Communication methods and communication devices

Abstract

The present application relates to the field of communication technology and provides a communication method and a communication device for reducing the power consumption of a multi-antenna radio frequency module without affecting the module's high capacity and high experience capabilities. A specific solution involves using a radio frequency channel in a first radio frequency channel set to carry a first type of signal and a radio frequency channel in a second radio frequency channel set to carry a second type of signal, where the first radio frequency channel set and the second radio frequency channel set are different and the first type of signal and the second type of signal have different functions. The present application is used in a process of transmitting signals on radio frequency channels.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] Embodiments of the present application relate to the field of communication technology, and in particular, to a communication method and a communication apparatus. [Background Art]

[0002] The present application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202211466014.3 filed with the National Intellectual Property Administration of China on November 22, 2022 and entitled "COMMUNICATION METHOD AND COMMUNICATION APPARATUS", which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

[0003] Multi-antenna technology has been widely used to meet the increasing requirements for capacity and user experience. Multi-antenna technology can be understood as spatial multiplexing technology, which uses multiple ports to implement multi-stream transmission, cell-level splitting, or user-level beamforming, so as to improve user capacity and user experience. However, in multi-antenna technology, when user capacity and user experience are improved, the power consumption of a multi-antenna radio frequency (RF) module is usually high. [Summary of the Invention]

[0004] Embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and a communication apparatus for reducing power consumption of a radio frequency module.

[0005] To achieve the above objective, the following technical solutions are applied in the embodiments of the present application.

[0006] According to the first embodiment, a communication method is provided. The method includes the steps of carrying a first-type signal using radio frequency channels in a first radio frequency channel set, and carrying a second-type signal using radio frequency channels in a second radio frequency channel set, wherein the functions of the first-type signal and the second-type signal are different, unlike the first and second radio frequency channel sets. For example, the method may be implemented by a radio frequency device / module such as a remote radio unit (RRU) or an active antenna unit (AAU), or by a module, device, or circuit used in or installable in a radio frequency device such as an RRU or AAU, or by a base station including an RRU or AAU.

[0007] Compared to the conventional technology in which the same signal is carried on all radio frequency channels in a radio frequency module, in this application, the radio frequency channels in a radio frequency module are separated based on signal type. Specifically, radio frequency channels in a first set of radio frequency channels may be used to carry a first type of signal, and radio frequency channels in a second set of radio frequency channels may be used to carry a second type of signal. However, according to the method in the first embodiment, the processing of the first type of signal and the processing of the second type of signal by the communication device cannot interfere with each other. With respect to the second type of signal, if a radio frequency channel does not carry the second type of signal, the radio frequency channel may be shut down to achieve an energy saving effect without affecting the carrying of the first type of signal by the radio frequency channel carrying the first type of signal, thereby improving the energy saving effect and reducing power consumption.

[0008] In a possible design, the first type of signal is a cell-level common signal, and the second type of signal is a user-level signal. The cell-level common signal can be understood as a basic coverage signal and includes signals used by terminal devices to perform cell camping and access functions. The user-level signal can be understood as a capacitive signal and includes user-level data information, auxiliary information, control information, etc. Thus, in this application, when radio frequency channels are separated based on signal type, the communication device may process the user-level signal in a different manner than it processes the cell-level common signal, thereby reducing the impact of the communication device's processing of the user-level signal on the cell-level common signal and improving the independence of the two signals.

[0009] In a possible design, the method further includes the step of determining the number of channels in a second radio frequency channel set and used to carry a second type of signal, based on at least one of the network-side load status or the signal quality level of the terminal device. The load status may reflect the service requirements of the cell. When the load status indicates that the cell load is less than or equal to a threshold, only some radio frequency channels in the second radio frequency channel set may be activated. The signal quality level of the terminal device may reflect the interference status of the terminal device. When the signal quality level is higher than a threshold, only some radio frequency channels in the second radio frequency channel set need to be activated. In this way, energy saving effects are achieved based on activating some radio frequency channels.

[0010] In possible designs, in network scenarios where multiple standards coexist, the first type of signal includes the first type of signal in a multi-standard network. A multi-standard network can be understood as a network where long-term evolution (LTE) / new radio (NR) and older standards coexist. Older standard networks include, for example, the global system for mobile communications (GSM), the universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS), or the narrowband internet of things (NB-IOT). Since data in older standard networks is transmitted continuously, components in radio frequency channels are not stabilizable. Given that radio frequency channels in a first set of radio frequency channels carry the first type of signal, i.e., cell-level common signals, and that radio frequency channels in a first set of radio frequency channels need to be activated for extended periods, the first type of signal can be carried on radio frequency channels in a first set of radio frequency channels. In this way, the basic coverage of the cell can be guaranteed, and the continuous transmission of signals in older network standards remains unaffected.

[0011] In a possible design, the method further includes the step of using a first set of radio frequency channels to carry a first type of signal and a second type of signal in a time-division and / or frequency-division manner, wherein the first type of signal includes a first type of signal in a multistandard network, and the second type of signal includes a second type of signal in a multistandard network.

[0012] When radio frequency channels in a first set of radio frequency channels carry cell-level common signals, and the radio frequency channels in the first set of radio frequency channels do not necessarily occupy all time-domain and frequency-domain resources, the cell-level common signals are transmitted periodically at intervals, so the radio frequency channels in the first set of radio frequency channels can, as an alternative, carry first-type signals and second-type signals, including first-type and second-type signals in a multi-standard network, using time-division and / or frequency-division methods. In this way, resource utilization can be improved.

[0013] In a possible design, the power of analog components in radio frequency channels in a first set of radio frequency channels is greater than or equal to the power of analog components in radio frequency channels in a second set of radio frequency channels, which carry a second type of signal but not a first type of signal. For example, the analog component is a power amplifier (PA). In this design, when the first type of signal is a cell-level common signal and the second type of signal is a user-level signal, in order to ensure that the basic coverage of the cell remains unchanged, the analog components in radio frequency channels carrying the basic coverage function must be configured with higher power than the analog components carrying the capacitive function, and consequently, in order to ensure that the basic coverage is not affected, it is considered possible to increase the power for resource elements (RE) at specific frequency positions corresponding to the common channel.

[0014] In a possible design, antenna elements corresponding to the first set of radio frequency channels are distributed individually. Given the number of channels carrying the basic coverage function, the horizontal distance between antenna arrays transmitting the cell-level common signal needs to be as far as possible to maintain the focused shape of the basic coverage beam horizontally within a limited antenna array range (e.g., forming a horizontal beamwidth of approximately 65 degrees). For example, from the perspective of the overall design of the antenna mounting platform, if the overall structure of the antenna mounting platform remains unchanged, the antenna elements corresponding to the channels carrying the cell-level common signal are positioned in the side column locations on both horizontal sides of the antenna mounting platform. This is the maximum horizontal distance achievable, and the focused beam shape can also be formed.

[0015] In possible designs, a first set of radio frequency channels is coupled to a first set of module-level digital components, and a second set of radio frequency channels is coupled to a second set of module-level digital components, which are distinct from the first and second sets of module-level digital components. In other words, in this application, module-level digital components in a radio frequency module can also be separated at a virtual or physical level based on basic coverage and capacity / experience functions. After the module-level digital components in the radio frequency module are also separated based on signal type, functional blocks in the second set of module-level digital components (e.g., a common public radio interface (CPRI) or an enhanced common public radio interface (eCPRI)) can also enter a sub-state for extended periods when a light load occurs, following the capacity channels, and do not need to be continuously activated to meet coverage requirements, resulting in a significant reduction in energy consumption.

[0016] In a possible design, the set of digital components includes a front-haul interface, for example, the baseband unit (b It could be an interface between the caseband unit (BBU) and the RRU.

[0017] A communication method is provided according to a second embodiment. This method includes the steps of sending a first control signal, the first control signal indicating that a radio frequency channel in a first radio frequency channel set carries a first type of signal; and sending a second control signal, the second control signal indicating that a radio frequency channel in a second radio frequency channel set carries a second type of signal, wherein the first and second radio frequency channel sets are different in function from the first and second radio frequency channel sets.

[0018] The communication method in the second embodiment is implemented by a baseband processing device / module, which may be implemented by, for example, a BBU, or by a module, device, or circuit used in or installable in a baseband processing unit such as a BBU, or by a base station including a BBU. In other words, based on the method in the first embodiment implemented by a radio frequency device / module, the method procedure on the radio frequency device / module side may be implemented after it has been configured by the baseband processing device / module. Thus, the second embodiment can achieve the same beneficial effects as the first embodiment. Further details are not described here again.

[0019] In a possible design, the first type of signal is a cell-level common signal, and the second type of signal is a user-level signal.

[0020] In a possible design, prior to the step of sending a second control signal, the method further includes the step of determining the number of channels in the second radio frequency channel set and used to carry the second type of signal, based on at least one of the network-side load status or the signal quality level of the terminal device.

[0021] In a possible design, when the network load status is lower and / or the signal quality level of the terminal device is higher, the number of channels used to carry the second type of signal will be smaller.

[0022] In a possible design, the method further includes the step of sending a third control signal, the third control signal indicating that a first set of radio frequency channels carries a first type of signal and a second type of signal in a time-division and / or frequency-division manner, wherein the first type of signal includes a first type of signal in a multistandard network, and the second type of signal includes a second type of signal in a multistandard network.

[0023] In a possible design, the method further includes the step of sending a fourth control signal, the fourth control signal indicating that a first set of module-level digital components and a first set of radio frequency channels carry a first type of signal, and a second set of module-level digital components and a second set of radio frequency channels carry a second type of signal.

[0024] According to a third aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device includes radio frequency channels in a first set of radio frequency channels configured to carry a first type of signal, and radio frequency channels in a second set of radio frequency channels configured to carry a second type of signal, wherein, unlike the first and second sets of radio frequency channels, the functions of the first type of signal and the second type of signal are different.

[0025] For the beneficial effects of the third aspect, refer to the description of the first aspect.

[0026] In a possible design, the first-type signals are cell-level common signals, and the second-type signals are user-level signals.

[0027] In a possible design, the communication apparatus further comprises a processor. The processor is configured to determine, based on at least one of a load status on a network side or a signal quality level of a terminal device, the number of channels that are in the second radio frequency channel set and are used to carry the second-type signals.

