Communication method and related apparatus

Abstract

Provided in the embodiments of the present application are a communication method and a related apparatus. The communication method comprises: a first terminal receiving first information from a second terminal, wherein the first information comprises coverage availability information, and the coverage availability information is used for representing the position and time period of a coverage scenario and / or a non-coverage scenario; and the first terminal entering an energy-saving state according to the first information, or accessing a network in a first mode, wherein the first mode is a direct communication mode or an indirect communication mode. By using the embodiments of the present application, the success rate of a communication connection can be improved, and the energy saving of a terminal is facilitated.

Description

Communication method and related device

[0001] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of China on June 15, 2023, with application number 202310713467.X and application name “Communication Methods and Related Devices”, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

[0002] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method and related devices. Background Art

[0003] At the beginning of communication network deployment or to save deployment costs, a certain area may be without network coverage for a certain period of time. Accordingly, terminals located in this area will be in a coverage-free scenario. For example, at an oil field deep in the desert, while wireless network equipment in a non-terrestrial communication (NTN) system (e.g., one or more satellites regularly orbiting the Earth) can provide communication services to the oil field during a specific period of time, terminals located at the oil field will be in a coverage-free scenario during other periods of time.

[0004] When the terminal is in a non-coverage scenario, the terminal can enter an energy-saving state to achieve energy saving of the terminal. When the terminal is in a coverage scenario, it can access (or access) a communication network (hereinafter referred to as a network) to achieve business communication of the terminal. However, when the terminal is in an unreachable state (unavailable) (for example, the terminal is in a shutdown state or a software upgrade state, or the signal quality of the communication network accessed by the terminal is poor), the terminal cannot obtain relevant information about the coverage of the communication network, such as satellite coverage availability information, etc., resulting in the terminal being unable to determine which coverage scenario it is in, such as a coverage scenario or a non-coverage scenario. In this case, assuming that the terminal is in a non-coverage scenario, but the terminal cannot determine that it is in a non-coverage scenario, the terminal will continuously attempt to establish a connection with the communication network, resulting in a failure of the communication connection. In addition, since the terminal continuously attempts to establish a connection with the communication network, the energy saving effect is poor.

[0005] Summary of the Invention

[0006] The embodiments of the present application disclose a communication method and related devices, which can improve the success rate of communication connections and facilitate energy saving of terminals.

[0007] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application discloses a communication method, which is applied to a first terminal. The first terminal may refer to a terminal that has not successfully obtained coverage available information when in a coverage scenario, or has successfully obtained a portion of the coverage available information. For example, the coverage available information received by the first terminal only includes a partial time period. The second terminal may refer to a terminal that has obtained coverage available information when in a coverage scenario, and can be used to assist the first terminal in obtaining coverage available information. Specifically, the first terminal may be a remote terminal (remote UE), and the second terminal may be a relay terminal (relay UE).

[0008] The method includes: receiving first information from a second terminal; and, based on the first information, entering an energy-saving state or accessing a network using a first method. The first information includes coverage availability information, which indicates the location and time period of a coverage scenario and / or a non-coverage scenario, and the first method is a direct communication method or an indirect communication method. In this way, the first terminal can determine, based on the first information, whether it is in a coverage scenario or a non-coverage scenario, and enter an energy-saving state or access the network using a direct communication method or an indirect communication method in different scenarios, thereby improving the success rate of communication connections and facilitating energy conservation for the terminal.

[0009] It should be noted that the method provided in the first aspect can be executed by the first terminal, or can be executed by a device in the first terminal (for example, a chip, or a chip system, or a circuit, or means, etc.), without limitation.

[0010] In some feasible examples, the coverage availability information is satellite coverage availability information.

[0011] In some feasible examples, the first information also includes information of the second terminal, and the information of the second terminal includes at least one of the following: air interface delay, battery status, and network access method, where the network access method is accessing the network through a ground network device or accessing the network through a non-ground network device.

[0012] In some feasible examples, the first information also includes orbit information of non-ground network equipment.

[0013] In some feasible examples, when the first communication method is an indirect communication method, the method further includes: determining, based on the first information, that the second terminal is a target terminal of the first terminal; and accessing the network using the first method includes accessing the network through the target terminal. It will be appreciated that determining, based on the first information, whether the second terminal is a target terminal capable of accessing the network using the indirect communication method can improve the success rate of the communication connection. After a successful connection, further connection attempts are not required, thereby achieving energy conservation.

[0014] In some feasible examples, determining the second terminal as the target terminal of the first terminal based on the first information includes: determining the second terminal as the target terminal of the first terminal based on the first information and a network connection requirement of the first terminal. This can be understood as selecting the second terminal that meets the network connection requirement of the first terminal as the target terminal, thereby improving the success rate of network access through the target terminal.

