Signal transmission and reception method and device

Abstract

In an embodiment of the present invention, a signal transmission / reception method and apparatus are provided. The signal reception method includes a terminal device receiving downlink control information (DCI), where the DCI indicates one or two transmission configuration indication (TCI) states; and the terminal device receiving a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) associated with one or two TCI states within an operation time of the one or two TCI states. This prevents undefined device behavior from occurring when the terminal device receives a PDCCH within an operation time of two TCI states or a PDCCH repetition within an operation time of one or two TCI states, thereby preventing PDCCH reception failure.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of communications. [Background technology]

[0002] 3GPP (registered trademark) is working on standardization of unified transmission configuration indication (TCI) in the Release 17 (Rel-17) standardization process, among which the unified TCI in Rel-17 is mainly designed for single transmission and reception point (sTRP) scenarios.

[0003] With the progress of standardization work, multiple transmission and reception points (mTRP) have become an important scenario for 5G NR systems, and mTRP-based transmission can achieve the goals of improving throughput and / or reliability.

[0004] In previous standardization work, Rel-16 standardized mTRP-based Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) transmission, and Rel-17 standardized mTRP-based Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), and Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) transmission. Among these, mTRP transmission includes mTRP transmission based on single Downlink Control Information (sDCI) and mTRP transmission based on multiple DCI (mDCI). In the case of sDCI mTRP, one DCI schedules the downlink and uplink transmission of two TRPs, and it is suitable when the backhaul between the TRPs is ideal. In the case of mDCI mTRP, two TRPs use two DCIs to schedule their uplink and downlink transmissions, and this is suitable when the backhaul between the TRPs is not ideal.

[0005] It should be noted that the introduction of the above background art is intended to clearly and completely explain the technical solutions of the present invention and to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art, and these technical solutions described in the background art of the present invention should not be construed as being known to those skilled in the art. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] The inventors have found that when a terminal device receives a PDCCH based on a unified TCI in an mTRP, the terminal device may encounter the following cases: PDCCH reception must be based on one TCI state, and two TCI states exist within the application time during which PDCCH reception occurs; PDCCH reception must be based on two TCI states, and one TCI state exists within the action time in which PDCCH reception occurs; and PDCCH reception needs to be based on two TCI states, and two TCI states exist within the action time during which PDCCH reception occurs.

[0007] In the above cases, how to receive the PDCCH is a problem that needs to be solved, otherwise, it may cause PDCCH reception failure when the terminal device faces the above cases.

[0008] To address at least one of the above problems, embodiments of the present invention provide a signal transmission and reception method and apparatus. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] According to one aspect of an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a signal receiving method, the method comprising: A terminal device receives a DCI, the DCI indicating one or two TCI states; and The terminal device receives a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states within the duration of the one or two TCI states.

[0010] According to another aspect of an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a signal transmission method, the method comprising: A network device transmits a DCI, the DCI indicating one or two TCI states; and The network device transmits a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states within the duration of the one or two TCI states.

[0011] According to another aspect of an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a signal receiving device, the device comprising: a first receiving unit for receiving a DCI, the DCI indicating one or two TCI states; and The second receiving unit receives a PDCCH associated with the one or two TCI states within an action time of the one or two TCI states.

[0012] According to another aspect of an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a signal transmission device, the device being disposed in a network device, the device comprising: a first transmitting unit for transmitting a DCI, the DCI indicating one or two TCI states; and The second transmitting unit transmits a PDCCH associated with the one or two TCI states within the duration of the one or two TCI states. [Effects of the Invention]

[0013] The advantageous effects of the embodiment of the present invention are at least as follows.

[0014] The terminal device receives a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states within the operation time of one or two TCI states indicated by the DCI, thereby avoiding the occurrence of undefined device behavior when the terminal device receives a PDCCH within the operation time of two TCI states or receives a PDCCH repetition within the operation time of one or two TCI states, thereby avoiding failure to receive the PDCCH.

[0015] The following description and reference to the drawings disclose in detail particular embodiments of the present invention, illustrating ways in which the principles of the present invention may be employed, but the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and various changes, modifications, and alternatives may be included within the scope of the appended claims.

[0016] Furthermore, 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 the other embodiments, or may be substituted for features in the other embodiments.

[0017] It should be noted that when used in this specification, terms such as "comprise / have" refer to the presence of a feature, element, step, or assembly, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, steps, or assemblies. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0018] Elements and features described in one drawing or one embodiment of the invention may be combined with elements and features shown in one or more other drawings or embodiments, and in the drawings, like reference numerals are used to indicate corresponding parts in several drawings and to indicate corresponding parts used in several embodiments. [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating a communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the duration of at least one DL TCI state indicated by a DL DCI for a unified TCI. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 illustrates a signal receiving method according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example in which a terminal device receives a PDCCH. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating another example of a terminal device receiving a PDCCH. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating yet another example of a terminal device receiving a PDCCH. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating another example in which a terminal device receives a PDCCH. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating another example in which a terminal device receives a PDCCH. [Figure 9] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a MAC CE. [Figure 10]FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of CORESET settings. [Figure 11] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a signal transmission method according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 12] 1 is a diagram illustrating a signal receiving device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 13] 1 is a diagram illustrating a signal transmitting device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 14] FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 15] FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a network device according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0019] The foregoing and other features of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings, in which: While the specification and drawings disclose particular embodiments of the present invention, these represent only some of the embodiments which may employ the principles of the present invention, and it is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the described embodiments, but rather includes all such modifications, variations, and alternatives which fall within the scope of the appended claims.

[0020] In embodiments of the present invention, the term "communication network" or "wireless communication network" may refer to a network conforming to any communication standard, such as LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE-A (LTE-Advanced), WCDMA (Wideband Code Division Multiple Access), HSPA (High-Speed ​​Packet Access), etc.

[0021] Additionally, communications between devices in a communications system may be performed according to any level of communications protocol, including, but not limited to, 1G (generation), 2G, 2.5G, 2.75G, 3G, 4G, 4.5G, 5G, New Radio (NR), and / or other conventional or future-developed communications protocols.

[0022] In the embodiments of the present invention, the term "network equipment" refers to a device that connects a terminal device to a communication network and provides services to the terminal device in a communication system, for example, a base station (BS), an access point (AP), a transmission reception point (TRP), a broadcast transmitter, a mobile management entity (MME), a network gateway, a server, a radio network controller (RNC), a base station controller (BSC), etc.

[0023] A 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., and may further include a Remote Radio Head (RRH), a Remote Radio Unit (RRU), a relay, or a low-power node (e.g., femto, pico, etc.). The term "base station" may include some or all of the functions thereof, and each base station can provide communication coverage for a particular geographic area. The term "cell" may refer to a base station and / or the area it covers, depending on the context in which the term is used. Unless confusion arises, the terms "cell" and "base station" are interchangeable.

[0024] In 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 services from the network, for example, via network equipment. User equipment may be fixed or mobile, and may also be referred to as a mobile station (MS), terminal, subscriber station (SS), access terminal (AT), station, etc.

[0025] User equipment may include, but is not limited to, cellular phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), wireless modems, wireless communication devices, mobile devices, machine-type communication devices, laptop computers, cordless phones, smartphones, smart watches, digital cameras, and the like.

[0026] Furthermore, for example, in a scenario such as the Internet of Things (IoT), the user equipment may also be a monitoring or measuring device or apparatus, for example, 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.

[0027] Furthermore, the term "network side" or "network equipment side" refers to the network side, or may be a base station, and may include one or more network equipment as described above. The term "user side" or "terminal side" or "terminal equipment side" refers to the user or terminal side, or may be a UE, and may include one or more terminal equipment as described above. Unless otherwise specified, "equipment" herein may refer to network equipment or may also refer to terminal equipment.

[0028] The following describes an example scenario of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0029] 1 is a diagram showing a communication system in an embodiment of the present invention, taking a terminal device and a network device as an example. As shown in FIG. 1, the communication system 100 may include a first TRP 101, a second TRP 102, and a terminal device 103. Of these, the first TRP 101 and the second TRP 102 may be network devices. For convenience, FIG. 1 illustrates an example in which only two network devices and one terminal device are used, but the embodiment of the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0030] In an embodiment of the present invention, conventional services (services / traffic) or future services can be transmitted between the first TRP 101, the second TRP 102, and the terminal device 103. For example, these services include, but are not limited to, eMBB (enhanced Mobile Broadband), mMTC (massive Machine Type Communication), URLLC (Ultra-Reliable and Low-Latency Communication), etc.