[0028] In a possible design, in a network scenario where multiple standards coexist, the first-type signals include first-type signals in a multi-standard network.

[0029] In a possible design, radio frequency channels in the first radio frequency channel set are used to carry the first-type signals and the second-type signals in a time division and / or frequency division manner, the first-type signals include first-type signals in a multi-standard network, and the second-type signals include second-type signals in the multi-standard network.

[0030] In a possible design, power of analog components in radio frequency channels in the first radio frequency channel set is greater than or equal to power of analog components in radio frequency channels that are in the second radio frequency channel set, carry the second-type signals, and do not carry the first-type signals.

[0031] In a possible design, antenna elements corresponding to the first radio frequency channel set are distributed separately.

[0032] In a possible design, a first radio frequency channel set is coupled to a first module-level digital component set, and a second radio frequency channel set is coupled to a second module-level digital component set, which are different from the first and second module-level digital component sets.

[0033] In possible designs, the set of digital components includes a front-haul interface.

[0034] According to a fourth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device includes a memory and a transceiver. The memory is configured to store data. The transceiver is configured to transmit a first control signal, the first control signal indicating that a radio frequency channel in a first radio frequency channel set carries a first type of signal, and a second control signal, the second control signal indicating that a radio frequency channel in a second radio frequency channel set carries a second type of signal, wherein the functions of the first type of signal and the second type of signal are different, unlike the first and second radio frequency channel sets.

[0035] In a possible design, the first type of signal is a cell-level common signal, and the second type of signal is a user-level signal.

[0036] In possible designs, a processor is further included. The processor is configured to determine the number of channels in a second radio frequency channel set and used to carry a second type of signal, based on at least one of the network-side load status or the signal quality level of the terminal device.

[0037] In a possible design, when the network load status is lower and / or the signal quality level of the terminal device is higher, the number of channels used to carry the second type of signal will be smaller.

[0038] In a possible design, the transceiver is further configured to transmit a third control signal indicating that a first set of radio frequency channels carries a first type of signal and a second type of signal in a time-division and / or frequency-division scheme, wherein the first type of signal includes a first type of signal in a multistandard network, and the second type of signal includes a second type of signal in a multistandard network.

[0039] In a possible design, the transceiver is further configured to transmit a fourth control signal indicating that a first set of module-level digital components and a first set of radio frequency channels carry a first type of signal, and a second set of module-level digital components and a second set of radio frequency channels carry a second type of signal.

[0040] According to a fifth aspect, a communication device is provided which includes a transmission module. The transmission module is configured to transmit a first control signal, the first control signal indicating that a radio frequency channel in a first radio frequency channel set carries a first type of signal, and to transmit a second control signal, the second control signal indicating that a radio frequency channel in a second radio frequency channel set carries a second type of signal, wherein the functions of the first type of signal and the second type of signal are different, unlike the first and second radio frequency channel sets.

[0041] In a possible design, the first type of signal is a cell-level common signal, and the second type of signal is a user-level signal.

[0042] In possible designs, a processing module is further included. The processing module is configured to determine the number of channels in a second radio frequency channel set and used to carry a second type of signal, based on at least one of the network-side load status or the signal quality level of the terminal device.

[0043] In a possible design, when the network load status is lower and / or the signal quality level of the terminal device is higher, the number of channels used to carry the second type of signal will be smaller.

[0044] In a possible design, the transmitting module is further configured to transmit a third control signal indicating that a first set of radio frequency channels carries a first type of signal and a second type of signal in a time-division and / or frequency-division scheme, wherein the first type of signal includes a first type of signal in a multistandard network, and the second type of signal includes a second type of signal in a multistandard network.

[0045] In a possible design, the transmitting module is further configured to transmit a fourth control signal indicating that a first set of module-level digital components and a first set of radio frequency channels carry a first type of signal, and a second set of module-level digital components and a second set of radio frequency channels carry a second type of signal.

[0046] According to the sixth aspect, a chip is provided. The chip is coupled to memory and configured to read and execute program instructions stored in memory for implementing a method according to either the first aspect or a design of the first aspect, and / or a method according to either the second aspect or a design of the second aspect.

[0047] According to the seventh aspect, a device is provided comprising one or more processors and one or more memories. The one or more memories are coupled to one or more processors. The one or more memories are configured to store computer program code, which includes computer instructions. When one or more processors execute computer instructions, a computer is enabled to perform a communication method according to any one of the above aspects and possible implementations. Furthermore, the device may further include an antenna.

[0048] According to the eighth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium containing computer instructions is provided. When the computer instructions are executed on a computer, the computer is enabled to implement a communication method according to any one of the above aspects and possible implementations.

[0049] According to the ninth aspect, a computer program product is provided. When the computer program product is running on a computer or processor, the computer or processor is enabled to implement a communication method according to any one of the above aspects and possible implementations.

[0050] According to the tenth aspect, one embodiment of the present application provides a system. The system may include a communication device (e.g., RRU) in any possible implementation of the third aspect and a communication device (e.g., BBU) in any possible implementation of the fourth aspect. Alternatively, the system may include a communication device (e.g., RRU) in any possible implementation of the third aspect and a communication device (e.g., BBU) in any possible implementation of the fifth aspect.

[0051] A communication device in any possible implementation of the third embodiment may implement a communication method in any one of the first embodiment and any one of the possible implementations of the first embodiment, and a communication device in any one of the fourth embodiment, the fifth embodiment, or any one of the possible implementations of the fourth or fifth embodiment may implement a communication method in any one of the second embodiment and any one of the implementations of the second embodiment.

[0052] It can be understood that any one of the communication devices, electronic devices, chips, computer-readable storage media, computer program products, etc., provided above may be used in the corresponding methods provided above. Therefore, for the beneficial effects that can be achieved by the communication devices, electronic devices, chips, computer-readable storage media, computer program products, etc., please refer to the beneficial effects in the corresponding methods. Further details are not provided here.

[0053] These or other embodiments of this application are more concisely and clearly described below. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0054] [Figure 1] This is a diagram of a universal hardware architecture for a base station according to one embodiment of the present application. [Figure 2] This is a diagram of a universal hardware architecture for a base station according to one embodiment of the present application. [Figure 3] This is a schematic flowchart of a communication method according to one embodiment of this application. [Figure 4] This is a diagram illustrating channel separation in a radio frequency module according to one embodiment of the present application. [Figure 5] This is a diagram of channel-level separation according to one embodiment of the present application. [Figure 6(a)] This is a diagram of channel level separation of 32T according to one embodiment of the present application. [Figure 6(b)] This is a diagram of channel level separation of 32T according to one embodiment of the present application. [Figure 6(c)] This is a diagram of channel level separation of 32T according to one embodiment of the present application. [Figure 7] This is a diagram of the time-frequency domain resources occupied on a single subframe when LTE coexists with older standards such as GSM, UMTS, or NB-IoT, according to one embodiment of the present application. [Figure 8] This is a diagram illustrating channel level isolation of 32T radio frequency channels in the case of multiple standards, according to one embodiment of the present application. [Figure 9] This is a diagram illustrating module-level digital component isolation in a radio frequency module according to one embodiment of the present application. [Figure 10] This figure shows module-level digital component isolation and radio frequency channel isolation according to one embodiment of the present application. [Figure 11] This is a schematic flowchart of a communication method according to one embodiment of this application. [Figure 12] This is a schematic flowchart of a communication method according to one embodiment of this application. [Figure 13] This is a schematic flowchart of a communication method according to one embodiment of this application. [Figure 14] This is a diagram showing the structure of a communication device according to one embodiment of this application. [Figure 15] This is a diagram showing the structure of a communication device according to one embodiment of this application. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0055] The following describes the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the description of the embodiments of this application, " / " means "or" unless otherwise specified. For example, A / B may represent A or B. In this specification, "and / or" describes only the relating relationship to describe the related subjects, and indicates that three relationships may exist. For example, A and / or B may represent the following three cases: only A exists, both A and B exist, or only B exists. Furthermore, in the description of the embodiments of this application, "multiple" means two or more.

[0056] The terms “first” and “second” as used below are for illustrative purposes only and should not be understood as an indication or implied indication of the relative importance of the technical features described or an implicit indication of their number. Thus, features limited by “first” or “second” may explicitly or implicitly include one or more features. In the description of embodiments, unless otherwise specified, “multiple” means two or more.

[0057] For ease of understanding, several concepts related to the embodiments of this application are explained by reference using examples. Details are as follows:

[0058] Multi-antenna technology can be understood as spatial multiplexing technology, which uses multiple ports to implement multi-stream transmission, or further implements cell splitting or user-level beamforming to improve user capacity and user experience.

[0059] A radio frequency channel can typically be understood as a channel in a radio frequency module, such as a remote radio unit (RRU) or an active antenna unit (AAU), or as a channel in another radio frequency module, which may be coupled to an antenna array via jumpers and to a baseband module via optical fiber.

[0060] An antenna array, sometimes called a phased array or antenna array, is a group of antennas containing multiple antenna elements spatially arranged according to specific rules, which can obtain predetermined radiation characteristics through excitation. These antenna elements can achieve higher performance than a single antenna by combining signals from each other.

[0061] Cell-level common signals, sometimes called basic coverage signals, can be carried in a cell's basic common channel to satisfy the cell camping and access functions of the terminal device, which are the most basic functions. Cell camping functions include receiving the cell's system messages and paging messages. In this application, cell-level common signals may be messages, symbols, etc., carried on the channel.

[0062] For example, in a long-term evolution (LTE) network, cell-level common signals may include, but are not limited to, one or more of the following: cell-specific reference signal (CRS), master information block (MIB), primary synchronization signal (PSS), secondary synchronization signal (SSS), system information block (SIB), paging, physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), message 2 (MSG2) in user access processing, message 4 (MSG4) in user access processing, signaling radio bearer 0 (SRB0), and physical control format indicator channel (PCFICH).

[0063] For example, in a new radio (NR) network, the cell-level common signal may include the synchronization signal and physical broadcast channel (PBCH) block (SSB), other system information (OSI), remaining system information (RMSI), paging / common PDCCH, SRB0, MSG2, MSG4, etc.