[0015] In some feasible examples, the network connection requirement includes at least one of the following: a time requirement for network connection, a location requirement for network connection, a battery status requirement for network connection, and a track information requirement for network connection; wherein, the time requirement for network connection includes a time connection requirement and / or an air interface delay requirement, the time connection requirement is used to indicate the network connection time required by the first terminal, and the location requirement is used to indicate the network connection location required by the first terminal.

[0016] In some feasible examples, the method further includes: receiving second information from the second terminal, the second information including a first indication and / or a network access method of the second terminal, the first indication being used to indicate that the second terminal has the first information. It is understood that when the second terminal has the first information, the second terminal can send the first information to the first terminal so that the first terminal obtains the first information. The first terminal can refer to the network access method of the second terminal to determine how to process the received first information, for example, whether to ignore the first information (or whether to execute the steps of entering an energy-saving state or accessing the network in the first method according to the first information), access the network using a direct or indirect communication method, etc.

[0017] In some feasible examples, before receiving the first information from the second terminal, the method further includes: sending the network connection requirements and / or third information of the first terminal to the second terminal, and the third information is used to trigger the second terminal to send the first information to the first terminal.

[0018] It is understood that after the first terminal sends a network connection requirement to the second terminal, the second terminal may be aware of the first terminal's network connection requirement and determine whether to send the first information to the first terminal based on the network connection requirement. For example, if the second terminal determines that the first information meets the first terminal's network connection requirement, it may send the first information to the first terminal. After the first terminal sends the second indication to the second terminal, the first terminal may trigger the second terminal to send the first information to the first terminal.

[0019] In some feasible examples, the third information includes a second indication, and the second indication is used to instruct the second terminal to send the first information to the first terminal. In this way, the second terminal sends the first information to the first terminal based on the second indication, which can improve the effectiveness of data transmission.

[0020] In a second aspect, embodiments of the present application disclose another communication method, which is applied to a second terminal. The method includes: obtaining first information, the first information including coverage availability information, the coverage availability information being used to indicate the location and time period of a coverage scenario and / or a non-coverage scenario; and sending the first information to a first terminal. In this way, the first terminal can determine whether it is in a coverage scenario or a non-coverage scenario based on the first information, and enter an energy-saving state or access the network using direct or indirect communication in different scenarios. This can improve the success rate of communication connections and facilitate energy conservation for the terminal.

[0021] It should be noted that the method provided in the second aspect can be executed by the second terminal, or can be executed by a device in the second terminal (for example, a chip, or a chip system, or a circuit, or means, etc.), without limitation.

[0022] In some feasible examples, sending the first information to the first terminal includes sending the first information to the first terminal when the second terminal is in coverage. It is understood that when the first terminal receives the first information from the second terminal, if the second terminal is in coverage, the first terminal can establish an indirect connection to the network through the second terminal, which can further improve the success rate of establishing a communication connection for the first terminal.

[0023] In some feasible examples, the coverage availability information is satellite coverage availability information.

[0024] In some feasible examples, the first information also includes information of the second terminal, and the information of the second terminal includes at least one of the following: air interface delay, battery status, and network access method, where the network access method is accessing the network through a ground network device or accessing the network through a non-ground network device.

[0025] In some feasible examples, the first information also includes orbit information of the non-ground network device.

[0026] In some feasible examples, the method further includes: sending second information to the first terminal, where the second information includes the first indication and / or the network access method of the second terminal, and the first indication is used to indicate that the second terminal has the first information. In this way, the first terminal can determine whether to request the second terminal to obtain the first information based on the second information, and the first terminal can also refer to the network access method of the second terminal to determine how to process the received first information.

[0027] In some feasible examples, before sending the first information to the first terminal, the method further includes: receiving third information from the first terminal and / or a network connection requirement of the first terminal, wherein the third information is used to trigger the second terminal to send the first information to the first terminal. In this way, the second terminal can send the first information to the first terminal based on the third information, so that the first terminal obtains the first information.

[0028] In some feasible examples, the third information includes a second indication, and the second indication is used to instruct the second terminal to send the first information to the first terminal. In this way, the second terminal sends the first information to the first terminal based on the second indication, which can improve the effectiveness of data transmission.

[0029] In some feasible examples, the network connection requirement includes at least one of the following: a time requirement for network connection, a location requirement for network connection, a battery status requirement for network connection, and a track information requirement for network connection; wherein, the time requirement for network connection includes a time connection requirement and / or an air interface delay requirement, the time connection requirement is used to indicate the network connection time required by the first terminal, and the location requirement is used to indicate the network connection location required by the first terminal.

[0030] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application discloses a communication device, which includes a unit, module, or means for executing each step of any implementation method in the above-mentioned first to second aspects.