[0031] In Rel-17, for unified TCI, in an sTRP scenario, a network device configures M (M≧1) TCI states for a terminal device using RRC signaling, activates N (1≦N≦M) TCI states among the M TCI states using a medium access control element (MAC CE), and indicates L (1≦L≦N) TCI states among the N TCI states using a DCI. For example, one or more TCI states are indicated by the TCI field of DCI format 1_1 or DCI format 1_2. DCI format 1_1 or DCI format 1_2 can schedule downlink data and is referred to as DCI format 1_1 / 1_2 with DL assignment, and may not schedule downlink data and is referred to as DCI format 1_1 / 1_2 without DL assignment.

[0032] Among them, one TCI state (abbreviated as TCI) may include or correspond to one or two source reference signals (source RS, source reference signal). The source reference signal can provide Quasi Co-Location (QCL) information for downlink reception and is called a downlink source reference signal. The source reference signal can provide reference for uplink transmission spatial filter (UL TX spatial filter, uplink transmission spatial filter) and is called an uplink source reference signal.

[0033] The source reference signal can also provide beam information for a destination channel / signal. For example, the beam for a terminal device to receive a destination channel / signal is the same as the beam for receiving a downlink source reference signal. For example, the beam for a terminal device to transmit a destination channel / signal is the same as the beam for transmitting an uplink source reference signal. For example, the beam for a terminal device to transmit a destination channel / signal is reciprocal to the beam for receiving a downlink source reference signal, i.e., the beam is the same but in the opposite direction. Therefore, an instruction or update to the TCI state actually includes an instruction or update to the beam used by the terminal device.

[0034] The TCI state also includes a joint DL / UL TCI state, a downlink TCI state (DL only TCI state), and an uplink TCI state (UL only TCI state). A source reference signal included in a downlink TCI state is a downlink source reference signal, a source reference signal included in an uplink TCI state is an uplink source reference signal, and a source reference signal included in a joint TCI state is both a downlink source reference signal and an uplink source reference signal.

[0035] The joint TCI state simultaneously affects the downlink beam (receive beam) and the uplink beam (transmit beam). In other words, the downlink beam and the uplink beam use the same beam, but the beam directions are opposite, that is, there is reciprocity between the downlink and uplink beams. The downlink TCI state only affects the downlink beam. The uplink TCI state only affects the uplink beam. The uplink beam is also called the uplink transmit spatial filter.

[0036] The TCI field can indicate a joint TCI state (joint DL / UL TCI state), or the TCI field can indicate a separate TCI state (separate DL / UL TCI state), i.e., it indicates a downlink TCI state and / or an uplink TCI state, and indicating a joint TCI state or indicating a separate TCI state can be configured by RRC signaling. In the case of Rel-17 unified TCI, one TCI field indicates one joint TCI state (equivalent to indicating both a downlink TCI state and an uplink TCI state), or indicates one downlink TCI state, or indicates one uplink TCI state, or indicates one downlink TCI state and one uplink TCI state.

[0037] Figure 2 shows the application time of at least one DL TCI state indicated by a DL DCI for a unified TCI, where the DL TCI state can be a joint DL / UL TCI state or a separate DL / UL TCI state.

[0038] As shown in Figure 2, the terminal device receives DL DCI 1 indicating at least one DL TCI state, among which the DL TCI state indicated by DL DCI 1 is different from the DL TCI state indicated by the previous DL DCI (e.g., DL DCI 0, not shown) (including the number of DL TCI states being different). The terminal device transmits an ACK (ACK 1) for DL ​​DCI 1 to the network device, and DL DCI 1 may be in a DCI format for scheduling PDSCH or in a DCI format for not scheduling PDSCH (DCI format without DL assignment). The first slot to which the DL TCI state indicated by DL DCI 1 is applied is the first slot after Y symbols after the last symbol of ACK1, and the start time of the slot is denoted as t1. Suppose DL DCI 2 is the DL DCI whose first DL TCI state after DL DCI 1 is different from the DL TCI state indicated by DL DCI 1. Using a similar method, the first slot in which the DL TCI state indicated by DL DCI 2 applies can be determined, and the start time of this slot is denoted as t2. The application time (application time 1) of the DL TCI state indicated by DL DCI 1 includes all slots between t1 and t2. In other words, the DL TCI state that becomes effective within application time 1 is indicated by DL DCI 1. Similarly, the application time (application time 2) of the DL TCI state indicated by DL DCI 2 can be expressed as all slots between t2 and t3, where t3 corresponds to the first slot in which a DL TCI state different from the DL TCI state indicated by DL DCI 2 applies, and this different DL TCI state is indicated by DL DCI 3 (not shown) that follows DL DCI 2.To avoid out-of-order downlink HARQ, for DL ​​DCI 2 that is located after DL DCI 1, its associated ACK 2 must be located after ACK 1 and cannot be located before ACK 1.

[0039] The inventors discovered the following: In Rel-17, the unified TCI only applies to the sTRP scenario. Considering the importance of the mTRP, it is necessary to design a corresponding unified TCI mechanism for the mTRP scenario. 3GPP plans to standardize the unified TCI for the mTRP in Rel-18. For now, the unified TCI for the mTRP has already been confirmed as one of the Rel-18 projects, but the standardization work for Rel-18 has not yet started. In terms of functionality, the unified TCI for the mTRP is required to not only support mTRP-based PDSCH transmission by indicating the TCI status of two TRPs, but also to support sTRP-based PDSCH transmission by indicating the TCI status of one TRP.

[0040] Rel-17 also standardizes PDCCH repetition and SFN (Single Frequency Network) PDCCH.

[0041] In the case of PDCCH repetition, two associated PDCCH candidates are derived from two CORESETs (control resource sets) and carry the same control information. Each CORESET is configured with one DL TCI state. Two PDCCH copies are transmitted using the two DL TCI states of the two CORESETs, for example, by two TRPs.

[0042] In the case of SFN PDCCH, two TRPs transmit identical PDCCHs on the same time-frequency resources and include the same PDCCH DMRS, and the two PDCCHs are derived from one CORESET, which is configured with two DL TCI states, and the two PDCCHs are transmitted using the two DL TCI states of one CORESET.

[0043] Rel-17 specifies unified TCI for sTRP only, and PDCCH repetition and SFN PDCCH can be used in mTRP scenarios and belong to the mTRP PDCCH. Therefore, neither PDCCH repetition nor SFN PDCCH in Rel-17 uses unified TCI.

[0044] In Rel-17, for the unified TCI of the sTRP, the PDCCH is associated with one TCI state (i.e., the terminal device needs to receive the PDCCH based on one TCI state), and one TCI state exists within a certain action time of the unified TCI. The terminal device receives the PDCCH in the following cases: Case 1: The terminal device receives a PDCCH associated with one TCI state within the duration of one TCI state.

[0045] Rel-18 needs to standardize the unified TCI of mTRP. For the unified TCI of mTRP, the PDCCH is associated with one or two TCI states (for example, the PDCCH repetition is associated with two TCI states, i.e., the terminal device needs to receive the PDCCH repetition based on the two TCI states), and one or two TCI states exist within a certain action time of the unified TCI (two TCI states are associated with two TRPs, respectively). The terminal device receives the PDCCH in the following cases: Case 1: The terminal device receives a PDCCH associated with one TCI state within the action time of one TCI state; Case 2: The terminal device receives a PDCCH associated with one TCI state within the action time of two TCI states; Case 3: The terminal device receives PDCCHs associated with two TCI states within the duration of one TCI state; and Case 4: The terminal device receives PDCCHs associated with two TCI states within the action times of the two TCI states.

[0046] That is, compared with the unified TCI of the sTRP in Rel-17, cases 2 to 4 are new scenarios that appear in Rel-18. How a terminal device receives a PDCCH in the new scenarios 2 to 4 is a problem that needs to be solved. If a solution is not provided, there will be uncertainty in the behavior of the terminal device receiving the PDCCH, which may result in a PDCCH reception failure.

[0047] In view of at least one of the above problems, embodiments of the present invention provide a signal transmission and reception method and apparatus, which will be described below in conjunction with the drawings and specific implementations.

[0048] In the following description, unless otherwise specified, TCI state refers to DL TCI state. DL TCI state may be DL-only TCI state or joint TCI state. Regarding PDCCH reception, "receive" therein is equivalent to "monitor" and "blind decode" and they are interchangeable. "Receive PDCCH based on TCI state" is equivalent to "receive PDCCH using TCI state" and they are interchangeable. "Use unified TCI" is equivalent to "follow unified TCI" and they are interchangeable. "Receive PDCCH repetition", "monitor two linked PDCCH candidates", and "receive two PDCCH copies" are equivalent to each other and are interchangeable. Regarding PDCCH repetition, "two linked PDCCH candidates" is equivalent to "two PDCCH copies" and they are interchangeable. CORESET can be replaced with search space set, and "setting" may be set by RRC signaling or by MAC CE. "PDCCH associated with one TCI state" is equivalent to "sTRP PDCCH" or "PDCCH" and can be used interchangeably. "PDCCH associated with two TCI states" is equivalent to "PDCCH repetition" and can be used interchangeably. Furthermore, the embodiments of the present invention can be applied to both sDCI mTRP scenarios and mDCI mTRP scenarios.