[0064] User-level signals, sometimes called capacitive signals, include user-level data information, and related auxiliary or control messages. For example, in LTE, these include the physical HARQ indicator channel (PHICH), where HARQ stands for hybrid automatic repeat request, the user PDCCH, the channel state information reference signal (CSIRS), the demodulation reference signal (DMRS), the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), and the signaling radio bearer 1. 1 ,SRB1), Signaling Radio Bearer 2 2 This may include SRB2, etc.

[0065] For example, in NR, user-level signals may include user-level CSIRS, user-level DMRS, user-level PDSCH, and phase-tracking reference signal (PTRS).

[0066] A pilot signal, also known as a reference signal, is used for measurement functions such as channel estimation and phase estimation. For example, a pilot signal can be one of the various reference signals mentioned above. In another example, in an LTE system, a pilot signal could be a cell-specific reference signal (CRS) and is used for measuring the reference signal received power (RSRP) of all user equipment (UE) in the cell, as well as for channel estimation and demodulation for time-frequency tracking.

[0067] A multi-standard network is a network in which multiple standards coexist. For example, it may be a network in which at least two of the following standards coexist: LTE, NR, and lower-end standards. Older standard networks include, for example, the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), or the Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IOT).

[0068] A channel-level analog component can be understood as an analog component in a radio frequency channel within a radio frequency module, for example, a PA. The radio frequency module may be, for example, an RRU or AAU.

[0069] Channel-level digital components can be understood as digital components within a radio frequency channel in a radio frequency module, such as crest factor reduction (CFR) components, digital pre-distortion (DPD) components, or digital-to-analog converters (DACs).

[0070] Module-level digital components may include digital components in a radio frequency module that do not belong to a radio frequency channel, such as a front-haul interface. A front-haul interface may include, but is not limited to, a common public radio interface (CPRI), an enhanced common public radio interface (eCPRI), or a front-haul interface in an open radio access network (O-RAN, or ORAN). Of course, other types of digital components may be included, but are not limited to this application. A front-haul interface is a baseband unit (b It can be understood as an interface between the fronthaul unit (BBU) and the RRU or AAU. Optionally, the fronthaul interface can be implemented by using a fronthaul network. procedure

[0071] The network architecture in the embodiments of this application may include network devices.

[0072] The network device in the embodiments of this application may be a device having wireless transceiver functionality or a chip that can be installed in such a device, and may be deployed in a radio access network to provide wireless communication services to terminal devices. The device may include, but is not limited to, an evolved NodeB (eNB), a radio network controller (RNC), a NodeB (NB), a base station controller (BSC), a base transceiver station (BTS), a home NodeB (e.g., a home evolved NodeB, or home NodeB, HNB), a baseband unit (BBU), an access point (AP) in a wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) system, a wireless relay node, a wireless backhaul node, a transmission and reception point (TRP, or transmission point, TP), etc., and may utilize 5th generation mobile communication technology. The technology (5G), for example, a gNB or transmit point (TRP or TP) in an NR system, or one antenna panel or group of antenna panels (including multiple antenna panels) of a base station in a 5G system, a network node forming a gNB or transmit point, for example, a BBU, RRU, AAU, central unit (CU), or distributed unit (DU), or an in-vehicle device, wearable device, or network device in a future advanced public land mobile network (PLMN), configured to perform processing such as sending control signals as described in this application.

[0073] In one example, in a communication system, a base station may be implemented by using the structure of base station 100 shown in Figure 1. Figure 1 shows a universal hardware architecture for a base station. The base station shown in Figure 1 may include a BBU and an RRU. The RRU is connected to an antenna system (e.g., an antenna array in this application). The BBU and RRU may be separated from each other for use as needed. The antenna system coupled to the RRU may form multiple split cells / beams in the air. One cell may include at least one beam. Note that in a particular implementation, base station 100 may use a different universal hardware architecture as an alternative, and is not limited to the universal hardware architecture shown in Figure 1.

[0074] Alternatively, the base station may be a base station with a universal hardware architecture, such as that of an NR base station, as shown in Figure 2. The base station 200 shown in Figure 2 may include a BBU and an AAU. The AAU may include an RRU and an antenna system (e.g., an antenna array in this application). The antenna system in the AAU may form multiple split cells / beams in the air.

[0075] When the network device is a BBU forming a gNB, the BBU may include a central unit (CU) and distributed units (DUs). Multiple DUs may be centrally controlled by a single CU. In detail, the partitioning may be carried out based on the protocol layers of the wireless network. For example, the functions of the packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer and the protocol layers above the PDCP layer (e.g., the radio resource control (RRC) layer and / or the service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) layer) may be configured on the CU, while the functions of the protocol layers below the PDCP layer, e.g., the radio link control (RLC) layer and the medium access control (MAC) layer, and / or the physical (PHY) layer may be configured on the DU. In another example, the CU implements the functions of the RRC layer and / or the SDAP layer, and the DU implements the functions of the PDCP layer, RLC layer, MAC layer, and PHY layer. Information in the RRC layer ultimately becomes information in the PHY layer, or is converted from information in the PHY layer. Therefore, in this architecture, higher-layer signaling, such as RRC layer signaling or PHCP layer signaling, can be considered to be transmitted by the DU, or by the DU and radio unit (RU). It can be understood that network devices may be CU nodes, DU nodes, or devices containing both CU and DU nodes.

[0076] Furthermore, a CU may be classified as a network device in an access network, or as a network device in a core network. This is not limited to the foregoing.

[0077] Alternatively, when a BBU includes a CU, the CU can be divided into a central unit-Control plane (CU-CP) and a central unit-User plane (CU-UP). The CU-CP is responsible for control plane functions, primarily including the RRC protocol and the PDCP Control (PDCP-C) protocol. The PDCP-C is primarily responsible for one or more of the following: encryption and decryption of control plane data, integrity protection, and data transmission. The CU-UP is responsible for user plane functions, primarily including the service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) and the PDCP User (PDCP-U) protocol. The SDAP layer is primarily responsible for processing data in the core network and mapping flows to bearers. The PDCP-U is primarily responsible for one or more of the following: encryption and decryption of data plane data, integrity protection, header compression, serial number preservation, and data transmission. The CU-CP and CU-UP are connected via an interface (e.g., an E1 interface). The CU-CP is connected to the core network via an interface (e.g., the Ng interface) and to the DU via an interface (e.g., F1-C (control plane interface)). The CU-UP is connected to the DU via an interface (e.g., F1-U (user plane interface)).

[0078] Where possible, base stations can reduce the power consumption of radio frequency modules by symbol deactivation. During idle symbol periods when no information is being transmitted (for example, with a symbol length of approximately 70 microseconds (μs)), each PA in the AAU / RRU and its corresponding channel-level digital component can be deactivated, thus reducing the power consumption of the radio frequency module. When the same service requirements are met, longer off-times for PAs and channel-level digital components result in better energy savings. Conversely, shorter off-times for PAs and channel-level digital components result in less effective energy savings and higher power consumption. However, because multi-antenna radio frequency modules have a large number of channels and a large number of PAs and associated digital components, the power consumption of multi-antenna radio frequency modules remains high.

[0079] In another technique, a base station can reduce the power consumption of its radio frequency module by channel shutdown. For example, channel shutdown techniques may shut down several channels in a radio frequency module during low-traffic periods based on the amount of traffic in the cell, which involves shutting down the PA and digital components in the channel. However, in current base station architectures, depending on the channel shutdown method, up to half of the channels can be shut down. If more channels need to be shut down, the PA specifications are limited. As a result, the common channel power compensation capability is insufficient, and the peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) deteriorates, among other things.

[0080] This application provides a communication method and a network device. The network device can isolate channels in a radio frequency module, separating the radio frequency channels in the radio frequency module into a first radio frequency channel set and a second radio frequency channel set. The radio frequency channels in the first radio frequency channel set are used to carry a first type of signal, and the radio frequency channels in the second radio frequency channel set are used to carry a second type of signal. Unlike the first and second radio frequency channel sets, the functions of the first type of signal and the second type of signal are different. If the first type of signal is a cell-level common signal and the second type of signal is a user-level signal, then cell-level basic coverage can be ensured by using the radio frequency channels in the first radio frequency channel set, some radio frequency channels in the second radio frequency channel set may be activated as needed to generate user-level signals, and some radio frequency channels may remain inactive. In this way, the basic coverage required by the terminal device is ensured, and the power consumption of the radio frequency module can be reduced.

[0081] Embodiments of this application may be applied to time division duplex (TDD) scenarios or to frequency division duplex (FDD) scenarios.

[0082] According to the network architecture of this application, Figure 3 is a schematic flowchart of a communication method according to one embodiment of this application. The communication method can be applied to a radio frequency module. The method includes the following steps.

[0083] 301: A network device uses radio frequency channels in a first set of radio frequency channels to carry a first type of signal.

[0084] An example of a network device being an RRU is used for illustrative purposes. A network device could be, for example, an RRU in a base station in a network shared by LTE, NR, or LTE and NR, or a network device could be an RRU in a base station in a communication system where newer standards such as LTE or NR coexist with older standards such as GSM or UMTS. Similarly, a network device could be an AAU or another possible radio frequency module / device. This is not limited to this application. For ease of explanation, RRU is used hereafter as an example. When a network device is an AAU, or when a network device includes an AAU, please refer to the description of RRU. Details are not provided.

[0085] In some embodiments, the first radio frequency channel set includes one or more radio frequency channels. The first radio frequency channel set may be a set of several radio frequency channels among a plurality of channels in a radio frequency module. The first radio frequency channel set may also be described as the first radio frequency channel group or by another name. This is not limited to the first radio frequency channel set.

[0086] In some embodiments, the first type of signal may be, for example, a cell-level common signal. See the description above for details on cell-level common signals. Further details will not be provided again.

[0087] 302: Network devices use radio frequency channels in a second set of radio frequency channels to carry a second type of signal. Unlike the first and second sets of radio frequency channels, the functions of the first and second type of signals are different.

[0088] In some embodiments, the second radio frequency channel set includes one or more radio frequency channels. The second radio frequency channel set may be all radio frequency channels in the radio frequency module or a set of some radio frequency channels. The second radio frequency channel set may also be described as the second radio frequency channel group or by another name. This is not limited to the second radio frequency channel set.

[0089] In some embodiments, if the first radio frequency channel set and the second radio frequency channel set are not exactly the same, the first radio frequency channel set and the second radio frequency channel set may be considered to be within the scope of the embodiments of this application.