[0031] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides another communication device, which may include a processor, and the processor is used to enable the communication device to execute any of the above aspects or methods in feasible examples by executing instructions in a memory, or through a logic circuit.

[0032] In some possible examples, the communication device further includes one or more of a memory or a transceiver, where the transceiver is configured to transmit and receive data and / or signaling.

[0033] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, comprising a first terminal and a second terminal. When the first terminal and the second terminal are operating in the communication system, the system is configured to execute the method of any one of the first and second aspects or feasible examples described above.

[0034] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored thereon. When the instructions are executed by a processor, the method in any one of the above-mentioned first to second aspects or feasible examples is executed.

[0035] In the seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer program product, which is used to store a computer program. When the computer program runs on a computer, it enables the computer to execute the method in any aspect of the above-mentioned first to second aspects or feasible examples.

[0036] In an eighth aspect, the present application provides a chip comprising a processor for calling and executing instructions stored in a memory from a memory, so that a communication device equipped with the chip executes any one of the above-mentioned first to second aspects or feasible example methods.

[0037] In the ninth aspect, the present application provides another chip, including: an input interface, an output interface and a processing circuit, the input interface, the output interface and the circuit are connected through an internal connection path, and the processing circuit is used to execute the method of any aspect or feasible example of the above-mentioned first to second aspects.

[0038] Optionally, the chip further includes a memory. The input interface, the output interface, the processor, and the memory are connected via an internal connection path. The processor is configured to execute code in the memory. When the code is executed, the processor is configured to execute the method of any one of the first and second aspects or feasible examples described above.

[0039] In the tenth aspect, the present application provides a chip system comprising at least one processor and a communication interface, the communication interface and the at least one processor being interconnected through lines, and the at least one processor being used to run computer programs or instructions to execute the method in any one of the above-mentioned first to second aspects or feasible examples.

[0040] It should be understood that the implementation and beneficial effects of the above-mentioned aspects can be referenced to each other. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0041] The following is an introduction to the drawings used in the embodiments of this application.

[0042] FIG1A is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system;

[0043] 1B to 1D are schematic diagrams of the architecture of an NTN system;

[0044] FIG2A is a schematic diagram of a discovery method of Mode A based on ProSe technology;

[0045] FIG2B is a schematic diagram of a discovery method of Mode B based on ProSe technology;

[0046] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of a coverage scenario and a non-coverage scenario;

[0047] FIG4 is an interactive diagram of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0048] FIG5 is an interactive diagram of another communication method provided by the present application;

[0049] FIG6 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0050] FIG7 is a schematic structural diagram of another communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0051] FIG8 is a schematic structural diagram of a terminal provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0052] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application can be applied to various communication systems, such as long term evolution (LTE) systems, new radio (NR) systems, advanced long term evolution (LTE-A) systems, device-to-device (D2D) communication systems, vehicle to everything (V2X) communication systems, machine to machine (M2M) communication systems, Internet of Things (IoT), narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), integrated perception and communication systems, frequency division duplex (FDD) systems, time division duplex (TDD) systems, non-terrestrial communication (NTN) systems, wireless projection communication systems, integrated access and backhaul (IAB) communication systems, public land mobile networks (PLMNs), and non-public networks (Non-Public) network, NPN), and communication systems evolved after the 5G communication system (for example, 6G communication system), or non-3GPP (3rd generation partnership project, 3GPP) communication systems, etc., are not restricted.

[0053] D2D refers to a technology that allows two devices to communicate directly over a wireless link. Typical D2D devices include Bluetooth and WiFi Direct. The core functions of D2D include discovery and communication.

[0054] Devices used in D2D technology are generally half-duplex devices, meaning they can only be receiving or sending information at the same time, not simultaneously. In wireless communication networks defined by 3GPP, the link for direct communication between terminal devices is called the sidelink (SL), which corresponds to the uplink (UL) and downlink (DL) used for communication between terminal devices and network equipment in current communication systems.

[0055] For example, please refer to Figure 1A, which is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system. As shown in Figure 1A, the communication system may include at least two terminal devices (such as the first terminal device and the second terminal device in Figure 1A) and a network device (such as the access network device in Figure 1A), etc. The terminal device can be connected to the network device wirelessly or by wire, so that the terminal device can perform UL communication or DL ​​communication with the network device, such as the first terminal device performing UL communication or DL ​​communication with the access network device. The terminal devices can be connected to each other wirelessly or by wire, so that SL communication can be performed between the terminal devices, such as the first terminal device and the second terminal device can perform SL communication.