[0049] <Example of the first aspect> In an embodiment of the present invention, a signal receiving method is provided, which is applied to the terminal equipment side.

[0050] 3 is a diagram illustrating a signal receiving method according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 3, the method includes the following steps: 301: A terminal device receives a DCI, and the DCI indicates one or two TCI states; and 302: The terminal device receives a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states within the duration of the one or two TCI states.

[0051] Note that the above-mentioned FIG. 3 is for illustrative purposes only and uses a terminal device as an example to explain an embodiment of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, it is possible to appropriately adjust the execution order between operations (steps), add or remove some operations, or adjust the target of each operation. Those skilled in the art will be able to make appropriate modifications based on the above content without being limited to the description of the above-mentioned FIG. 3.

[0052] In an embodiment of the present invention, when a PDCCH uses unified TCI, when a terminal device receives a PDCCH within a certain operation time, the terminal device should receive the PDCCH based on the TCI state within the operation time. However, there may be cases where the number of TCI states required to receive the PDCCH does not match the number of TCI states within the operation time (for example, cases 2 to 4 above). In such cases, it is unclear how to receive the PDCCH based on the TCI state, and if it is undefined, it may lead to undefined device behavior, which may result in a PDCCH reception failure.

[0053] According to an embodiment of the present invention, for different combinations of the PDCCH type (PDCCH or PDCCH repetition) and the number of TCI states within the action time (1 or 2), the terminal device receives some or all PDCCHs based on some or all TCI states. This prevents undefined device behavior from occurring when the terminal device receives a PDCCH within the action time of two TCI states or receives a PDCCH repetition within the action time of one or two TCI states, thereby preventing PDCCH reception failure.

[0054] Below, the method in the embodiment of the present invention will be explained using cases 2 to 4 as examples.

[0055] (Take case 2 as an example) In the case of a normal PDCCH (i.e., a non-PDCCH repetition or non-SFN PDCCH), it is sufficient to receive the PDCCH based on one TCI state. When the PDCCH is within the action time of two TCI states, the terminal device does not know how to receive the PDCCH based on the two TCI states. Uncertainty in the terminal device's reception behavior may cause PDCCH reception failure. "The PDCCH is a non-PDCCH repetition or non-SFN PDCCH", "the PDCCH is not a PDCCH repetition or SFN PDCCH", "the PDCCH is not a PDCCH repetition and SFN PDCCH", "the PDCCH is an sTRP PDCCH", "PDCCH repetition or SFN PDCCH is not configured in the terminal device", and "PDCCH repetition and SFN PDCCH are not configured in the terminal device" are equivalent and can be used interchangeably.

[0056] Regarding the above problem, if PDCCH repetition or SFN PDCCH is not configured in the terminal device, when the PDCCH is within the action time of two TCI states, the terminal device can receive the PDCCH according to the following embodiment.

[0057] In some embodiments, the terminal device receives the PDCCH based on one of two TCI states, where the one TCI state may be a predefined TCI state or a TCI state configured for the CORESET in which the PDCCH is located.

[0058] That is, in the above embodiment, if the PDCCH is a non-PDCCH repetition or non-SFN PDCCH and is located within the action time of two TCI states, the terminal device receives the PDCCH based on one of the above two TCI states.

[0059] For example, as shown in Figure 4, the PDSCH originates from TRP1 and TRP2, i.e., the mTRP PDSCH, and the PDCCH originates from TRP1, i.e., the sTRP PDCCH. For the mTRP PDSCH, there are two TCI states within the operation time, each associated with two TRPs. For the sTRP PDCCH, PDCCH reception within the operation time requires only one TCI state, and the terminal device determines one of the two TCI states.

[0060] Wherein, the terminal equipment can determine one TCI state in a predefined manner, for example, use one predefined (default) TCI state, which is the first or second TCI state, or the terminal equipment can determine one TCI state in a configuration manner, for example, configure it to use the first or second TCI state for CORESET. Here, CORESET is configured as the granularity, and for each CORESET, it is configured to use the first or second TCI state if there are two TCI states. Alternatively, search space set can be configured as the granularity, that is, the above CORESET can be replaced with search space set.

[0061] In some other embodiments, the terminal device receives the PDCCH in a manner of receiving the SFN PDCCH based on two TCI states.

[0062] That is, in the above embodiment, if the PDCCH is a non-PDCCH repetition or non-SFN PDCCH and the PDCCH is located within the action time of two TCI states, the terminal device receives the PDCCH in a manner of receiving the SFN PDCCH based on the above two TCI states.

[0063] For example, when PDCCH repetition or SFN PDCCH is not configured in the terminal device, but the terminal device needs to receive a PDCCH within the action time of two TCI states, the terminal device is deemed to have switched to SFN PDCCH reception, and thus the terminal device receives the PDCCH in the manner of receiving an SFN PDCCH. Note that this switching is not explicitly configured by the network device, but is obtained in an implicit manner, i.e., based on a change in the number of TCI states.

[0064] In the above embodiment, in some implementations, the terminal device uses a predefined SFN PDCCH scheme when receiving the PDCCH in the manner of receiving the SFN PDCCH.

[0065] For example, the SFN PDCCH includes two schemes, sfnSchemeA and sfnSchemeB, and since the network equipment does not explicitly configure the SFN PDCCH, the terminal equipment adopts one predefined (default) scheme to receive the SFN PDCCH, which is sfnSchemeA or sfnSchemeB.

[0066] (Take case 3 as an example) In the case of PDCCH repetition, two TCI states are required, each corresponding to two linked PDCCH candidates (PDCCH candidates or PDCCH copies). When two PDCCH candidates are within the action time of one TCI state, the terminal device does not know how to receive the PDCCH based on one TCI state. The uncertainty of the terminal device's reception behavior may result in PDCCH reception failure.

[0067] Regarding the above problem, when PDCCH repetition is configured in the terminal device, and two PDCCH copies are within the action time of one TCI state, the terminal device can receive the PDCCH according to the following embodiment.

[0068] In some embodiments, the terminal device receives two PDCCH copies in two CORESETs based on one TCI state.

[0069] That is, when a PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of one TCI state, the terminal device receives the two PDCCH copies in two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on one TCI state.

[0070] For example, as shown in FIG. 5, since the PDSCH originates from one TRP (TPR1 or TPR2), one TCI state exists within the operation time. For a terminal device for which PDCCH repetition is configured, it expects to receive two PDCCH copies based on two TCI states, but there is only one available TCI state within the operation time. In such a case, the terminal device receives two PDCCH copies using one TCI state. As shown in FIG. 5, this corresponds to the two PDCCH copies originating from the same TRP. When a terminal device receives two PDCCH copies from two previous TRPs, this corresponds to the PDCCH repetitions of the previous two TRPs (mTRPs) being switched to the PDCCH repetition of the current TRP (sTRP).

[0071] In some other embodiments, the terminal device receives one PDCCH copy in one CORESET based on one TCI state.

[0072] That is, when a PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of one TCI state, the terminal device receives one PDCCH copy in one of the two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on one TCI state.

[0073] For example, as shown in Figure 6, a terminal device receives one PDCCH copy in one CORESET using one TCI state. This corresponds to switching from PDCCH repetition to sTRP PDCCH (non-PDCCH repetition). The terminal device receives the PDCCH in only one of the two CORESETs, and from the perspective of the network device, the time-frequency resources of the other CORESET are released and can be used to transmit other channels or signals, thereby improving resource utilization.

[0074] In the above-mentioned embodiments, in some implementations, the above-mentioned one CORESET refers to one of the following: The CORESET with the smaller ID among the two CORESETs mentioned above; The CORESET with the earlier start time of the two CORESETs mentioned above; and Of the two CORESETs mentioned above, this is the CORESET with the relatively low starting frequency.

[0075] For example, a terminal device receives one PDCCH copy from one CORESET based on one TCI state, and the one CORESET is one of the two CORESETs with a smaller ID, an earlier start time, or a lower start frequency. Without loss of generality, the above-mentioned one CORESET may also be one of the two CORESETs with a larger ID, a later start time, or a higher start frequency.