[0090] Where possible, there are no crossover sets between the first radio frequency channel set and the second radio frequency channel set. For example, the first radio frequency channel set includes radio frequency channel 1, radio frequency channel 2, and radio frequency channel 3, and the second radio frequency channel set includes radio frequency channel 4, radio frequency channel 5, and radio frequency channel 6.

[0091] Where possible, there is an intersection set between the first radio frequency channel set and the second radio frequency channel set. For example, the first radio frequency channel set includes radio frequency channel 1, radio frequency channel 2, and radio frequency channel 3, and the second radio frequency channel set includes radio frequency channel 1, radio frequency channel 5, and radio frequency channel 6. In other words, the first radio frequency channel set may be a subset or a proper subset of the second radio frequency channel set, or the first radio frequency channel set may partially intersect with the second radio frequency channel set, and the intersection set is a proper subset of either the first or second radio frequency channel set. This is not limited to the present application.

[0092] In some embodiments, the second type of signal may be a user-level signal. A user-level signal may be understood as a capacitive signal, which includes user-level data information, auxiliary information, control information, etc.

[0093] In some embodiments, carrying a first type of signal using radio frequency channels in a first set of radio frequency channels in step 301 may also be understood as performing the transmission of a first type of signal using radio frequency channels in a first set of radio frequency channels. Carrying a second type of signal using radio frequency channels in a second set of radio frequency channels in step 302 may also be understood as performing the transmission of a second type of signal using a second set of radio frequency channels set It can be understood as using the radio frequency channels within to carry out the transmission of a second type of signal. Transmission as defined herein may be sending or receiving.

[0094] Therefore, compared to the prior art where the type of signal carried on all radio frequency channels is the same, in this application, the types of signals carried on all radio frequency channels in multiple channels in a radio frequency module are not exactly the same. For example, Figure 4 is a diagram of channel separation in a radio frequency module. Channel 1 is assumed to be one of the channels in a first set of radio frequency channels, and Channel 1 is used to carry a first type of signal, which includes a cell-level common signal. Channel 2 is used to carry a second type of signal, which includes a user-level signal. Channel 2 may be used based on changes in user behavior, while Channel 1 may be transmitted over a fixed time-frequency domain resource for a long period of time. Alternatively, Channel 3 (not shown) may be further present in the radio frequency module and may carry both the first and second type of signals. It can be understood that Channel 1 may be the same as or different from Channel 2. When Channel 1 is the same as Channel 2, Channel 1 may carry both the first and second type of signals. When channel 1 and channel 2 are different, the types of signals carried on the two channels are also different.

[0095] In some embodiments, the second type of signal may further include a user group level signal.

[0096] For example, Figure 5 is a diagram of channel-level isolation. A radio frequency module in the RRU includes module-level digital components, a first radio frequency channel set, and a second radio frequency channel set. When radio frequency channels in the first and second radio frequency channel sets carry signals, beams can be formed by using an antenna array. When the first type of signal is a cell-level common signal and the second type of signal is a user-level signal, the first radio frequency channel set may remain activated, and a basic coverage beam 5 can be formed by using several antenna elements in the antenna array. When the second radio frequency channel set includes all radio frequency channels in the radio frequency module, and all radio frequency channels are activated, multiple capacitive beams can be formed by using all antenna elements in the antenna array. For example, multiple capacitive beams include capacitive beams 1 to 4. When some radio frequency channels in the second radio frequency channel set are activated, some capacitive beams in capacitive beams 1 to 4, for example, capacitive beam 1, can be formed by using several antenna elements in the antenna array.

[0097] In some embodiments, the method may further include the following: A network device determines a number of channels in a second radio frequency channel set and used to carry a second type of signal, based on at least one of the network-side load status or the signal quality level of a terminal device. The network device herein may be a BBU in a base station. When determining a number of channels in a second radio frequency channel set and used to carry a second type of signal, the BBU may control the RRU to carry a second type of signal on the radio frequency channels corresponding to the number of channels. For example, see the description in step 113 below for the method herein.

[0098] For example, when the network load status is lower and / or the signal quality level of the terminal device is higher, the number of channels in the second radio frequency channel set and used to carry the second type of signal will be smaller. In other words, the number of idle channels in the second radio frequency channel set will be larger.

[0099] In detail, based on the fact that the beamforming effect depends on the number of participating radio frequency channels, a larger number of activated radio frequency channels generally results in a narrower beam obtained by beamforming and a better anti-interference effect, including reduced interference to neighboring cells. For example, when the second radio frequency channel set is the set of all radio frequency channels in the radio frequency module, the second type of signal carried on all radio frequency channels can form beams 1 through 4 in Figure 5. However, in light load scenarios, the service load is small. In this case, only a small number of channels may be used to form a wide beam. For example, to reduce the power consumption of the radio frequency module, radio frequency channels in the second radio frequency channel set other than those in the first radio frequency channel set may remain inactive, or some radio frequency channels in the second radio frequency channel set other than those in the first radio frequency channel set may remain inactive.

[0100] Load status can be instantaneous. For example, for the load status on the BBU side of an LTE or NR base station, the load status may be determined based on at least one of the following: uplink service load, downlink service load, amount of buffered data, number of accessed users, etc. Load status may also be reflected based on other parameters, which are not limited to this application. Load status may reflect the service requirements of a cell in a base station, or it may be understood that the service requirements are directly proportional to the load status.

[0101] The signal quality level of a terminal device can be determined based on the signal-to-interference noise ratio (SINR), channel quality indicator (CQI), etc. Of course, the signal quality level can also be reflected based on other parameters, which are not limited to this application. The signal quality level of a terminal device reflects the level of interference to which the terminal device is exposed. A higher signal quality level of a terminal device indicates a lower level of interference to which the terminal device is exposed.

[0102] The determination of the number of channels in a second radio frequency channel set and used to carry a second type of signal by a network device may be periodic, based on at least one of the network-side load status or the signal quality level of the terminal device. For example, the periodicity may be at the symbol level, subframe level, frame level, millisecond level, second level, or minute level, but is not limited thereto. For example, when the network-side load is less than or equal to a first preset threshold, or when the signal quality level of the terminal device is greater than or equal to a second preset threshold, a broad beam may be formed by using some channels in the second radio frequency channel set. In this way, service requirements are met and energy saving effects are achieved. Of course, a broad beam is in contrast to a narrow beam formed by using all radio frequency channels. For example, the quality level of a second type of signal may depend on the signal-to-noise ratio, frequency domain resources, bandwidth resources, spatial division orthogonality (e.g., the number of rank streams), etc., of the signal, but is not limited thereto.

[0103] For example, Figures 6(a) to 6(c) illustrate the channel-level isolation of 32T. As shown in Figures 6(a) to 6(c), the radio frequency module in the RRU includes module-level digital components and 32 radio frequency channels. Each radio frequency channel includes channel-level digital components (e.g., component 1, component 2, ..., or component 32) and analog components PA (e.g., PA1, PA2, ..., or PA32).

[0104] When the antenna array contains a total of 128 antenna elements and each radio frequency channel can correspond to 4 antenna elements, if the first set of radio frequency channels contains a total of 8 radio frequency channels, i.e., radio frequency channels 1 to 8, for carrying a first type of signal, then the basic coverage beam 5 can be formed by using 32 antenna elements in the antenna array (e.g., antenna elements in the lateral column positions). The basic coverage beam 5 can be activated and used continuously 24 hours a day to ensure camping and access for terminal devices, which are the most basic in the RRU's cell. The second set of radio frequency channels contains all radio frequency channels 1 to 32, for a total of 32 radio frequency channels. Figure 6(a) shows that when all 32 radio frequency channels are activated, the second type of signal carried on the 32 radio frequency channels can form capacitive beams 1 to 4 by using 128 antenna elements in the antenna array. However, capacitive beams 1 to 4 are not necessarily used continuously throughout the day. The BBU indicates, as necessary, that the RRU will activate radio frequency channels in a second set of radio frequency channels based on at least one of the load status and the signal quality level of the terminal device. Figure 6(b) illustrates the activation of several channels in the second set of radio frequency channels to carry user-level signals. When the network load is less than or equal to a first preset threshold, or when the signal quality level of the terminal device is greater than or equal to a second preset threshold, the BBU may indicate that the RRU will activate radio frequency channels 1 through 16 in the second set of radio frequency channels to carry second-type signals, while radio frequency channels 17 through 32 may remain inactive. In this case, the RRU may use 64 antennas corresponding to radio frequency channels 1 through 16 to form a wide capacitive beam 1 to meet service requirements.If, after a terminal device in the coverage area of ​​Capacitive Beam 1 has terminated service, and no other terminal devices have service requirements, i.e., when the load on Capacitive Beam 1 is 0, the BBU may indicate that radio frequency channels 1 through 8, which guarantee basic coverage, are controlled to be activated, and the RRU may indicate that radio frequency channels 9 through 32 are configured to remain in a down state for an extended period of time to significantly reduce the power consumption of the radio frequency module.