[0056] Communication between terminal devices and network devices, between network devices and network devices, and between terminal devices can be carried out through licensed spectrum, or through unlicensed spectrum, or through both licensed spectrum and unlicensed spectrum. This application does not limit the spectrum resources used by terminal devices and network devices.

[0057] The terminal devices involved in this application may be referred to as terminals hereinafter. For example, the first terminal device may be referred to as the first terminal, and the second terminal device may be referred to as the second terminal. A terminal is an entity on the user side that is used to receive or transmit signals and can provide voice and / or data to the user. A terminal may also be referred to as a terminal, user equipment (UE), access terminal, UE unit, UE station, mobile device, mobile station, mobile station, mobile terminal, mobile client, mobile unit, remote station, remote terminal, remote unit, wireless unit, wireless communication device, user agent, or user equipment. An access terminal may be a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phone, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a handheld device with wireless communication capabilities, a computing device or other processing device connected to a wireless modem, an in-vehicle device, a wearable device, a terminal in future 5G, a terminal in a future evolved PLMN, or a terminal in a future NPN. In the embodiment of the present application, the chip used in the above-mentioned device may also be referred to as a terminal.

[0058] In the embodiments of the present application, an access network (AN) device or a radio access network (RAN) device may be referred to as an access network. An access network is a node or device that connects a terminal to a wireless network. In other words, the access network provides access services to the terminal, enabling the terminal to access (or visit) the network. The access network can support both wired and wireless access.

[0059] Optionally, the access network is composed of multiple AN / RAN nodes. AN / RAN nodes may include, but are not limited to, access points (APs), enhanced nodeBs (eNBs), home base stations (e.g., home evolved NodeBs, or home NodeBs, HNBs), baseband units (BBUs), next-generation NR nodeBs (gNBs), transmission reception points (TRPs), transmission points (TPs), or some other access nodes, such as wireless relay nodes, wireless backhaul nodes, etc. AN / RAN nodes may be one or more antenna panels, or network nodes constituting gNBs or transmission points, such as BBUs or distributed units (DUs), or devices that perform RAN functions in communication systems such as D2D, V2X, M2M, and U2U. The AN / RAN node may be a wireless controller in a cloud radio access network (CRAN) scenario, or may be an open access network (open RAN, O-RAN or ORAN), or may be an access network in a communication system evolved after the 5G communication system, for example, an xNodeB in a 6G communication system, or may be an access network in a PLMN network evolved after the 5G communication system, etc., without limitation herein.

[0060] This application does not limit the locations of terminals and access networks. For example, the first terminal and the second terminal can be within the coverage of the access network; or the first terminal can be within the coverage of the access network, while the second terminal is outside the coverage of the access network. The terminal and access network can be fixed or mobile. The terminal and access network can be deployed on land, on water, in the air, etc.

[0061] In the embodiments of this application, the access network deployed in the air can be referred to as non-terrestrial network equipment, and the access network deployed on the ground can be referred to as terrestrial network equipment. Compared to non-terrestrial network equipment, terrestrial network equipment is a stationary or slower-moving access network. In other words, non-terrestrial network equipment can be a high-speed mobile access network compared to terrestrial network equipment.

[0062] Non-terrestrial network devices may include satellites, high-altitude platforms (HAPs), drones, hot air balloons, low-orbit satellites, medium-orbit satellites, high-orbit satellites, etc., without limitation. The satellites mentioned in this application may represent a collection of satellites and other network devices related to satellite communications. Therefore, in this application, the two descriptions of "satellite" and "satellite network device" are equivalent.

[0063] Specifically, the access network can be deployed in the following three ways:

[0064] In the first deployment mode, non-ground network equipment can serve as RAN functions (access service functions). Ground network equipment that is not deployed to serve as RAN functions can communicate with the core network through ground stations in the ground network equipment (such as NTN gateways), which is used to solve coverage problems in remote areas such as mountainous areas and oceans.

[0065] In the second deployment mode, non-ground network equipment and ground stations in ground network equipment can serve as radio frequency units, and access networks (such as base stations) in ground network equipment other than ground stations can serve as RAN functions.

[0066] In the third deployment mode, the access network does not deploy non-ground network equipment, nor does it deploy ground stations in the ground network equipment for forwarding signaling and data of non-ground network equipment and other network equipment. The RAN function is performed by the access network (such as base stations) of the ground network equipment except the ground stations.

[0067] It should be noted that the number and types of access networks and terminals included in the network architecture shown in FIG1A are merely examples, and embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto. For example, the network architecture may include more or fewer terminals communicating with the access networks. For another example, the network architecture may include more or fewer access networks communicating with the terminals. For the sake of simplicity, each of these is not depicted in detail in the accompanying drawings.

