) entity starts or restarts a timer associated with the specified timing advance group (TAG) when maintaining a timestamp of the specified timing advance group (TAG).

10. When a random access response (RAR) message of a serving cell or intermediate device belonging to a timing advance group (TAG) or a timing advance command (TAC) is received in MSG B of a special cell or intermediate device associated therewith, 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein if a random access preamble is not selected by a MAC entity from among contention-based random access preambles, the MAC entity starts or restarts a timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG); otherwise, if the timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG) is not running, the MAC entity starts the timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG); and if contention resolution is deemed unsuccessful or contention resolution requested by system information (SI) is deemed successful after hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a MAC PDU including a UE contention resolution ID MAC CE is transmitted, the MAC entity stops the timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG); otherwise, the MAC entity ignores the received Timing Advance Command (TAG).

11. If the timer times out, and the timer is associated with a Primary Timing Advance Group (PTAG), the MAC entity: Flushing all Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) buffers of all serving cells and all intermediate devices; Informing a Radio Resource Control (RRC) entity to release physical uplink control channels (PUCCHs) of all serving cells and all intermediate devices; notifying a Radio Resource Control (RRC) entity to release Sounding Reference Signals (SRS) of all serving cells and all intermediate devices; clearing all configured downlink assignments and configured uplink grants; Clearing all physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) resources for semi-persistent channel state information (CSI) reporting; all active time consistency timers are deemed to have timed out; and All Timing Advance Group (TAG) parameters N ＴＡ The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:

12. If the timer times out, and if the timer is associated with a Secondary Timing Advance Group (STAG), then for all serving cells for which the two Timing Advance Groups (TAGs) are configured, the MAC entity: clearing any configured downlink assignments and configured uplink grants associated with the TAG of the timed out timer; clearing any physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) resources for semi-persistent channel state information (CSI) reporting associated with the TAG of the timed-out timer; and Parameter N of the timing advance group (TAG) of the timed-out timer ＴＡ The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:

13. An apparatus for maintaining uplink time alignment, configured in a network device, comprising: a component for configuring a timing advance group (TAG) identifier for an intermediate device, the intermediate device being a TRP of a serving cell for an inter-cell or intra-cell multi-DCI multi-TRP operation, and the TAG identifier being used to identify a timing advance group of a terminal device; The terminal device uses a timer associated with the timing advance group (TAG) to control the time at which a medium access control (MAC) entity considers that a serving cell of the timing advance group (TAG) associated with the timer performs uplink time alignment for the TAG; A device in which, when the MAC entity stops uplink transmission of a secondary cell (SCell) in which two TAGs are configured due to exceeding the maximum time difference in uplink transmission between timing advance groups (TAGs) of the MAC entity or exceeding the maximum time difference in uplink transmission between timing advance groups (TAGs) of any one of the MAC entities of the terminal device, the MAC entity considers the timer associated with the TAG to have timed out.

14. 14. The device of claim 13, wherein the intermediate devices having an uplink (UL) to which the same timing advance (TA) is applicable and using the same timing reference downlink (DL) are grouped into one timing advance group (TAG) or configured with the same TAG identifier.

15. If only one intermediate device is associated with the primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which the intermediate device is located is the primary timing advance group (TAG); 14. The device of claim 13, wherein, when at least two intermediate devices are associated with a primary cell, a timing advance group (TAG) in which a specified intermediate device among the at least two intermediate devices is located is a primary timing advance group (TAG), or a timing advance group (TAG) in which an intermediate device among the at least two intermediate devices whose timing advance group (TAG) identifier is 0 is located is a primary timing advance group (TAG), or a timing advance group (TAG) in which a first intermediate device among the at least two intermediate devices whose timing advance group (TAG) identifier is configured is located is a primary timing advance group (TAG).

16. 14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein if the intermediate apparatus is not associated with a primary cell, the timing advance group (TAG) in which the intermediate apparatus resides is a secondary timing advance group (TAG).

17. 17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein a secondary timing advance group (TAG) uses an activated secondary cell or an intermediate device associated with the activated secondary cell as a timing reference.

18. A communication system including a terminal device, an intermediate device, and a network device, The terminal device receives configuration information of a Timing Advance Group (TAG) identifier configured by a network device for the intermediate device, and uses a timer associated with the Timing Advance Group (TAG) to control the time at which a Medium Access Control (MAC) entity considers that a serving cell of the Timing Advance Group (TAG) associated with the Timing Advance Group identifier performs uplink time alignment for the TAG; and / or The network device configures a timing advance group (TAG) identifier for the intermediate device, the TAG identifier being used to identify a timing advance group of a terminal device, and the terminal device uses the timer associated with the timing advance group (TAG) to control the time at which a medium access control (MAC) entity considers that a serving cell of the timing advance group (TAG) associated with the timer performs uplink time alignment for the TAG; The intermediate device is a TRP of a serving cell for inter-cell or intra-cell multi-DCI multi-TRP operation; A communication system in which, if the MAC entity stops uplink transmission of a secondary cell (SCell) in which two TAGs are configured due to exceeding the maximum time difference in uplink transmission between the timing advance groups (TAGs) of the MAC entity or exceeding the maximum time difference in uplink transmission between the timing advance groups (TAGs) of any one of the MAC entities of the terminal device, the MAC entity considers the timer associated with the TAG to have timed out.

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