[0105] Optionally, in both Figures 6(a) and 6(b), an example is used for illustrative purposes in which the second radio frequency channel set is the set of all radio frequency channels in a radio frequency module having 32 radio frequency channels. As described above, the second radio frequency channel set may include one or more radio frequency channels, i.e., the number of channels in the second radio frequency channel set may be less than 32. Figure 6(c) shows that in a radio frequency module having 32 radio frequency channels, the first radio frequency channel set includes radio frequency channels 1 through 8, which carry the first type of signal, and the second radio frequency channel set includes radio frequency channels 5 through 32, which carry the second type of signal. In other words, the first radio frequency channel set partially overlaps with the second radio frequency channel set. More specifically, the intersection set between the first radio frequency channel set and the second radio frequency channel set is a proper subset of either the first radio frequency channel set or the second radio frequency channel set. Of course, the union of the first radio frequency channel set and the second radio frequency channel set may be less than the total number of radio frequency channel sets in the network device. This is not limited to the present application. In Figure 6(c), an example is used for illustrative purposes in which the union of the first radio frequency channel set and the second radio frequency channel set is equal to the total number of radio frequency channel sets in the network device. When the antenna array contains a total of 128 antenna elements and each radio frequency channel may correspond to 4 antenna elements, the basic coverage beam 5 may be formed by using 32 antenna elements in the antenna array (e.g., antenna elements in lateral column positions) corresponding to radio frequency channels 1 to 8. Radio frequency channels 5 to 32 may be activated as needed.For example, when the network load is high or the signal quality level of the terminal device is insufficient, the BBU may indicate that the RRU activates all of radio frequency channels 5 through 32 to carry a second type of signal, and the second type of signal carried on the 28 radio frequency channels may form multiple capacitive beams (e.g., capacitive beams 1 through 4 in the above description) by using 112 antenna elements in the antenna array. When the network load is less than or equal to a first preset threshold, or the signal quality level of the terminal device is greater than or equal to a second preset threshold, the BBU may indicate that the RRU activates radio frequency channels 5 through 28 and keeps radio frequency channels 29 through 32 in a deactivated state. In this case, the RRU may use 96 antennas corresponding to radio frequency channels 5 through 28 to form a wide capacitive beam 1 and a narrow capacitive beam 2 to satisfy the service requirements. It should be understood that any thresholds in this application may be set based on actual requirements or may be set to factory settings. This is not limited to this application. Furthermore, the first radio frequency channel set may include 1 to 8, the second radio frequency channel set may include 9 to 32, or the second radio frequency channel set may include a portion of 9 to 32. In this case, there is no crossover set between the first radio frequency channel set and the second radio frequency channel set. This is also applicable to the communication apparatus and method described in this application. Further details are not described.

[0106] In some embodiments, in a network scenario where multiple standards coexist, the first type of signal includes the first type of signal in a multi-standard network. Furthermore, the first set of radio frequency channels carrying the first type of signal may also be used to carry the second type of signal for some standards in the multi-standard network. It can be understood that a multi-standard network may be a network that supports any two standards. For example, a multi-standard network may support the NR standard and the LTE standard, or the LTE standard and the UMTS standard. In other words, a multi-standard network may support multiple newer standards, or newer standards and older standards. This is not limited to the present application.

[0107] For example, in terminal devices using the NR standard, the terminal device performs channel estimation and demodulation by using a user-level pilot, which is a user-level signal. Therefore, the radio frequency channels in the second radio frequency channel set, and used to carry the user-level pilot, can be any number of radio frequency channels that are activated as needed. For example, the second radio frequency channel set includes all radio frequency channels in the radio frequency module. However, in terminal devices using older standards such as UMTS, the terminal device performs channel estimation and demodulation by using a cell-level common pilot, which is a cell-level common signal. The radio frequency channels carrying the user-level signal must be the same as the radio frequency channels carrying the cell-level common pilot. Therefore, the second radio frequency channel set can form the same beam shape using the same channels as the first radio frequency channel set. For example, the radio frequency module shown in Figures 6(a) to 6(c) can use radio frequency channels 1 to 8 as the first and second radio frequency channel sets. In other words, when a communication system includes both older and newer communication modes, i.e., in a network where multiple standards coexist, the second type of signal and the second type of signal corresponding to the older standard share radio frequency channels in the first radio frequency channel set. The first type of signal corresponding to the higher standard is carried by using radio frequency channels in the first radio frequency channel set, and the second type of signal corresponding to the higher standard is carried by using radio frequency channels in the second radio frequency channel set. For example, there is no crossover set between the first radio frequency channel set and the radio frequency channels in the second radio frequency channel set that are used to carry the second type of signal corresponding to the newer standard.

[0108] Furthermore, for example, when a terminal device communicates using transmission modes (TM) 7 / TM8 / TM9 / TM10 in LTE, or higher transmission modes, refer to the descriptions of cell-level and user-level signals in the newer standards above for information on cell-level and user-level signals in these transmission modes. When a terminal device communicates using transmission modes such as TM1\TM2\TM3\TM4\TM5 in LTE, refer to the descriptions of cell-level and user-level signals in the older standards above for information on cell-level and user-level signals in these transmission modes. In other words, the different standards above may, as alternatives, support different transmission modes. When the transmission modes are different, any transmission mode or standard is applicable to the methods and architectures described in this application, provided that the user-level and cell-level signals in the transmission mode or standard support separate and independent use of different types of channels for carrying signals.

[0109] For example, a multi-standard network supports newer standards such as LTE and / or NR, and any one or more older standards such as GSM, UMTS, and NB-IoT. In current base station architectures, data from older standards such as GSM, UMTS, or NB-IoT must be transmitted continuously, and all digital components and PAs in the radio frequency channel must operate continuously. Symbol stop techniques for LTE and NR cannot take effect, and all digital components and PAs in the channel must operate continuously. For example, Figure 7 illustrates the time-frequency domain resources occupied on a single subframe (e.g., 1 ms, 14 symbols, and 12 subcarriers) when LTE coexists with older standards such as GSM, UMTS, or NB-IoT in current base station architectures. It can be seen that a single subframe may contain pilot symbols (R0 and R1) and blank symbols. Symbol stop techniques can be understood as follows: In the pilot symbol period of LTE and NR, the PA and the channel-level digital components corresponding to the PA may be activated. In a blank symbol period, the PA and its corresponding channel-level digital component can be stopped to gain energy-saving benefits. However, in networks where LTE or NR coexists with older standards such as GSM, UMTS, or NB-IoT, all symbols within a single subframe may be used to carry signals of the older standard, such as GSM, UMTS, or NB-IoT. Symbol stopping techniques cannot be used to stop the PA and channel-level digital component, resulting in high power consumption of the radio frequency module.

[0110] In communication systems where newer and older standards coexist, older standard communication modes cannot use symbol stop techniques. Furthermore, since channel stop can also be considered symbol stop, radio frequency channels carrying older standards must be continuously activated and channel stop cannot be implemented. However, when the radio frequency channels in the first radio frequency channel set in this application are continuously activateable, radio frequency channels carrying older standards such as GSM, UMTS, or NB-IoT can be mapped in this application to radio frequency channels in the continuously activated first radio frequency channel set. For example, when LTE or NR coexists with older standards such as GSM, UMTS, or NB-IoT, a first type of signal carried on a radio frequency channel in the first radio frequency channel set may include a first type of signal for LTE or NR, and may further include a first type of signal for an older standard such as GSM, UMTS, or NB-IoT. In this way, the number of activated channels in the second set of radio frequency channels can be determined based on factors such as the network load status and the signal quality level of the terminal devices in the newer standard communication mode. This avoids situations where channel components in the older standard network cannot be shut down, increases the rate at which radio frequency channels are shut down, and reduces the power consumption of the radio frequency module.

[0111] Figure 8 shows the channel-level separation of 32T radio frequency channels in the case of multiple standards. Radio frequency channels 1 to 8 in the first radio frequency channel set can carry cell-level common signals, and the basic coverage beam 5 is formed by using the antennas corresponding to radio frequency channels 1 to 8 (for example, 32 antennas occupying a side row). When radio frequency channels 1 to 8 in the first radio frequency channel set are further used to carry user-level signals of older standards such as GSM, UMTS, or NB-IoT, beams corresponding to the older standards, for example, beams 6, 7, and 8, are formed by using the antennas corresponding to radio frequency channels 1 to 8. When all radio frequency channels 1 to 32 in the second radio frequency channel set are activated, user-level signals of LTE or NR standards carried on the radio frequency channels in the second radio frequency channel set can form capacitive beams 1 to 4 by using all 128 antennas in the antenna array.

[0112] Of course, as can be seen in Figure 8, in a multi-standard network, beams 1 through 4 can still be formed as needed, as in scenarios where only LTE or NR is present. More specifically, in a light load scenario of multiple standards, if only the broad beam 1 needs to be activated to meet service requirements, only half of the radio frequency channels (radio frequency channels 1 through 16) among radio frequency channels 1 through 32 may be activated to form beam 1, while radio frequency channels 17 through 32 may remain inactive.

[0113] In some embodiments, a network device may use a first set of radio frequency channels to carry a first type of signal and a second type of signal in a time-division and / or frequency-division manner. The first type of signal includes first type signals of any one or more standards in a multistandard network, and the second type of signal includes second type signals of newer standards in a multistandard network. The network device may be, for example, an AAU or RRU. The second set of radio frequency channels may also carry second type signals in a time-division and / or frequency-division manner. This is not limited to the present application. As communication system standards evolve, it should be understood that first type signals in any communication standard that supports time-division and / or frequency-division are applicable to the methods described in this application, and second type signals are similar.

[0114] For example, when the first type of signal is a cell-level common signal, the cell-level common signal is transmitted periodically at intervals. For example, in one subframe shown in Figure 7, pilot symbols do not occupy all of the subframe's time-domain and frequency-domain resources, and there are also blank symbols. Thus, in this embodiment of the present application, the first radio frequency channel set carrying the first type of signal can also carry the second type of signal in a time-division and / or frequency-division manner.

[0115] More specifically, if some activated radio frequency channels in a second radio frequency channel set include a first radio frequency channel set, or if some activated radio frequency channels in a second radio frequency channel set include some radio frequency channels in a first radio frequency channel set, then the first radio frequency channel set may carry first type signals on time-domain resources and / or frequency-domain resources (e.g., pilot symbols) used to transmit first type signals, and second type signals on time-domain resources and / or frequency-domain resources that are not used to transmit first type signals and are located in radio frequency channels in the activated radio frequency channels included in the second radio frequency channel set. For example, second type signals may be carried on blank symbols.

[0116] Of course, in a multi-standard network, when a first set of radio frequency channels in the RRU is used to carry a first type signal and a second type signal in a time-division and / or frequency-division scheme, the first type signal may include the first type signal in the multi-standard network, and the second type signal may include the second type signal in the multi-standard network.

[0117] In some embodiments, the power of an analog component in a radio frequency channel in a first radio frequency channel set is greater than or equal to the power of an analog component in a radio frequency channel in a second radio frequency channel set, which carries a second type of signal but not a first type of signal.