[0068] In addition, in the network architecture shown in Figure 1A, although an access network and a terminal are shown, the application scenario may not be limited to including an access network and a terminal. For example, it may also include devices for carrying virtualized network functions, etc. These are obvious to those skilled in the art and will not be elaborated here.

[0069] Optionally, the communication system may further include network devices not shown in FIG1A , such as core network (CN) devices and data network (data network) devices, etc. Core network devices and data network devices are usually deployed on land or water.

[0070] In different communication systems, core network equipment (hereinafter referred to as core network) can correspond to different devices. For example, in a 3G communication system, it can correspond to a GPRS serving support node (SGSN) and / or a GPRS gateway support node (GGSN); in a 4G communication system, it can correspond to a mobility management entity (MME) and / or a serving gateway (S-GW); in a 5G communication system, it can correspond to the above-mentioned policy control function (PCF) network element, unified data management (UDM) network element, application function (AF) network element, access and mobility management function (AMF) network element, session management function network element (SMF) network element, user plane function (UPF) network element, etc.

[0071] In the embodiments of the present application, the data network device may be referred to as the data network. The data network is used to provide business services to users. Generally, the client is the terminal, and the server is the data network. The data network provided by the data network may include a private network, such as a local area network. The data network may also include an external network not managed by the operator, such as the Internet. The data network may also include a proprietary network jointly deployed by operators, such as a network that provides IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) services.

[0072] Please refer to Figures 1B to 1D, which are schematic diagrams of the architecture of an NTN system. Figures 1B to 1D illustrate an example of a 5G communication system, a satellite as a non-terrestrial network device, and ground stations and / or base stations as terrestrial network devices. The access network can be a next-generation radio access network (NG-RAN), and the core network can be a 5G core network (5G CN). This architecture can be understood as an NTN-based NG-RAN architecture.

[0073] The interface of the wireless link between the terminal and the access network is called an air interface, such as the NR Uu interface. The NG interface, as the interface between the access network and the core network, is primarily used for exchanging signaling such as the core network's non-access stratum (NAS) and user service data. The Xn interface, as the interface between access networks, is primarily used for signaling exchanges such as handover. The N6 interface can be the interface between the core network and the data network.

[0074] It should be noted that the above interfaces are exemplified by a 5G communication system. Different communication systems may have different names. For example, in a 4G communication system, the interface between access networks may be an X2 interface, and the interface between the access network and the core network may be an S1 interface. Of course, in future communications, the names of these interfaces may remain unchanged or may be replaced by other names, and this application is not limited to this.

[0075] As shown in Figures 1B to 1D, the NTN system can include at least one terminal and at least one network device. The network devices can include access networks, core networks, and data networks. In Figure 1B, the access network includes remote radio units (RRUs) and base stations. The RRUs include satellites and ground stations, representing the second deployment method described above. In Figures 1C and 1D, the access network includes satellites and ground stations, representing the first deployment method described above. The terminals and network devices can be found in the previous sections and will not be further described here.

[0076] Specifically, the architecture shown in Figure 1B can be referred to as a transparent satellite access architecture (e.g., a RAN architecture with transparent satellite). As shown in Figure 1B, satellites connect to ground stations and terminals via wireless links, while ground stations connect to data networks via base stations and the core network. In this scenario, the satellite performs radio frequency filtering, frequency conversion, and amplification. In other words, the satellite can transparently forward signals, acting as a Layer 1 relay to regenerate physical layer signals, without any higher protocol layers.

[0077] The satellite shown in Figure 1C can be called a regenerative satellite without an inter-satellite link (ISL), while the satellite shown in Figure 1D can be called a regenerative satellite with an ISL. In the architectures shown in Figures 1C and 1D, the satellite performs RAN functions. The service link between the terminal and the satellite is connected via the NR Uu interface, and the feeder link between the ground station and the satellite is connected via the satellite radio interface (SRI). Figure 1D includes two satellites, and the ISL between the satellites is connected via the Xn interface.

[0078] To facilitate understanding of the embodiments of the present application, the following definitions of technical terms that may appear in the embodiments of the present application are given. The terms used in the implementation section of the present application are only used to explain the specific embodiments of the present application and are not intended to limit the present application.

[0079] (1) Proximity-based service (ProSe), also known as proximity service or D2D. ProSe is a concept introduced by the 3GPP standard to improve cellular capacity and services. It also introduces ProSe function network elements to specifically handle the related actions and processes required by ProSe. It allows two or more nearby ProSe-enabled terminals to communicate directly without traversing network nodes.

[0080] The advantages of ProSe connectivity are as follows: New connectivity methods can be applied to expand new "lifestyles," such as social networking applications and local data applications. It can enable direct transmission of dense data within a small area, freeing up network resources and alleviating the workload of the access network. It also saves a large amount of air interface resources, reduces interference, and increases network capacity. It can also achieve emergency communications and public safety purposes (for example, allowing terminals to communicate offline in scenarios where the cellular network is not working properly), especially when two terminals or one of the terminals is out of network coverage.