[0076] (Take case 4 as an example) In the case of PDCCH repetition, two TCI states are required, each corresponding to two linked PDCCH candidates. When two PDCCH candidates are within the action time of the two TCI states, the terminal device receives PDCCH repetition based on the two TCI states. However, how two CORESETs are associated with the two TCI states has not yet been defined. More specifically, the terminal device does not know in which CORESET it will receive the PDCCH based on the first TCI state, and in which CORESET it will receive the PDCCH based on the second TCI state. Uncertainty in the terminal device's reception behavior may result in PDCCH reception failure.

[0077] Regarding the above problem, when PDCCH repetition is configured in the terminal device, and two PDCCH copies are within the action time of two TCI states, the terminal device can receive the PDCCH according to the following embodiment.

[0078] In some embodiments, the terminal device receives a first PDCCH copy in a first CORESET based on a first TCI state and a second PDCCH copy in a second CORESET based on a second TCI state.

[0079] That is, when a PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of two TCI states, the terminal device receives one PDCCH copy in the first CORESET based on one TCI state (referred to as the first TCI state) of the two TCI states, and receives another PDCCH copy in the second CORESET based on the other TCI state (referred to as the second TCI state) of the two TCI states.

[0080] where the first CORESET is one of the following: The CORESET with the smaller ID of the two CORESETs; The CORESET that starts earlier than the other two CORESETs; and Of the two CORESETs, this is the CORESET with the lower starting frequency. The second CORESET is one of the following: The CORESET with the larger ID of the two CORESETs; The CORESET with the later start time of the two CORESETs; and Of the two CORESETs, this is the CORESET with the higher starting frequency.

[0081] For example, as shown in Figure 7, the PDSCH originates from TRP1 and TPR2, and there are two TCI states within the active time, each associated with two TRPs. For a PDCCH repetition within the active time, two PDCCH copies originate from the two TRPs, and the terminal device receives the PDCCH repetition based on the two TCI states within the active time. The two PDCCH copies originate from two CORESETs. The terminal device can receive the first PDCCH copy from a CORESET with a relatively small ID based on the first TCI state, and the second PDCCH copy from a CORESET with a relatively large ID based on the second TCI state. The same is true vice versa. Similarly, "a relatively small or large ID" can be replaced with "a relatively early or late start time" or "a relatively low or high start frequency."

[0082] The above is merely an example, and in some other implementations, the first CORESET may be the CORESET with a relatively larger ID, a relatively later start time, or a relatively higher start frequency among the two CORESETs, and correspondingly, the second CORESET is the CORESET with a relatively smaller ID, a relatively earlier start time, or a relatively lower start frequency among the two CORESETs.

[0083] In some other embodiments, the terminal device receives a first PDCCH copy in a first CORESET based on a first TCI state, and receives a second PDCCH copy in a second CORESET based on a second TCI state, where the first CORESET is configured to be associated with the first TCI state and the second CORESET is configured to be associated with the second TCI state.

[0084] That is, when a PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of two TCI states, the terminal device receives one PDCCH copy in a first CORESET based on the first TCI state of the two TCI states, and receives another PDCCH copy in a second CORESET based on the second TCI state of the two TCI states.

[0085] For example, the network equipment may configure for each CORESET which TCI state the CORESET is associated with, and two CORESETs may be associated with two TCI states each, so that the terminal equipment can determine which CORESET to receive the PDCCH copy in based on one TCI state.

[0086] In some other embodiments, the terminal device receives two PDCCH copies in two CORESETs based on one TCI state, where the one TCI state is a predefined TCI state or a TCI state configured for the CORESET in which the PDCCH is located.

[0087] That is, when a PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of two TCI states, the terminal device receives the two PDCCH copies in two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on one of the two TCI states (e.g., a predefined TCI state or a TCI state set for the CORESET in which the PDCCH is located).

[0088] For example, as shown in Figure 8, the PDSCH originates from TRP1 and TPR2, and there are two TCI states during the operation time, each associated with two TRPs, i.e., the PDSCH is transmitted and received in the mTRP manner. However, the PDCCH repetition is transmitted and received in the sTRP manner, i.e., the two PDCCH copies originate from the same TRP. The terminal device receives the PDCCH repetition based on one of the two TCI states. Note that the terminal device can determine one of the two TCI states using the same method as in Case 2, and therefore a detailed description thereof will be omitted here. Although the PDSCH can be switched between the mTRP and sTRP modes, the PDCCH repetition always uses the sTRP mode, which is advantageous for ensuring the robustness of channel control.

[0089] In each of the above-mentioned embodiments, at least two TCI states are activated in the terminal equipment by the MAC CE, and the above-mentioned DCI indicates two of the TCI states, where the first TCI state may be a TCI state with a relatively small field ID or TCI state ID in the MAC CE, and the second TCI state may be a TCI state with a relatively large field ID or TCI state ID in the MAC CE.

[0090] For example, Figure 9 provides an example of MAC CE, showing only the part related to the TCI state, where one MAC CE field includes 8 bits, the field IDs are as shown by Oct 1, Oct 2, ..., Oct N+X in Figure 9, and the TCI state IDs are as shown by TCI state ID 1, TCI state ID 2, ..., TCI state ID M in Figure 9. When a DCI indicates two TCI states, it indicates two TCI states from Oct N to Oct N+X in Figure 9 (i.e., TCI state ID 1 to TCI state ID M, where M = X + 1), where the first TCI state is a TCI state with a relatively small field ID and the second TCI state is a TCI state with a relatively large field ID, or the first TCI state is a TCI state with a relatively small TCI state ID and the second TCI state is a TCI state with a relatively large TCI state ID.

[0091] The above-mentioned embodiments are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited thereto. The first TCI state may be a TCI state having a relatively large field ID or TCI state ID in the MAC CE, and correspondingly, the second TCI state is a TCI state having a relatively small field ID or TCI state ID in the MAC CE.

[0092] In each of the above embodiments, it can be configured whether one CORESET uses unified TCI. When PDCCH repetition is configured in a terminal device, whether two associated CORESETs use unified TCI must satisfy a predetermined restriction condition.

[0093] In some implementations, when PDCCH repetition is configured in a terminal device, the two associated CORESETs either all use the unified TCI or do not use the unified TCI.

[0094] For example, two CORESETs for PDCCH repetition are configured to use or not use unified TCI, and the two CORESETs are all configured to use unified TCI or all configured to not use unified TCI.

[0095] Also, for example, of two CORESETs for PDCCH repetition, only one CORESET is configured to use unified TCI, and the other CORESET is not explicitly configured, but the configuration of the CORESET associated with it is considered to be the same.

[0096] In each of the above embodiments, the network device further configures the method by which the terminal device receives the PDCCH through CORESET configuration. For example, the network device may configure a first CORESET of the CORESETs configured for the terminal device to receive the PDCCH using a first method, and a second CORESET to receive the PDCCH using a second method, where the first method and the second method are any of the methods in Cases 2 to 4.

[0097] That is, the terminal device receives a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states within a first CORESET or CORESET pair based on the setting of the first CORESET or CORESET pair, and receives a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states within a second CORESET or CORESET pair based on the setting of the second CORESET or CORESET pair.

[0098] For example, when one CORESET (or one CORESET pair) is configured to receive PDCCH using unified TCI rather than simply being configured to "not use unified TCI" and "use one of unified TCI", it is also simultaneously configured which method from above-mentioned Cases 2 to 4 to use to receive PDCCH. Here, one CORESET pair refers to two CORESETs associated with two PDCCH copies in PDCCH repetition.

[0099] Figure 10 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of CORESETs. As shown in Figure 10, one CORESET can be configured to be any one of the six results in Figure 10. If a first CORESET is configured to use the first method and a second CORESET is configured to use the second method, the terminal device can achieve dynamic switching between the first method and the second method by blindly detecting PDCCHs within the two CORESETs. This provides the network device with greater flexibility for PDCCH transmission, allowing the network device to dynamically select a method that is suitable for PDCCH transmission of the current channel to transmit the PDCCH.

[0100] FIG. 10 is merely an example, and the present invention is not limited thereto, and the first method and the second method may be further combined in other ways.

[0101] The above-described embodiments are provided to exemplify the present invention, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and appropriate modifications can be made based on the above-described embodiments. For example, each of the above-described embodiments may be used alone, or a plurality of the above-described embodiments may be used in combination.

[0102] As can be seen from the above embodiments, for different combinations of the PDCCH type (PDCCH or PDCCH repetition) and the number of TCI states within the action time (1 or 2), the terminal device receives some or all PDCCHs based on some or all TCI states. This prevents undefined device behavior from occurring when the terminal device receives a PDCCH within the action time of two TCI states or receives a PDCCH repetition within the action time of one or two TCI states, thereby preventing PDCCH reception failure.