[0118] This is because cell-level common signals used for basic coverage, such as CRS or SSB, do not occupy specific resource elements (REs) in the time-frequency domain and do not use a very large portion of time-domain or frequency-domain resources as data portions (e.g., PDSCHs) that carry user-level signals. One RE may, correspondingly, occupy one subcarrier in the frequency domain and one symbol period in the time domain. Therefore, in order to achieve the following effect, in detail, in the base station architecture of this application, when the first type of signal is a cell-level common signal, in possible scenarios, if the number of radio frequency channels in the first radio frequency channel set and carrying the first type of signal is less than the number of radio frequency channels in current base station architectures, i.e., if only a very small number of radio frequency channels are occupied, it can be assured that the basic coverage capability of the base station architecture of this application is still not weaker than the basic coverage capability of current base station architectures. For example, in this application, for a first radio frequency channel set, the power of the analog components in the radio frequency channels in the first radio frequency channel set is greater than or equal to the power of the analog components in the radio frequency channels in the second radio frequency channel set, which carry a second type of signal but not a first type of signal.

[0119] For example, the total power of the PA in a first radio frequency channel set carrying a first type of signal is twice the total power of the PA in the radio frequency channels in a second radio frequency channel set carrying only a second type of signal. The channel level isolation status of the 32T radio frequency module shown in Figure 8 is used as an example. When radio frequency channels 1 through 8 are used to carry cell-level common signals, the power of the PA in each radio frequency channel may be configured to 20W. When radio frequency channels 9 through 32 are used to carry only user-level signals, the power of the PA in each radio frequency channel may be configured to 10W.

[0120] In some embodiments, a key factor determining the coverage capability of a cell-level common signal is power spectral density. Therefore, for analog components in a first radio frequency channel set and carrying a cell-level common signal, the power intensity (power spectral density) of the cell-level common signal can be improved as much as possible by using power aggregation methods when the total power of the network devices is limited, in order to achieve good coverage.

[0121] Therefore, in this embodiment of the present application, power aggregation may be further performed on analog components (e.g., PAs) in a first radio frequency channel set to carry cell-level common signals on radio frequency channels based on the power obtained by power aggregation. Power aggregation means that a higher power spectral density is configured on some specific frequency domain resources while the overall bandwidth power of the network device remains unchanged. For example, suppose the total power across the entire bandwidth of the RRU is 0.2 w. Before power aggregation, in the basic power configuration, the entire bandwidth occupies 12 REs in the frequency domain, the bandwidth is 180 kHz, and the power spectral density of each PA in the radio frequency module is 1 ×

[10] ^(-3) w / kHz. After power aggregation is performed, the total power across the entire bandwidth is still 0.2 w, the first radio frequency channel set may occupy 4 REs in the frequency domain, the bandwidth is 60 kHz, and the power spectral density of each PA is 3 ×

[10] ^(-3) w / kHz.

[0122] Thus, for example, with respect to cell-level common signals, i.e., CRS or SSB, the core factor for determining the coverage capability of a CRS or SSB-like signal is the power intensity on the RE corresponding to the CRS or SSB-like signal, i.e., the power spectral density. A higher power spectral density indicates a better coverage effect for a CRS or SSB-like signal.

[0123] Therefore, in this embodiment of the present application, in order to ensure that the fundamental coverage of cell-level common signals remains unchanged, the analog components carrying the fundamental coverage function may be configured with higher power or support higher power aggregation capabilities than the analog components carrying user-level signals, i.e., the analog components carrying capacitive functions, thereby increasing the power of the RE at specific frequency domain locations corresponding to the common channel and ensuring that the fundamental coverage is not affected to the existing base station architecture. Compared to the conventional technology in which the downlink transmit power capability of the PA in all radio frequency channels is equal, in the present application, the downlink transmit power of the PA in the first radio frequency channel set is higher than the power of the PA in the radio frequency channels in the second radio frequency channel set, which carry a second type of signal but not a first type of signal.

[0124] The above embodiments may be understood as implementing channel-level isolation for radio frequency channels in a radio frequency module. In one embodiment of this application, virtual or physical isolation may also be implemented for module-level digital components in a radio frequency module.

[0125] Figure 9 shows the separation of module-level digital components in a radio frequency module. For example, the module-level digital components include module-level digital component 1 and module-level digital component 2. Module-level digital component 1 is configured to carry a first type of signal, such as a cell-level common signal, and module-level digital component 2 is configured to carry a second type of signal, such as a user-level signal. Naturally, there may also be a module-level digital component 3 (not shown) configured to carry both the first and second type of signals.

[0126] In some embodiments, Figure 10 shows module-level digital component isolation and radio frequency channel isolation. A first radio frequency channel set is coupled to a first module-level digital component set, and a second radio frequency channel set is coupled to a second module-level digital component set, which is different from the first and second module-level digital component sets.

[0127] Refer to Figure 10 for this method. Analog and digital components in both the first module-level digital component set and the first radio frequency channel set can carry cell-level common signals, and the basic coverage beam 5 is formed by using several antennas in the antenna array. Analog and digital components in both the second module-level digital component set and the second radio frequency channel set can carry user-level signals, and several second module-level digital components in the second module-level digital component set coupled to the second radio frequency channel set can be stopped as needed to form at least one capacitive beam in capacitive beams 1 to 4 by using several antennas in the antenna array.

[0128] In other words, when a second set of module-level digital components is coupled to a second set of radio frequency channels, the module-level digital components coupled to the deactivated radio frequency channels in the second set of radio frequency channels can also enter an off state when the load is light, further reducing the power consumption of the radio frequency module.

[0129] In some embodiments, the set of digital components in this application may include a front-haul interface. For example, the front-haul interface is an interface between the BBU and the RRU, or an interface between the BBU and the AAU. In other words, the front-haul interface may be a CPRI interface or an eCPRI interface.

[0130] In some embodiments, the antenna elements corresponding to the first radio frequency channel set are distributed individually.

[0131] For example, antenna elements corresponding to a first set of radio frequency channels carrying a first type of signal may be configured in lateral row positions on both horizontal sides of the antenna elements. See, for example, Figures 6(a) to 6(c) or Figure 8 in this application. Antenna elements corresponding to radio frequency channels 1 to 4 included in the first set of radio frequency channels occupy 16 antenna elements in the lateral row positions on one side, and antenna elements corresponding to radio frequency channels 5 to 8 occupy 16 antenna elements in the lateral row positions on the other side.

[0132] This is because, if antenna elements transmitting the same signal need to form a beam that converges as much as possible, the horizontal spacing between these antenna elements needs to be increased. However, in this embodiment of the present application, the number of radio frequency channels carrying the cell-level common signal is reduced. Therefore, in order to still maintain the converged shape of the basic coverage beam horizontally within the range of the antenna array of a limited antenna installation platform, for example, to form a beam with a horizontal beamwidth of 65°, the horizontal distance between antenna elements transmitting the cell-level common signal needs to be greater than or equal to a certain threshold.

[0133] In this application, when the overall structure of the antenna mounting platform remains unchanged, the antenna elements corresponding to the channel carrying the cell-level common signal may be configured at lateral row positions on both horizontal sides of the antenna mounting platform. Thus, the converged beam shape can be formed.

[0134] For example, if the antenna elements transmitting the cell-level common signal are located in the side rows of the antenna platform, the basic coverage beam formed by the cell-level common signal using the antenna elements in the side rows may have a horizontal beamwidth of approximately 65° and a 3dB beamwidth. If the antenna elements transmitting the cell-level common signal are located in the central row of the antenna platform, the basic coverage beam formed by the cell-level common signal using the antenna elements in the central row may have a horizontal beamwidth of approximately 100° and a 3dB beamwidth. In this way, when the antenna elements corresponding to the radio frequency channels transmitting the cell-level common signal are configured in the central row of the antenna platform, the basic coverage beam becomes wider. As a result, strong interference may be caused in neighboring cells, degrading network performance.

[0135] The above embodiments are illustrated by using an example in which the antenna elements corresponding to the first radio frequency channel set are located in a lateral row position on the antenna mounting platform. However, it should be understood that if the distance between the positions of the antenna elements corresponding to the first radio frequency channel set is greater than or equal to a certain threshold, the antenna elements corresponding to the first radio frequency channel set may not be located in a lateral row position on the antenna mounting platform.

[0136] In some embodiments, if there is a radio frequency channel between two radio frequency channels and not included in the first set of radio frequency channels, then there are at least two radio frequency channels in the first set of radio frequency channels. In other words, the antenna element corresponding to the two radio frequency channels may have multiple possible positions. This is not limited in this application if the two radio frequency channels are not adjacent.

[0137] Therefore, in this embodiment of the present application, radio frequency channels in a radio frequency module are separated based on the type of signal they carry, resulting in different sets of radio frequency channels carrying different types of signals. Compared to the prior art where the type of signal carried on all radio frequency channels is the same, in this application, when a first set of radio frequency channels carries a first type of signal and a second set of radio frequency channels carries a second type of signal, for example, when the first type of signal is a cell-level common signal, this type of signal is a deterministic signal and needs to be transmitted at a fixed moment to satisfy basic service requirements and is independent of the amount of user-level signals transmitted. Therefore, to satisfy basic coverage, radio frequency channels in the first set of radio frequency channels may remain activated, radio frequency channels in the second set of radio frequency channels may be activated as needed, and some radio frequency channels may remain deactivated. In this way, when multiple channels are separated based on the type of signal, the power consumption of the radio frequency module can be reduced. For example, user-level signals can vary with traffic requirements, being transmitted less during light load periods and more during heavy load periods. In this case, when traffic is light, some channels carrying user-level signals may be shut down to reduce power consumption. Furthermore, cell-level common signals are transmitted periodically at intervals and do not necessarily occupy all time-domain and frequency-domain resources. Therefore, user-level signals or capacity (experience) signals may also be transmitted on channels carrying cell-level common signals.

[0138] The network device in Figure 3 is a radio frequency module / device. An RRU or AAU is used as an example for illustrative purposes. A first radio frequency channel set carrying a first type of signal and a second radio frequency channel set carrying a second type of signal on the RRU or AAU side may be configured by a baseband processing unit, e.g., a BBU. The baseband processing unit may also be called a baseband processing device / module, or may be understood as a module, device, or circuit used in or installable in a baseband processing unit such as a BBU, or may be a base station including a BBU. The above description is applicable to any embodiment of this application and further details are not described again. Accordingly, based on the above embodiment, Figure 11 is a schematic flowchart of a communication method according to one embodiment of this application. The method includes the following steps.

[0139] 111: A network device sends a first control signal indicating that a radio frequency channel in a first set of radio frequency channels carries a first type of signal.