[0081] (2) Direct discovery function refers to the ability of a terminal to discover nearby terminals that can be directly connected. The 3GPP standard defines two modes of direct discovery function, namely mode A (model A) and mode B (model B). Among them, mode A is a one-way discovery protocol message, which discovers surrounding or adjacent terminals by publishing announcements. The terminals in mode A are divided into announcing terminals (announcing UE) and monitoring terminals (monitoring UE). The announcing terminal can also be called a relay terminal (relay UE). Mode B is a two-way discovery protocol, which discovers terminals through request and response. The terminals in mode B are divided into discoverer terminals (discoverer UE) and discoveree terminals (discoveree UE).

[0082] The discovery process of Mode A based on ProSe technology can be referred to in FIG2A . As shown in FIG2A , the relay terminal can send an announcement message to multiple listening terminals (such as a first listening terminal, a second listening terminal, and a third listening terminal). The interested listening terminals can interpret and process the received announcement message. The announcement message may include the type of discovery message and a ProSe application code or a ProSe restricted code.

[0083] The ProSe application code is related to the ProSe application identifier (ProSe Application ID), which consists of a PLMN identifier (PLMN ID) and a ProSe application identifier name (ProSe App ID Name). The relay terminal obtains the ProSe application code from the ProSe functional network element of the home public land mobile network (HPLMN) and sends it to other terminals through an announcement message. The monitoring terminal obtains the ProSe application code from the HPLMN ProSe functional network element and monitors the announcement message sent from the announcing terminal based on the ProSe application code. The ProSe restriction code is allocated by the HPLMN ProSe functional network element and is used for direct discovery in restricted mode scenarios.

[0084] The discovery process of mode B based on ProSe technology can refer to Figure 2B. As shown in Figure 2B, the discoverer terminal sends a request message (such as a solicitation message) to other discoverer terminals (such as the first discoverer terminal, the second discoverer terminal, the third discoverer terminal, etc.). The discoverer terminal (such as the first discoverer terminal and the second discoverer terminal, etc.) matches the request message and sends a reply message (response message) to the discoverer terminal. The request message may include the type of discovery message and the ProSe queue code (ProSe Query Code). The ProSe queue code is allocated by the ProSe functional network element and can be a ProSe application code or a ProSe restriction code.

[0085] (3) Extended discontinuous reception (eDRX) technology extends the discontinuous reception (DRX) cycle. The terminal monitors the paging channel according to the eDRX cycle within the paging time window (PTW) to receive downlink data. During the rest of the time, the terminal is in sleep mode and does not receive downlink data. This increases the sleep duration of the terminal, thereby further reducing power consumption.

[0086] (4) The terminal is in a coverage scenario, which means that the terminal is in a scenario with network coverage, specifically, it may mean that the location and time period where the terminal is located have network coverage.

[0087] (5) The terminal is in a non-coverage scenario, which means that the terminal is in a scenario without network coverage, specifically, it may mean that there is no network coverage at the location and time period where the terminal is located.

[0088] It should be noted that network coverage may refer to terrestrial network coverage or non-terrestrial network coverage without limitation.

[0089] Specifically, a non-terrestrial network is covered, and a non-terrestrial network device that enables the terminal to be in a coverage scenario is used as an example of a satellite. Please refer to the schematic diagram of a coverage scenario and a non-coverage scenario provided in FIG3. As shown in FIG3, at a first time (such as 9:15), the first terminal and the second terminal are within the coverage range of the satellite, that is, the first terminal and the second terminal are in a coverage scenario, and a connection can be established with the satellite. However, as the satellite moves, at a second time (such as 10:20), the first terminal and the second terminal are outside the coverage range of the satellite, that is, the first terminal and the second terminal are in a non-coverage scenario, and it is difficult to directly establish a communication connection with the satellite.

[0090] When the terminal is in a non-coverage scenario, the terminal can be triggered to enter an energy-saving state. For example, the non-standalone (NAS) timing duration (such as the timing duration of the periodic registration timer), eDRX parameters (such as eDRX cycle, PTW, etc.) are set to achieve energy saving of the terminal. However, when the terminal is in an unreachable state, the terminal cannot obtain relevant information about the network coverage, resulting in the terminal being unable to determine which coverage scenario it is in, such as a coverage scenario or a non-coverage scenario. In this case, the terminal continuously attempts to establish a connection with the communication network, resulting in a failure of the communication connection. In addition, since the terminal continuously attempts to establish a connection with the communication network, the energy saving effect is poor.