[0103] <Example of the second aspect> In an embodiment of the present invention, a signal transmission method is provided, which is applied to a network device side and is processing on the network device side corresponding to the method in the embodiment of the first aspect, and description of the same content as in the embodiment of the first aspect will be omitted here.

[0104] 11 is a diagram illustrating a signal transmission method in an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 14, the method includes the following steps: 1101: A network device transmits a DCI, the DCI indicating one or two TCI states; and 1102: The network device transmits a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states within an action time of the one or two TCI states.

[0105] Note that, although the above-mentioned FIG. 11 is used to exemplify an embodiment of the present invention, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the execution order of each operation may be appropriately adjusted, or some operations may be added or removed. Those skilled in the art may make appropriate modifications based on the above content without being limited to the description of the above-mentioned FIG. 11.

[0106] In an embodiment of the present invention, when a PDCCH uses unified TCI, when a network device transmits a PDCCH within a certain operation time, the network device should transmit the PDCCH based on the TCI state within the operation time. However, there may be cases where the number of TCI states required to transmit the PDCCH does not match the number of TCI states within the operation time (cases 2 to 4 above). In such cases, it is unclear how to transmit the PDCCH based on the TCI state, and if it is undefined, it may lead to undefined device behavior, which may result in a PDCCH transmission failure.

[0107] According to an embodiment of the present invention, for different combinations of PDCCH type (PDCCH or PDCCH repetition) and the number of TCI states within the action time (1 or 2), the network device transmits some or all of the PDCCHs based on some or all of the TCI states. This prevents undefined device behavior from occurring when the network device transmits a PDCCH within the action time of two TCI states or transmits a PDCCH repetition within the action time of one or two TCI states, thereby preventing PDCCH transmission failures.

[0108] In some embodiments, the PDCCH is a non-PDCCH repetition or non-SFN PDCCH, the PDCCH is within the action time of two TCI states, and the network device transmits the PDCCH based on one of the two TCI states.

[0109] In the above embodiment, the one TCI state may be a predefined TCI state, or may be a TCI state set for the CORESET in which the PDCCH is located.

[0110] In some other embodiments, the PDCCH is a non-PDCCH repetition or non-SFN PDCCH, and the PDCCH is within the action time of two TCI states, and the network device transmits the PDCCH in a manner of transmitting an SFN PDCCH based on the two TCI states.

[0111] In the above embodiment, the network equipment can transmit the PDCCH using a predefined SFN PDCCH scheme.

[0112] In some other embodiments, the PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of one TCI state, and the network device transmits the two PDCCH copies in two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on one TCI state.

[0113] In some other embodiments, the PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of one TCI state, and the network device transmits one PDCCH copy in one of two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on one TCI state.

[0114] In the above embodiment, the above-mentioned one CORESET may refer to one of the following: The CORESET with the smaller ID among the two CORESETs mentioned above; The CORESET with the earlier start time of the two CORESETs mentioned above; and Of the two CORESETs mentioned above, this is the CORESET with the relatively low starting frequency.

[0115] In some other embodiments, the PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of two TCI states, and the network device transmits one PDCCH copy in a first CORESET based on a first TCI state of the two TCI states, and transmits another PDCCH copy in a second CORESET based on a second TCI state of the two TCI states.

[0116] where the first CORESET is one of the following: The CORESET with the smaller ID of the two CORESETs; The CORESET that starts earlier than the other two CORESETs; and Of the two CORESETs, this is the CORESET with the lower starting frequency. The second CORESET is one of the following: The CORESET with the larger ID of the two CORESETs; The CORESET with the later start time of the two CORESETs; and Of the two CORESETs, this is the CORESET with the higher starting frequency.

[0117] In some other embodiments, the PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of two TCI states, and the network device transmits one PDCCH copy in a first CORESET based on a first TCI state of the two TCI states, and transmits another PDCCH copy in a second CORESET based on a second TCI state of the two TCI states.

[0118] wherein a first CORESET is set to be associated with a first TCI state; and A second CORESET is set to be associated with the second TCI state.

[0119] In each of the above embodiments, the first TCI state is a TCI state with a relatively small field ID or TCI state ID in the MAC CE, and the second TCI state is a TCI state with a relatively large field ID or TCI state ID in the MAC CE, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0120] In some other embodiments, the PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of two TCI states, and the network device transmits the two PDCCH copies in two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on one TCI state of the two TCI states.

[0121] In the above embodiment, the one TCI state may be a predefined TCI state, or may be one TCI state set for the CORESET in which the PDCCH is located.

[0122] In each of the above-mentioned embodiments, the two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies all use a unified TCI (also referred to as a unified TCI) or do not use a unified TCI, and may be configured by a network device, for example, by the explicit configuration method or the implicit configuration method mentioned in the embodiments of the first aspect.

[0123] In the embodiments of the present invention, the network device may further transmit a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states in the first CORESET or CORESET pair based on the configuration of the first CORESET or CORESET pair, and may transmit a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states in the second CORESET or CORESET pair based on the configuration of the second CORESET or CORESET pair. Specifically, the network device may transmit a PDCCH by employing the methods in the above-described embodiments, and detailed descriptions thereof will be omitted here.

[0124] The above-described embodiments are provided to exemplify the present invention, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and appropriate modifications can be made based on the above-described embodiments. For example, each of the above-described embodiments may be used alone, or a plurality of the above-described embodiments may be used in combination.

[0125] As can be seen from the above embodiments, for different combinations of PDCCH type (PDCCH or PDCCH repetition) and the number of TCI states within the action time (1 or 2), the network device transmits some or all of the PDCCHs based on some or all of the TCI states. This prevents undefined device behavior from occurring when the network device transmits a PDCCH within the action time of two TCI states or transmits a PDCCH repetition within the action time of one or two TCI states, thereby preventing PDCCH transmission failures.

[0126] <Example of the third aspect> An embodiment of the present invention provides a signal receiving device, which may be, for example, a terminal device, or one or more components or assemblies installed in the terminal device, and the same content as in the first and second embodiments will not be described here.

[0127] 12 is a diagram showing a signal receiving device in an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 12, a signal receiving device 1200 in an embodiment of the present invention includes: A first receiving unit 1201: receives a DCI, and the DCI indicates one or two TCI states; and A second receiving unit 1202: receives a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states within the action time of the one or two TCI states.

[0128] In some embodiments, the PDCCH is a non-PDCCH repetition or non-SFN PDCCH, and the PDCCH is within the action time of two TCI states, and the second receiving unit 1202 receives the PDCCH based on one of the two TCI states.

[0129] In the above embodiment, the one TCI state is a predefined TCI state, or a TCI state set for the CORESET in which the PDCCH resides.

[0130] In some embodiments, the PDCCH is a non-PDCCH repetition or non-SFN PDCCH, and the PDCCH is within the action time of two TCI states, and the second receiving unit 1202 receives the PDCCH in the manner of receiving an SFN PDCCH according to the above-mentioned two TCI states.

[0131] In the above embodiment, the second receiving unit 1202 can receive the PDCCH using a predefined SFN PDCCH scheme.

[0132] In some embodiments, the PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of one TCI state, and the second receiving unit 1202 receives the two PDCCH copies in two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on the one TCI state.

[0133] In some embodiments, the PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of one TCI state, and the second receiving unit 1202 receives one PDCCH copy in one of two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on the one TCI state.

[0134] In the above embodiment, the above-mentioned one CORESET may refer to one of the following: The CORESET with the smaller ID among the two CORESETs mentioned above; The CORESET with the earlier start time of the two CORESETs mentioned above; and Of the two CORESETs mentioned above, this is the CORESET with the relatively low starting frequency.

[0135] In some embodiments, the PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of two TCI states, and the second receiving unit 1202 receives one PDCCH copy in a first CORESET based on one TCI state (first TCI state) of the two TCI states, and receives another PDCCH copy in a second CORESET based on the other TCI state (second TCI state) of the two TCI states.

[0136] where the first CORESET is one of the following: The CORESET with the smaller ID of the two CORESETs; The CORESET that starts earlier than the other two CORESETs; and Of the two CORESETs, this is the CORESET with the lower starting frequency. The second CORESET is one of the following: The CORESET with the larger ID of the two CORESETs; The CORESET with the later start time of the two CORESETs; and Of the two CORESETs, this is the CORESET with the higher starting frequency.

[0137] In some embodiments, the PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of two TCI states, and the second receiving unit 1202 receives one PDCCH copy in a first CORESET based on a first TCI state of the two TCI states, and receives another PDCCH copy in a second CORESET based on a second TCI state of the two TCI states.