[0140] When the network device in the embodiment corresponding to Figure 11 is a BBU, it can be understood that the BBU sends a first control signal to the RRU. Correspondingly, the RRU receives the first control signal sent by the BBU. The following uses a BBU as an example for illustrative purposes.

[0141] For example, in an LTE or NR network, a BBU may send a first control signal to an RRU indicating that the RRU will use radio frequency channels in a first set of radio frequency channels to carry a first type of signal used for basic coverage in the LTE or NR network.

[0142] For example, the first control signal may include a channel identifier for a radio frequency channel in a first radio frequency channel set, and may further include information indicating the signal type of the first type of signal. For an example of the first radio frequency channel set, see the description in step 904.

[0143] Step 301 may be performed after step 111.

[0144] 112: The network device determines the number of channels in the second radio frequency channel set and used to carry the second type of signal, based on at least one of the network-side load status or the signal quality level of the terminal device.

[0145] For the implementation of step 112, please refer to the illustrative description in the embodiment above.

[0146] 113: The network device sends a second control signal, which indicates that the radio frequency channels in the second radio frequency channel set carry a second type of signal.

[0147] For example, the BBU sends a second control signal to the RRU, and in response, the RRU receives the second control signal sent by the BBU.

[0148] Similar to the first control signal, the second control signal includes a channel identifier for a radio frequency channel in a second radio frequency channel set, and may further include signal type indication information for the second type of signal.

[0149] For specific implementations in the embodiment corresponding to Figure 11, please refer to the above description of the embodiment corresponding to Figure 3.

[0150] Step 302 may be performed after step 113.

[0151] Therefore, when the BBU implements a channel isolation configuration for the RRU, the RRU may use radio frequency channels in a first radio frequency channel set to carry a first type of signal and radio frequency channels in a second radio frequency channel set to carry a second type of signal. When the first type of signal is a cell-level common signal, basic camping and access to terminal devices in the cell can be guaranteed. When the second type of signal is a user-level signal, some radio frequency channels in the second radio frequency channel set may be activated as needed, while some radio frequency channels remain deactivated, in order to reduce the power consumption of the radio frequency module.

[0152] In some embodiments, corresponding to the embodiments described above, an RRU or AAU radio frequency module / device may use a first radio frequency channel set to carry a first type of signal and a second type of signal in a time-division and / or frequency-division manner. This may be comprised of a baseband processing unit. Figure 12 is a schematic flowchart of a communication method according to one embodiment of the present application. For example, the network device includes a BBU and an RRU. The method may further include the following steps.

[0153] 121: The BBU sends a third control signal indicating that the first radio frequency channel set will carry the first type of signal and the second type of signal in a time-division and / or frequency-division manner.

[0154] In response, the RRU receives a third control signal.

[0155] 122: The RRU uses a first set of radio frequency channels to carry first type signals and second type signals in a time-division and / or frequency-division manner.

[0156] In some embodiments, in a first set of radio frequency channels, some of the radio frequency channels in the first set of radio frequency channels may, alternatively, carry first type signals and second type signals in a multistandard network using time-division and / or frequency-division methods.

[0157] For a specific implementation of step 122, see the specific description in step 302 in the above embodiment, in which the RRU uses a first radio frequency channel set to carry the first type of signal and the second type of signal in a time-division and / or frequency-division manner.

[0158] In some embodiments, corresponding to the embodiments described above, the RRU may carry a first type of signal using a first set of module-level digital components and a first set of radio frequency channels, and the BBU may comprise a second set of module-level digital components and a second set of radio frequency channels that carry a second type of signal. Figure 13 is a schematic flowchart of a communication method according to one embodiment of the present application. For example, a network device includes a BBU and an RRU. The method may further include the following steps.

[0159] 131: The BBU sends a fourth control signal indicating that the first module-level digital component set and the first radio frequency channel set carry a first type of signal, and the second module-level digital component set and the second radio frequency channel set carry a second type of signal.

[0160] In response, the RRU receives a fourth control signal.

[0161] The first radio frequency channel set is coupled to the first module-level digital component set, and the second radio frequency channel set is coupled to the second module-level digital component set, and is different from the first module-level digital component set and the second module-level digital component set.

[0162] 132: The RRU carries a first type of signal using digital components in a first module-level digital component set and radio frequency channels in a first radio frequency channel set, and carries a second type of signal using digital components in a second module-level digital component set and radio frequency channels in a second radio frequency channel set.

[0163] For a specific implementation of step 132, see the specific description in step 302 of the above embodiment, in which the RRU carries a first type of signal using digital components in a first module-level digital component set and radio frequency channels in a first radio frequency channel set, and carries a second type of signal using digital components in a second module-level digital component set and radio frequency channels in a second radio frequency channel set.

[0164] Furthermore, in this embodiment of the present application, an example is used for illustrative purposes in which the first radio frequency channel set and the second radio frequency channel set have partially overlapping radio frequency channels. However, in some scenarios, the first radio frequency channel set and the second radio frequency channel set may not overlap at all. For example, in the 32T radio frequency module in the above embodiment, radio frequency channels 1 to 8 may be the first radio frequency channel set, and radio frequency channels 9 to 32 may be the second radio frequency channel set. In some other scenarios, when module-level digital components are also separated from radio frequency channels, the first module-level digital component set and the second module-level digital component set may also not overlap at all.

[0165] In conclusion, in this application, since cell-level common signals and user-level signals are separated, when it is guaranteed that the radio frequency channel carrying the cell-level common signal will be active throughout the day, a portion of the radio frequency channel carrying the user-level signal can be adaptively shut down. In this way, from the perspective of 24-hour service delivery, most radio frequency channels, including digital and analog components, are shut down during light load or idle time periods. This can significantly increase the downtime of radio frequency channels and improve energy saving effects. In other words, in the case of a capacitive beam, the capacitive beam can be rapidly activated and used as needed based on changes in service volume or interference, and the capacitive beam can be wide or narrow. The capacitive beam in this base station architecture in this application is equivalent to the capacitive beam in conventional base station architectures, without loss of high capacity and high experience capability, and consequently, no loss of user experience.

[0166] In this application, when an older standard signal is transmitted on a radio frequency channel carrying a cell-level common signal, the transmission of the older standard signal is unaffected, and several radio frequency channels carrying user-level signals may be adaptively selected to be shut down.

[0167] In this application, when module-level digital components are separated based on cell-level common signals and user-level signals, similar to radio frequency channel isolation, some module-level digital components carrying user-level signals may be adaptively shut down to achieve energy-saving effects, provided that basic coverage capability is guaranteed.

[0168] In this application, when higher power is configured for PAs in radio frequency channels carrying cell-level common signals, and when antenna elements corresponding to channels carrying cell-level common signals are located in horizontal lateral row positions on the antenna installation platform, the basic coverage capability of the base station architecture in this application is equivalent to that of existing base station architectures, due to improvements in power and aggregation capability, lateral row deployment, etc., and the stability of key performance indicators (KPIs) can be guaranteed.

[0169] Furthermore, the base station architecture provided in this application can effectively control the use of radio frequency resources when it responds adaptively and quickly based on load, signal quality level, etc., to perform adaptive adjustments, without requiring complex manual intervention or processing, thereby reducing deployment costs.

[0170] The above describes in detail the communication method in the embodiment of this application with reference to Figures 3 to 13. The following describes in detail the communication device in the embodiment of this application, for example, a network device or a device used in a network device (for example, a processor, circuit, or chip), with reference to Figures 14 to 15.

[0171] Figure 14 is a diagram of the structure of a communication device according to one embodiment of the present application, which may be, for example, a diagram of the structure of a base station. As shown in Figure 14, the base station may include radio frequency modules shown in one or more of Figures 4 to 6(a) to 6(c) and Figures 8 to 10 to perform the functions of the network device in the method embodiment described above. The base station 140 may include one or more DU1401, one or more CU1402, and an antenna array 1403. The CU1402 may communicate with a next-generation core (NG core, NC) network. The DU1401 may include at least one radio frequency unit 14012, at least one processor 14013, and at least one memory 14014. The DU1401 is mainly configured to receive and transmit radio frequency signals, convert radio frequency signals and baseband signals, and perform some baseband processing. CU1402 may include at least one processor 14022 and at least one memory 14021. CU1402 and DU1401 can communicate using interfaces. The control plane interface may be Fs-C, for example, F1-C, and the user plane interface may be Fs-U, for example, F1-U.

[0172] CU1402 is primarily configured to perform baseband processing and control the base station. DU1401 and CU1402 may be physically deployed together or physically separate, i.e., a distributed base station. CU1402 is the base station control center, sometimes called a processing unit, and is primarily configured to complete baseband processing functions. For example, CU1402 may be configured to control the base station to perform operating procedures related to a network device, i.e., a BBU in the above embodiment of the method. DU1401 may be configured to control the base station to perform operating procedures related to a network device, i.e., an RRU in the above embodiment of the method.

[0173] Furthermore, optionally (not shown), the base station 140 may include one or more antennas (e.g., an antenna array in this application), one or more radio frequency units / modules (e.g., RUs), one or more DUs, and one or more CUs. The DU may include at least one processor and at least one memory, the at least one antenna and at least one radio frequency unit may be integrated into one antenna device, and the CU may include at least one processor and at least one memory.

[0174] For example, CU1402 may include one or more boards, and the multiple boards may jointly support a single access standard radio access network (e.g., an NR network), or each may support a different access standard radio access network (such as an LTE network, an NR network, or another network). Memory 14021 and processor 14022 may service one or more boards. In other words, memory and processor may be located on each board. Alternatively, multiple boards may share the same memory and the same processor. Furthermore, any necessary circuitry may be located on each board. DU1401 may include one or more boards, and the multiple boards may jointly support a single access standard radio access network (e.g., an NR network), or each may support a different access standard radio access network (such as an LTE network, an NR network, or another network). Memory 14014 and processor 14013 may service one or more boards. In other words, memory and processor may be located on each board. Alternatively, multiple boards may share the same memory and the same processor. Furthermore, any necessary circuitry may be added to each board.

[0175] Figure 15 is a diagram of the structure of the communication device 150. The communication device 150 may be configured to implement the method described in the above method embodiment. For details, please refer to the description in the above method embodiment. The communication device 150 may be a chip or a communication device (e.g., a base station), and in particular may be a BBU or RRU.