[0091] This application proposes a communication method that can obtain relevant information about network coverage through other terminals, and then enter an energy-saving state or access the network using direct communication or indirect communication based on the information, which can improve the success rate of communication connections and facilitate terminal energy saving.

[0092] The communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application is described in detail below. The communication device involved in the communication method may include a first terminal, a second terminal and an access network. The system architecture corresponding to the first terminal, the second terminal and the access network can be described with reference to Figure 1A, which will not be repeated here. The functions performed by the terminal in this application may be performed by a device in the terminal (for example, a chip, or a chip system, or a circuit, or a means, etc.). The functions performed by the access network in this application may be performed by a device in the access network (for example, a chip, or a chip system, or a circuit, or a means, etc.). The following examples are given with terminals and access networks.

[0093] Please refer to Figure 4, which is an interactive diagram of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application. The communication method includes the following steps.

[0094] S400: The second terminal obtains first information.

[0095] The first information may include coverage availability information, which is used to indicate the location and time period of the coverage scene and / or the non-coverage scene.

[0096] Among them, the coverage availability information can indicate the network coverage of a certain location and a certain time period, that is, whether a certain location and a certain time period have network coverage. This application does not limit the content form of the coverage availability information. For example, the coverage availability information is expressed with location as the granularity. Specifically, the coverage availability information includes a certain location and whether there is network coverage for each time period of the location; for another example, the coverage availability information is expressed with time period as the granularity. Specifically, the coverage availability information includes a certain time period and whether there is network coverage for each location of the time period.

[0097] The time period may be the current time or a time period to which the current time belongs, or a specified time period. The location may be the current location of the second terminal or a preset range of the current location, or a specified location.

[0098] It is understandable that the location can be a location point or a location range. Specifically, the location can be a physical location described by latitude and longitude or a street, or it can be a location identifier, for example, a symbol represented by latitude and longitude or a street, or it can be an identifier of a cell or tracking area, etc. For example, the areas corresponding to 01, 10, 11, etc. The time period can be one or a period of time. The time period can be a specific value or a corresponding symbol, for example, 001 represents the time period from 1:00 to 2:00, 002 represents the time period from 2:00 to 3:00, etc. Whether there is network coverage can be described by the value of a bit, for example, 1 represents network coverage, 0 represents no network coverage; or 0 represents no network coverage, 1 represents network coverage.

[0099] Exemplarily, the coverage availability information is represented by a 6-bit value. The first 3 bits represent the time period, the middle 2 bits represent the location, and the last bit represents whether there is network coverage. Assuming that the coverage availability information includes 001011, and when 001 represents the time period from 1:00 to 2:00, 01 represents the first area, 1 represents network coverage, and 0 represents no network coverage, 001011 can indicate that the first area has network coverage during the time period from 1:00 to 2:00.

[0100] This application does not limit the method for the second terminal to obtain coverage availability information. When the second terminal is in a coverage scenario, a network connection can be established. The second terminal can obtain coverage availability information through a system message (such as a system information block (SIB)) broadcast by the access network, or can obtain coverage availability information from the network side (such as a data network) through the user plane, or can obtain coverage availability information from the core network (such as a control plane network element AMF / MME, etc.) through the control plane.

[0101] It is understood that after the terminal obtains the coverage available information, it can determine information such as location and / or time period that the terminal is in a coverage scenario or a non-coverage scenario based on the coverage available information. For example, the terminal can determine the period (UE out-of-coverage period) during which the terminal is in a non-coverage scenario based on the coverage available information.

[0102] In the embodiments of the present application, the access network corresponding to the coverage availability information refers to the access network that provides the coverage availability information. The access network can be a non-terrestrial network device or a terrestrial network device. In other words, the network can be provided to the terminal by a non-terrestrial network device or a terrestrial network device, and the coverage availability information of the network can be used by the terminal to determine whether it is in a coverage scenario or a non-coverage scenario of the network.

[0103] For example, it is assumed that the coverage availability information is used to indicate that the first area has network coverage during the time period from 1:00 to 2:00, and the first area has no network coverage during the time period from 2:00 to 3:00, and the second area has no network coverage during the time period from 1:00 to 2:00, and the second area has network coverage during the time period from 2:00 to 3:00. If the position of the first terminal is fixed, and the fixed position is within the first area, then the first terminal is in a coverage scenario during the time period from 1:00 to 2:00, and in a non-coverage scenario during the time period from 2:00 to 3:00. If the position of the second terminal is not fixed, and is located in the first area during the time period from 1:00 to 2:20, and is located in the second area during the time period from 2:20 to 3:00, then the second terminal is in a coverage scenario during the time period from 1:00 to 2:00 and the time period from 2:20 to 3:00, and is in a non-coverage scenario during the time period from 2:00 to 2:20.