[0138] wherein a first CORESET is set to be associated with a first TCI state; and A second CORESET is set to be associated with the second TCI state.

[0139] In each of the above-mentioned embodiments, the first TCI state is a TCI state having a relatively small field ID or TCI state ID in the MAC CE, and the second TCI state is a TCI state having a relatively large field ID or TCI state ID in the MAC CE, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0140] In some embodiments, the PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of two TCI states, and the second receiving unit 1202 receives the two PDCCH copies in two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on one of the above-mentioned two TCI states.

[0141] In the above embodiment, the one TCI state may be a predefined TCI state, or may be one TCI state set for the CORESET in which the PDCCH is located.

[0142] In each of the above embodiments, the two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies either use a unified TCI or do not use a unified TCI.

[0143] In some embodiments, the second receiving unit 1202 receives a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states in a first CORESET or CORESET pair based on the configuration of a first CORESET or CORESET pair, and receives a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states in a second CORESET or CORESET pair based on the configuration of a second CORESET or CORESET pair. Specifically, the second receiving unit 1202 can receive a PDCCH in the manner described in the above embodiments, and detailed descriptions thereof will be omitted here.

[0144] The above-described embodiments are provided to exemplify the present invention, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and appropriate modifications can be made based on the above-described embodiments. For example, each of the above-described embodiments may be used alone, or a plurality of the above-described embodiments may be used in combination.

[0145] Although the above describes only the components or modules according to the present invention, the present invention is not limited thereto. The signal receiving device 1200 may further include other components or modules, and the specific contents of these components or modules can be found in the related art.

[0146] 12 shows only the connection relationships or signal directions between each component or module for convenience, but as will be understood by those skilled in the art, various related technologies such as bus connection may be adopted. Each of the above-mentioned components or modules may be realized by hardware such as a processor, a memory, a transmitter (device), and a receiver (device), but the implementation of the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0147] As can be seen from the above embodiments, for different combinations of the PDCCH type (PDCCH or PDCCH repetition) and the number of TCI states within the action time (1 or 2), the terminal device receives some or all of the PDCCHs based on some or all of the TCI states. This prevents undefined device behavior from occurring when the terminal device receives the PDCCH within the action time of two TCI states or receives the PDCCH repetition within the action time of one or two TCI states, thereby preventing PDCCH reception failure.

[0148] <Example of the fourth aspect> An embodiment of the present invention provides a signal transmission device, which may be, for example, a network device, or one or more components or assemblies installed in the network device, and the same content as in the embodiments of the first to third aspects will not be described here.

[0149] 13 is a diagram illustrating a signal transmitting device in an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 13, a signal transmitting device 1300 in an embodiment of the present invention includes: A first transmitting unit 1301: transmits a DCI, where the DCI indicates one or two TCI states; and A second transmitting unit 1302: transmits a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states within the action time of the one or two TCI states.

[0150] In some embodiments, the PDCCH is a non-PDCCH repetition or non-SFN PDCCH, and the PDCCH is located within the action time of two TCI states, and the second transmitting unit 1302 transmits the PDCCH based on one of the two TCI states.

[0151] In the above embodiment, the one TCI state is a predefined TCI state or a TCI state set for the CORESET in which the PDCCH resides.

[0152] In some embodiments, the PDCCH is a non-PDCCH repetition or non-SFN PDCCH, and the PDCCH is located within the action time of two TCI states, and the second transmitting unit 1302 transmits the PDCCH in the manner of transmitting an SFN PDCCH according to the above-mentioned two TCI states.

[0153] In the above embodiment, the second transmitting unit 1302 transmits the PDCCH using a predefined SFN PDCCH scheme.

[0154] In some embodiments, the PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of one TCI state, and the second transmitting unit 1302 transmits the two PDCCH copies with two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on the above-mentioned one TCI state.

[0155] In some embodiments, the PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of one TCI state, and the second transmitting unit 1302 transmits one PDCCH copy in one of two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on the above-mentioned one TCI state.

[0156] In the above embodiment, the above-mentioned one CORESET may refer to one of the following: The CORESET with the smaller ID among the two CORESETs mentioned above; The CORESET with the earlier start time of the two CORESETs mentioned above; and Of the two CORESETs mentioned above, this is the CORESET with the relatively low starting frequency.

[0157] In some embodiments, the PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of two TCI states, and the second transmitting unit 1302 transmits one PDCCH copy in a first CORESET based on one TCI state (first TCI state) of the two TCI states, and transmits another PDCCH copy in a second CORESET based on the other TCI state (second TCI state) of the two TCI states.

[0158] wherein the first CORESET may be one of the following: The CORESET with the smaller ID of the two CORESETs; The CORESET that starts earlier than the other two CORESETs; and Of the two CORESETs, this is the CORESET with the lower starting frequency. The second CORESET may also be one of the following: The CORESET with the larger ID of the two CORESETs; The CORESET with the later start time of the two CORESETs; and Of the two CORESETs, this is the CORESET with the higher starting frequency.

[0159] In some embodiments, the PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of two TCI states, and the second transmitting unit 1302 transmits one PDCCH copy in a first CORESET based on a first TCI state of the two TCI states, and transmits another PDCCH copy in a second CORESET based on a second TCI state of the two TCI states.

[0160] wherein a first CORESET is set to be associated with the first TCI state; and A second CORESET is set to be associated with the second TCI state.

[0161] In each of the above-mentioned embodiments, the first TCI state is a TCI state having a relatively small field ID or TCI state ID in the MAC CE, and the second TCI state is a TCI state having a relatively large field ID or TCI state ID in the MAC CE, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0162] In some embodiments, the PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of two TCI states, and the second transmitting unit 1302 transmits the two PDCCH copies in two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on one of the above-mentioned two TCI states.

[0163] In the above embodiment, one TCI state may be a predefined TCI state, or may be one TCI state set for the CORESET in which the PDCCH is located.

[0164] In each of the above embodiments, the two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies may all use a unified TCI, or may not use a unified TCI.

[0165] In some embodiments, the second transmitting unit 1302 transmits a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states in the first CORESET or CORESET pair based on the configuration of the first CORESET or CORESET pair, and transmits a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states in the second CORESET or CORESET pair based on the configuration of the second CORESET or CORESET pair. Specifically, the second transmitting unit 1302 may transmit a PDCCH using the methods in the above-mentioned embodiments, and detailed descriptions thereof will be omitted here.

[0166] The above-described embodiments are provided to exemplify the present invention, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and appropriate modifications can be made based on the above-described embodiments. For example, each of the above-described embodiments may be used alone, or a plurality of the above-described embodiments may be used in combination.

[0167] Although the above describes only the components or modules according to the present invention, the present invention is not limited thereto. The signal transmitting device 1300 may further include other components or modules, and the specific contents of these components or modules can be found in the related art.

[0168] 13 shows only the connection relationships or signal directions between each component or module for convenience, but as will be understood by those skilled in the art, various related technologies such as bus connection may be adopted. Each of the above-mentioned components or modules may be realized by hardware such as a processor, memory, transmitter (device), or receiver (device), but the implementation of the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0169] As can be seen from the above embodiments, for different combinations of PDCCH type (PDCCH or PDCCH repetition) and the number of TCI states within the action time (1 or 2), the network device transmits some or all of the PDCCHs based on some or all of the TCI states. This prevents undefined device behavior from occurring when the network device transmits a PDCCH within the action time of two TCI states or transmits a PDCCH repetition within the action time of one or two TCI states, thereby preventing PDCCH transmission failures.

[0170] <Example of the fifth aspect> An embodiment of the present invention further provides a communication system, which can be seen in Figure 1. Note that the description here will be omitted for the same content as in the embodiments of the first to fourth aspects.

[0171] In some embodiments, the communication system 100 may include at least a network device and a terminal device, in which the network device can transmit a DCI, the DCI indicating one or two TCI states, and the network device can further transmit a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states within the operation time of the one or two TCI states, and the terminal device can receive the DCI and receive a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states within the operation time of the one or two TCI states.

[0172] The network devices and terminal devices have already been described in detail in the first to fourth aspects, and their details are incorporated herein, so a detailed description thereof will be omitted here.

[0173] Although a terminal device is further provided in the embodiment of the present invention, the present invention is not limited thereto and may be other devices.

[0174] 14 is a diagram illustrating a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 14, the terminal device 1400 may include a processor 1410 and a memory 1420, where the memory 1420 stores data and programs and is connected to the processor 1410. Note that this diagram is merely an example, and other types of components may be used to supplement or replace the components to achieve telecommunications or other functions.