[0176] The communication device 150 includes one or more processors 1501. The processors 1501 may be general-purpose processors, dedicated processors, etc. For example, the processor may be a baseband processor or a central processing unit. The baseband processor may be configured to process communication protocols and communication data. The central processing unit may be configured to control the device (e.g., a base station or a chip), execute software programs, and process data from the software programs. The device may include a transceiver unit configured to input (receive) and output (transmit) signals. For example, the device may be a chip, and the transceiver unit may be the input and / or output circuits of the chip, or a communication interface. The chip may be used in a communication device (e.g., a base station). In another example, the device may be a communication device (e.g., a base station), and the transceiver unit may be a transceiver, a radio frequency chip, etc.

[0177] The communication device 150 includes one or more processors 1501. One or more processors 1501 may implement the network device method in the embodiments shown in Figures 4 to 6(a) to 6(c) and Figures 8 to 10.

[0178] In a possible design, the communication device 150 includes means configured to receive control information from a network device, and means configured to transmit a first type signal and a second type signal based on the control information. For example, control information may be received or a first type signal or a second type signal may be transmitted by using a transceiver, or an input / output circuit, or a chip interface. For control information, a first type signal, and a second type signal, please refer to the relevant description in the above embodiment of the method.

[0179] In addition to optionally implementing one or more of the embodiments shown in Figures 4 to 6(a) to 6(c) and Figures 8 to 10, the processor 1501 may further implement other functions.

[0180] Optionally, in one design, the processor 1501 may further include instructions 1503. The instructions may be executed on the processor, and as a result, the communication device 150 will carry out the method described in the above method embodiment.

[0181] In another possible design, the communication device 150 may, alternatively, include a circuit that can implement the functions of the network device in the above-described embodiment.

[0182] In yet another possible design, the communication device 150 may include one or more memories 1502 that store instructions 1504. The instructions may be executed on the processor, and as a result, the communication device 150 performs the method described in the above embodiment. Optionally, the memories may further store data. Optionally, the processor may also store instructions and / or data. For example, one or more memories 1502 may store a program for the communication method described in the above embodiment, or the relevant parameters in the above embodiment. The processor and memory may be disposed separately or may be integrated together.

[0183] In another possible design, the communication device 150 may further include a transceiver unit 1505 and an antenna 1506, or a communication interface. The transceiver unit 1505 may be called a transceiver machine, transceiver circuit, or transceiver, and is configured to implement the transceiver function of the device by using the antenna 1506. A communication interface (not shown) may be used for communication between core network devices and network devices, or for communication between network devices. Optionally, the communication interface may be a wired communication interface, such as a fiber optic communication interface. The antenna 1506 is optional.

[0184] The processor 1501 may be called a processing unit and may be configured to control a device (for example, a base station).

[0185] Furthermore, since the transmission or reception performed by the transceiver unit 1505 described in this embodiment of the present application is under the control of the processing unit (processor 1501), the transmission or reception action may also be described as being performed by the processing unit (processor 1501) in this embodiment of the present application. This does not affect the understanding of the solution by those skilled in the art.

[0186] It should be understood that the processor in the embodiments of this application may be a CPU, or another general-purpose processor, digital signal processor (DSP), application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), field programmable gate array (FPGA), or another programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic device, discrete hardware component, etc.

[0187] It can be understood that the memory in the embodiments of this application may be volatile memory or non-volatile memory, or may include both volatile and non-volatile memory. Non-volatile memory may be read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or flash memory. Volatile memory may be random access memory (RAM) used as an external cache. Rather than providing a limited explanation, through an example, many forms of random access memory (RAM) can be used, such as static random access memory (static RAM, SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (synchronous DRAM, SDRAM), double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (double data rate SDRAM, DDR SDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (enhanced SDRAM, ESDRAM), synchlink dynamic random access memory (synchlink DRAM, SLDRAM), and direct rambus random access memory (direct rambus RAM, DR RAM).

[0188] One embodiment of this application further provides a base station. The base station system includes a BBU and an RRU or AAU in the above embodiment.

[0189] One embodiment of this application further provides a computer-readable medium configured to store computer program code. The computer-readable medium includes instructions used to carry out a method performed by a communication device in the communication method of the above-described embodiment of the method. The readable medium may be ROM or RAM. This is not limited to the embodiments of this application.

[0190] This application further provides a computer program product. The computer program product includes instructions. When an instruction is executed, the communication device is enabled to perform the operation of the communication device corresponding to the method described above.

[0191] Based on the above description of the implementation, those skilled in the art will understand that, for the sake of a convenient and simple explanation, the above division of functional modules is used as an example for illustrative purposes. In actual applications, the above functions may be assigned to different functional modules and implemented on a case-by-case basis. In other words, the internal structure of the device is divided into different functional modules to implement all or some of the functions described above.

[0192] In some embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed apparatus and methods may be implemented in other ways. For example, the described apparatus embodiments are merely examples. For example, the division into modules or units is merely a logical functional division, and other divisions may be possible in actual implementations. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another apparatus, or some features may be ignored or not implemented. In addition, the mutual coupling, direct coupling, or communication connection shown or described may be implemented by using some interfaces. Indirect coupling or communication connection between apparatuses or units may be implemented in electronic, mechanical, or other forms.

[0193] Units described as separate parts may or may not be physically separate, and a part presented as a unit may be one or more physical units, which may be located in one place or distributed across different locations. Some or all of the units may be selected based on the actual requirements to achieve the objectives of the solution of the embodiment.

[0194] In addition, the functional units in the embodiments of this application may be integrated into a single processing unit, or each unit may exist physically independently, or two or more units may be integrated into a single unit. The integrated unit may be implemented in hardware form or in the form of a software functional unit.

[0195] When an integrated unit is implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, the integrated unit may be stored in a readable storage medium. Based on such understanding, the technical solution of this application, or a portion that contributes to the prior art, or all or part of the technical solution, may be implemented in the form of a software product. The software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions for instructing a device or processor (which may be a single-chip microcomputer, chip, etc.) to perform all or part of the steps of the method described in the embodiments of this application. The storage medium includes a variety of media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, removable hard disks, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0196] The above description is merely a specific implementation of this application and does not limit the scope of protection of this application. Any modifications or substitutions that are readily conceivable by a person skilled in the art within the scope of the art disclosed in this application are also within the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application must be subject to the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A communication method, wherein the method is A step of using radio frequency channels in a first set of radio frequency channels to carry a first type of signal, The steps include: using radio frequency channels in a second set of radio frequency channels to carry a second type of signal; Includes, Unlike the first radio frequency channel set and the second radio frequency channel set, the functions of the first type of signal and the second type of signal are different, and the method further includes the step of determining the number of channels in the second radio frequency channel set that are used to carry the second type of signal, based on the signal quality level of a terminal device.

2. The first type of signal is a cell-level common signal, and the second type of signal is a user-level signal. The method according to claim 1.

3. In a network scenario where multiple standards coexist, the first type of signal includes the first type of signal in a multi-standard network. The method according to claim 1 or 2.

4. The aforementioned method, A step of using the first set of radio frequency channels to transmit the first type of signal and the second type of signal in a time-division and / or frequency-division manner, further comprising the step of the first type of signal including the first type of signal in a multi-standard network, and the second type of signal including the second type of signal in the multi-standard network. The method according to claim 1 or 2.

5. The power of the analog component in the radio frequency channel in the first radio frequency channel set is greater than or equal to the power of the analog component in the radio frequency channel in the second radio frequency channel set that carries the second type of signal but does not carry the first type of signal. The method according to claim 1 or 2.

6. The antenna elements corresponding to the first radio frequency channel set are individually distributed. The method according to claim 1 or 2.

7. The first radio frequency channel set is coupled to the first module-level digital component set, and the second radio frequency channel set is coupled to the second module-level digital component set, and is different from the first module-level digital component set and the second module-level digital component set. The method according to claim 1 or 2.

8. The aforementioned set of digital components includes a front-haul interface. The method according to claim 7.

9. A communication method, wherein the method is A step of sending a first control signal, wherein the first control signal indicates that a radio frequency channel in a first set of radio frequency channels carries a first type of signal. A step of sending a second control signal, the second control signal indicating that a radio frequency channel in a second set of radio frequency channels carries a second type of signal. Includes, Unlike the first radio frequency channel set and the second radio frequency channel set, the functions of the first type signal and the second type signal are different. Prior to the step of sending a second control signal, the method further includes the step of determining, based on the signal quality level of a terminal device, the number of channels in the second radio frequency channel set that are used to carry the second type of signal.

10. The first type of signal is a cell-level common signal, and the second type of signal is a user-level signal. The method according to claim 9.

11. When the signal quality level of the terminal device is higher, the number of channels used to carry the second type of signal becomes smaller. The method according to claim 9.

12. The aforementioned method, A step of sending a third control signal, the third control signal indicating that the first radio frequency channel set carries the first type of signal and the second type of signal in a time-division and / or frequency-division manner, wherein the first type of signal includes the first type of signal in a multi-standard network, and the second type of signal includes the second type of signal in the multi-standard network. The method according to claim 9 or 10.

13. The aforementioned method, A step of sending a fourth control signal, the fourth control signal indicating that a first module-level digital component set and a first radio frequency channel set carry the first type of signal and a second module-level digital component set and a second radio frequency channel set carry the second type of signal, further comprising the step of sending a fourth control signal, the fourth control signal indicating that a first module-level digital component set and a first radio frequency channel set carry the first type of signal, The method according to claim 9 or 10.

14. A communication device comprising a unit configured to carry out the method described in claim 1 or 2.

15. A communication device comprising a unit configured to carry out the method described in claim 9 or 10.

16. A computer-readable storage medium, wherein the computer-readable medium stores instructions, and when the instructions are executed on a computer, the computer is enabled to carry out the method according to claim 1 or 2.

17. A computer-readable storage medium, wherein the computer-readable medium stores instructions, and when the instructions are executed on a computer, the computer is enabled to carry out the method according to claim 9 or 10.

18. A computer program comprising computer instructions, wherein when the computer instructions are executed on the computer, the computer is enabled to carry out the method according to claim 1 or 2.

19. A computer program comprising computer instructions, wherein when the computer instructions are executed on the computer, the computer is enabled to carry out the method according to claim 9 or 10.

20. A communication system comprising a communication device described in claim 14.

21. A communication system comprising the communication device described in claim 15.

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