[0175] For example, the processor 1410 may be configured to execute a program to implement the method described in the embodiment of the first aspect. For example, the processor 1410 may be configured to perform the following control: receive a DCI, where the DCI indicates one or two TCI states; and receive a PDCCH associated with the one or two TCI states within the duration of the one or two TCI states.

[0176] As shown in Fig. 14, the terminal device 1400 may further include a communication module 1430, an input unit 1440, a display 1450, a power supply 1460, etc. The functions of the above-mentioned components are the same as those of the prior art, and therefore detailed descriptions thereof will be omitted here. Note that the terminal device 1400 does not need to include all of the components shown in Fig. 14, i.e., the above-mentioned components are not essential. Furthermore, the terminal device 1400 may further include components not shown in Fig. 14, and reference can be made to the prior art for such components.

[0177] In the embodiment of the present invention, a network device is further provided, which may be, for example, a base station, but the present invention is not limited thereto and may be other network devices.

[0178] 15 is a block diagram of a network device according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 15, the network device 1500 may include a processor 1510 (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU)) and a memory 1520, which is connected to the processor 1510. The memory 1520 can store various data and can also store a program 1530 for information processing, and can execute the program 1530 under the control of the processor 1510.

[0179] For example, the processor 1510 may be configured to execute a program to implement the method described in the embodiment of the second aspect. For example, the processor 1510 may be configured to perform the following control: transmit a DCI, where the DCI indicates one or two TCI states; and transmit a PDCCH associated with the one or two TCI states within the duration of the one or two TCI states.

[0180] 15, the network device 1500 may further include a transceiver 1540, an antenna 1550, etc., of which the functions of the above-mentioned components are the same as those of the prior art, and detailed description thereof will be omitted here. Note that the network device 1500 does not need to include all the components shown in FIG. 15. The network device 1500 may further include components not shown in FIG. 15, and for this, reference can be made to the prior art.

[0181] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a computer program, which, when executed by a terminal device, causes the terminal device to perform the method described in the embodiment of the first aspect.

[0182] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a storage medium storing a computer program, wherein the computer program causes a terminal device to perform the method described in the embodiment of the first aspect.

[0183] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a computer program, which, when executed by a network device, causes the network device to perform the method described in the embodiment of the second aspect.

[0184] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a storage medium storing a computer program, wherein the computer program causes a network device to perform the method described in the embodiment of the second aspect.

[0185] The above-described devices and methods may be realized by software or hardware, or by a combination of hardware and software. The present invention further relates to a computer-readable program as described below, which, when executed by a logic component, causes the logic component to realize the above-described devices or components, or to perform each of the above-described methods or steps. The logic component may be, for example, an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), a microprocessor, or a processing unit used in a computer. The present invention also relates to a storage medium, such as a hard disk, magnetic disk, optical hard disk, DVD, or flash memory, that stores the above-described program.

[0186] Furthermore, one or more combinations of the functional blocks illustrated in the figures and / or one or more combinations of the functional blocks may be implemented as 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 component, a discrete gate or transistor logic component, a discrete hardware assembly, or any other suitable combination for performing the functions described herein. Also, one or more combinations of the functional blocks illustrated in the figures and / or one or more combinations of the functional blocks may be further implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors communicatively coupled with a DSP, or any other configuration.

[0187] Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and any modifications to the present invention that do not depart from the spirit of the present invention fall within the technical scope of the present invention.

[0188] Furthermore, the following additional notes are disclosed regarding the above-described embodiments.

[0189] (Appendix 1) 1. A signal reception method, comprising: A terminal device receives a DCI, the DCI indicating one or two TCI states; and The method includes the terminal device receiving a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states within an action time of the one or two TCI states.

[0190] (Appendix 2) 2. The method of claim 1, comprising: The terminal device receives a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states in the first CORESET or CORESET pair based on the configuration of the first CORESET or CORESET pair; and The method further includes the terminal device receiving a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states in the second CORESET or CORESET pair based on a setting of the second CORESET or CORESET pair.

[0191] (Appendix 3) 10. The method according to claim 1 or 2, The PDCCH is a non-PDCCH repetition or non-SFN PDCCH, the PDCCH is located within an action time of two TCI states, and the terminal device receives the PDCCH based on one TCI state of the two TCI states.

[0192] (Appendix 4) 4. The method of claim 3, The one TCI state is a predefined TCI state or a TCI state set for a CORESET in which the PDCCH is located.

[0193] (Appendix 5) 10. The method according to claim 1 or 2, The PDCCH is a non-PDCCH repetition or non-SFN PDCCH, the PDCCH is located within an action time of two TCI states, and the terminal device receives the PDCCH in a manner of receiving an SFN PDCCH based on the two TCI states.

[0194] (Appendix 6) 6. The method of claim 5, The terminal device receives the PDCCH using a predefined SFN PDCCH scheme.

[0195] (Appendix 7) 10. The method according to claim 1 or 2, The PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of one TCI state, and the terminal device receives the two PDCCH copies in two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on the one TCI state.

[0196] (Appendix 8) 10. The method according to claim 1 or 2, The PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of one TCI state, and the terminal device receives one PDCCH copy in one CORESET of two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on the one TCI state.

[0197] (Appendix 9) 9. The method of claim 8, The one CORESET refers to one of the following: The CORESET with the smaller ID of the two CORESETs; The CORESET with the earliest start time of the two CORESETs; and The CORESET having the relatively lower starting frequency of the two CORESETs.

[0198] (Appendix 10) 10. The method according to claim 1 or 2, the PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of two TCI states, and the terminal device receives one of the PDCCH copies in a first CORESET based on a first TCI state of the two TCI states, and receives another of the PDCCH copies in a second CORESET based on a second TCI state of the two TCI states; wherein the first CORESET is one of the following: The CORESET with the smaller ID of the two CORESETs; The CORESET that starts earlier than the other two CORESETs; and Of the two CORESETs, this is the CORESET with the lower starting frequency. the second CORESET is one of the following: The CORESET with the larger ID of the two CORESETs; The CORESET with the later start time of the two CORESETs; and This is the CORESET with the higher starting frequency of the two CORESETs.

[0199] (Appendix 11) 10. The method according to claim 1 or 2, the PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of two TCI states, and the terminal device receives one of the PDCCH copies in a first CORESET based on a first TCI state of the two TCI states, and receives another of the PDCCH copies in a second CORESET based on a second TCI state of the two TCI states; wherein the first CORESET is set to be associated with the first TCI state; and The second CORESET is set to be associated with the second TCI state.

[0200] (Appendix 12) 12. The method according to claim 10 or 11, The first TCI state is a TCI state with a relatively small field ID or TCI state ID in the MAC CE; and The second TCI state is a TCI state having a relatively large field ID or TCI state ID in the MAC CE.

[0201] (Appendix 13) 10. The method according to claim 1 or 2, The PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of two TCI states, and the terminal device receives the two PDCCH copies in two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on one TCI state of the two TCI states.

[0202] (Appendix 14) 14. The method of claim 13, The one TCI state is a predefined TCI state or a TCI state set for a CORESET in which the PDCCH is located.

[0203] (Appendix 15) 10. The method according to claim 1 or 2, The PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies either use a unified TCI or do not use a unified TCI.

[0204] (Appendix 16) 1. A signal transmission method, comprising: A network device transmits a DCI, the DCI indicating one or two TCI states; and The method includes the network device transmitting a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states within an action time of the one or two TCI states.

[0205] (Appendix 17) 17. The method of claim 16, The network device transmits a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states within the first CORESET or CORESET pair based on a configuration of the first CORESET or CORESET pair; and The network device transmitting a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states within the second CORESET or CORESET pair based on a setting of the second CORESET or CORESET pair.

[0206] (Appendix 18) 18. The method according to claim 16 or 17, The PDCCH is a non-PDCCH repetition or non-SFN PDCCH, the PDCCH is located within an action time of two TCI states, and the network device transmits the PDCCH based on one TCI state of the two TCI states.

[0207] (Appendix 19) 19. The method of claim 18, The one TCI state is a predefined TCI state or a TCI state set for a CORESET in which the PDCCH is located.

[0208] (Appendix 20) 18. The method according to claim 16 or 17, The PDCCH is a non-PDCCH repetition or non-SFN PDCCH, the PDCCH is located within an action time of two TCI states, and the network device transmits the PDCCH in a manner of transmitting an SFN PDCCH based on the two TCI states.

[0209] (Appendix 21) 21. The method of claim 20, The network device transmits the PDCCH using a predefined SFN PDCCH scheme.

[0210] (Appendix 22) 18. The method according to claim 16 or 17, The PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of one TCI state, and the network device transmits the two PDCCH copies in two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on the one TCI state.

[0211] (Appendix 23) 18. The method according to claim 16 or 17, The PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of one TCI state, and the network device transmits one PDCCH copy in one CORESET of two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on the one TCI state.

[0212] (Appendix 24) 24. The method of claim 23, The one CORESET refers to one of the following: The CORESET with the smaller ID of the two CORESETs; The CORESET with the earliest start time of the two CORESETs; and The CORESET having the relatively lower starting frequency of the two CORESETs.

[0213] (Appendix 25) 18. The method according to claim 16 or 17, The PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and the two PDCCH copies are within an action time of two TCI states, and the network device transmits one of the PDCCH copies in a first CORESET based on a first TCI state of the two TCI states, and transmits another of the PDCCH copies in a second CORESET based on a second TCI state of the two TCI states; wherein the first CORESET is one of the following: The CORESET with the smaller ID of the two CORESETs; The CORESET that starts earlier than the other two CORESETs; and Of the two CORESETs, this is the CORESET with the lower starting frequency. The second CORESET is one of the following: The CORESET with the larger ID of the two CORESETs; The CORESET with the later start time of the two CORESETs; and This is the CORESET with the higher starting frequency of the two CORESETs.

[0214] (Appendix 26) 18. The method according to claim 16 or 17, The PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and the two PDCCH copies are within an action time of two TCI states, and the network device transmits one of the PDCCH copies in a first CORESET based on a first TCI state of the two TCI states, and transmits another of the PDCCH copies in a second CORESET based on a second TCI state of the two TCI states; wherein the first CORESET is set to be associated with the first TCI state; and The second CORESET is set to be associated with the second TCI state.

[0215] (Appendix 27) 27. The method according to claim 25 or 26, The first TCI state is a TCI state with a relatively small field ID or TCI state ID in the MAC CE; and The second TCI state is a TCI state having a relatively large field ID or TCI state ID in the MAC CE.

[0216] (Appendix 28) 18. The method according to claim 16 or 17, The PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, the two PDCCH copies are within the action time of two TCI states, and the network device transmits the two PDCCH copies in two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies based on one TCI state of the two TCI states.

[0217] (Appendix 29) 29. The method of claim 28, The one TCI state is a predefined TCI state or a TCI state set for a CORESET in which the PDCCH is located.

[0218] (Appendix 30) 18. The method according to claim 16 or 17, The PDCCH includes two PDCCH copies, and two CORESETs associated with the two PDCCH copies all use a unified TCI or do not use a unified TCI.

[0219] (Appendix 31) A terminal device, a memory and a processor; The memory stores a computer program, and the processor is configured to execute the computer program to implement the method of any one of claims 1 to 15.

[0220] (Appendix 32) A network device, a memory and a processor; The memory stores a computer program, and the processor is configured to execute the computer program to implement the method of any one of appendices 16 to 30.

[0221] (Appendix 33) 1. A communication system comprising: Including network equipment and terminal equipment, The network device transmits a DCI and transmits a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states within an action time of the one or two TCI states indicated by the DCI; The terminal device receives the DCI and receives a PDCCH associated with one or two TCI states within the action time of the one or two TCI states indicated by the DCI.

Claims

1. A device for receiving a signal, disposed in a terminal device, comprising: a receiver, The receiver includes: receiving downlink control information, the downlink control information indicating two transmission configuration indication states; and configured to receive a physical downlink control channel associated with one or two transmission configuration indication states within an application time of the two transmission configuration indication states; The physical downlink control channel is a non-PDCCH repetition or a non-SFN PDCCH and is located within the application time of the two transmission configuration indication states; the receiver receives the physical downlink control channel based on one of the two transmission configuration indication states; The apparatus, wherein the one transmission configuration indication state is a transmission configuration indication state set for a control resource set in which the physical downlink control channel is located.

2. 10. The apparatus of claim 1, The receiver further comprises: receiving a physical downlink control channel associated with one or two transmission configuration indication states in the first control resource set based on the configuration of the first control resource set; and The apparatus is configured to receive, based on a configuration of the second control resource set, a physical downlink control channel associated with one or two transmission configuration indication states on the second control resource set.

3. 3. The apparatus of claim 2, The first control resource set is configured to use a unified TCI state or not use a unified TCI state; When the first control resource set is configured to use the unified TCI state, the first control resource set is further configured such that physical downlink control channel reception in the first control resource set is associated with one or two transmission configuration indication states; The second control resource set is configured to use a unified TCI state or not use a unified TCI state; When the second control resource set is configured to use the unified TCI state, the second control resource set is further configured such that physical downlink control channel reception on the second control resource set is associated with one or two transmission configuration indication states.

4. 10. The apparatus of claim 1, The physical downlink control channel includes two physical downlink control channels, and two control resource sets associated with the two physical downlink control channels both use a unified transmission configuration instruction or do not use a unified transmission configuration instruction.

5. 10. The apparatus of claim 1, the physical downlink control channel includes two physical downlink control channels, the two physical downlink control channels are located within application times of two transmission setting indication states, the receiver receives one of the physical downlink control channels on a first control resource set based on a first transmission setting indication state of the two transmission setting indication states, and receives the other of the physical downlink control channels on a second control resource set based on a second transmission setting indication state of the two transmission setting indication states; The apparatus, wherein the first control resource set is configured to be associated with the first transmission configuration indication state, and the second control resource set is configured to be associated with the second transmission configuration indication state.

6. 10. The apparatus of claim 1, The first of the two transmission setting indication states is a transmission setting indication state having a relatively small field ID in a medium access control element; The second of the two transmission setting indication states is a transmission setting indication state having a relatively large field ID in a medium access control element.

7. A device for transmitting a signal, which is disposed in a network device, a transmitter, The transmitter Transmitting downlink control information, the downlink control information indicating two transmission configuration indication states; and configured to transmit a physical downlink control channel associated with one or two transmission configuration indication states within an application time of the two transmission configuration indication states; The physical downlink control channel is a non-PDCCH repetition or a non-SFN PDCCH and is located within the application time of the two transmission configuration indication states; The transmitter transmits the physical downlink control channel based on one transmission setting indication state of the two transmission setting indication states; The apparatus, wherein the one transmission configuration indication state is a transmission configuration indication state set for a control resource set in which the physical downlink control channel is located.

8. 8. The apparatus of claim 7, The transmitter further comprises: Transmitting a physical downlink control channel associated with one or two transmission configuration indication states in the first control resource set based on the configuration of the first control resource set; and The apparatus is configured to transmit, based on a configuration of the second control resource set, a physical downlink control channel associated with one or two transmission configuration indication states in the second control resource set.

9. 9. The apparatus of claim 8, The first control resource set is configured to use a unified TCI state or not use a unified TCI state; When the first control resource set is configured to use the unified TCI state, the first control resource set is further configured such that physical downlink control channel reception in the first control resource set is associated with one or two transmission configuration indication states; The second control resource set is configured to use a unified TCI state or not use a unified TCI state; When the second control resource set is configured to use the unified TCI state, the second control resource set is further configured such that physical downlink control channel reception on the second control resource set is associated with one or two transmission configuration indication states.

10. 8. The apparatus of claim 7, The physical downlink control channel includes two physical downlink control channels, and two control resource sets associated with the two physical downlink control channels both use a unified transmission configuration instruction or do not use a unified transmission configuration instruction.

11. 8. The apparatus of claim 7, the physical downlink control channel includes two physical downlink control channels, the two physical downlink control channels are located within application times of two transmission setting indication states, the transmitter transmits one of the physical downlink control channels on a first control resource set based on a first transmission setting indication state of the two transmission setting indication states, and transmits the other of the physical downlink control channels on a second control resource set based on a second transmission setting indication state of the two transmission setting indication states; The apparatus, wherein the first control resource set is configured to be associated with the first transmission configuration indication state, and the second control resource set is configured to be associated with the second transmission configuration indication state.

12. A communication system including a network device and a terminal device, The network device includes: Transmitting downlink control information, the downlink control information indicating two transmission configuration indication states; and configured to transmit a physical downlink control channel associated with one or two transmission configuration indication states within an application time of the two transmission configuration indication states; The terminal device is receiving the downlink control information; and configured to receive the physical downlink control channel; The physical downlink control channel is a non-PDCCH repetition or a non-SFN PDCCH and is located within the application time of the two transmission configuration indication states; The network device transmits the physical downlink control channel based on one of the two transmission setting indication states; A communication system, wherein the one transmission configuration indication state is a transmission configuration indication state set for a control resource set in which the physical downlink control channel is located.

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