[0104] In an example, the first information may further include information of the second terminal, and the information of the second terminal may include at least one of the following: air interface delay, battery status, and network access mode.

[0105] The air interface latency of the second terminal may be the latency of air interface communication between the second terminal and the access network device. Optionally, the first terminal may access the network using a direct communication mode or an indirect communication mode based on the air interface latency of the second terminal. In other words, the first terminal establishes a direct or indirect connection with the network based on the air interface latency of the second terminal.

[0106] For example, when the air interface delay of the second terminal meets a preset air interface delay threshold (such as the air interface delay threshold required in the air interface delay requirement of the first terminal), the first terminal accesses the network through the second terminal in an indirect communication manner.

[0107] The air interface delay requirement of the first terminal indicates the air interface delay of the network connection required by the first terminal. For example, if the air interface delay required by the first terminal is less than a preset air interface delay threshold (e.g., 10 milliseconds (ms)), it is understood that if the air interface delay of the second terminal is smaller (e.g., less than the air interface delay threshold), the first terminal can access the network through the second terminal using indirect communication.

[0108] For another example, assuming that the distance between the first terminal and the second terminal is relatively close, it can be understood that the air interface delay of the first terminal is the air interface delay of the second terminal. When the air interface delay of the second terminal is relatively small (such as less than the air interface delay threshold), the air interface delay of the first terminal is also relatively small. If the first terminal is in a coverage scenario or not in a non-coverage scenario, then the first terminal can use direct communication to access the network. In addition, when the air interface delay of the second terminal is relatively small, if it is necessary to use indirect communication to access the network or it is not possible to use direct communication to access the network, the first terminal can use indirect communication to access the network through the second terminal. When the air interface delay of the second terminal is relatively large (such as greater than or equal to the air interface delay threshold), it means that the communication time for the first terminal to establish a direct communication connection and to establish an indirect communication connection through the second terminal is relatively long. If it is necessary to access the network, other terminals that meet the air interface delay threshold can be used to access the network by indirect communication.

[0109] Optionally, the air interface delay of the second terminal is replaced by the delay required for communication between the second terminal and the network device (such as the AMF / MME in the control plane network element, or the user plane network element UPF, or the public data network gateway (PDN GW), or the data network, etc.).

[0110] The battery status of the second terminal may be the state of charge or remaining battery of the battery. Optionally, the first terminal may access the network using a direct communication method or an indirect communication method based on the battery status of the second terminal. In other words, the first terminal establishes a direct or indirect connection with the network based on the battery status of the second terminal.

[0111] For example, when the battery status of the second terminal meets the preset battery status (such as the charge status or remaining power required in the battery status requirement of the first terminal), the first terminal uses direct communication to access the network or uses indirect communication to access the network through the second terminal; or, when the battery status of the second terminal does not meet the preset battery status, it uses direct communication to access the network or uses indirect communication to access the network through other terminals that meet the preset battery status (such as the fourth terminal).

[0112] Among them, the battery status requirement is used to indicate the battery status of the network connection required by the first terminal, such as the remaining power required in the battery status requirement of the first terminal is greater than a preset remaining power threshold (such as >40%). It can be understood that if the battery status of the second terminal is suitable for the first terminal to access the network through the second terminal (such as the remaining power of the second terminal >40%), that is, the battery status of the second terminal can provide a relay connection for the remote terminal, then the first terminal can access the network through the second terminal using an indirect communication method. In addition, it can also be determined based on other information to access the network using a direct communication method. For example, the second terminal does not provide a relay service. In this way, the failure of indirect connection to the network through the second terminal can be avoided.

[0113] If the battery status of the second terminal is not suitable for the first terminal to access the network through the second terminal (e.g., the remaining battery power of the second terminal is less than 40%), that is, the battery status of the second terminal is insufficient to provide a relay connection for the remote terminal, and direct communication can be used to access the network, the first terminal will use direct communication to access the network. If direct communication is not possible or indirect communication is required, the first terminal may use indirect communication to access the network through another terminal (e.g., a third terminal that meets the battery status requirements).

[0114] The network access method of the second terminal may include the second terminal accessing the network through a terrestrial network device or accessing the network through a non-terrestrial network device. If the second terminal accesses the network through a terrestrial network device, the second terminal may be referred to as a relay terminal of the terrestrial network, such as a TN relay UE. If the second terminal accesses the network through a non-terrestrial network device, the second terminal may be referred to as a relay terminal of the non-terrestrial network, such as an NTN relay UE. The network access method of the second terminal may be reflected by a relay service code.

[0115] Optionally, the first terminal may access the network in a direct communication manner or an indirect communication manner according to the network access mode of the second terminal. In other words, the first terminal establishes a direct or indirect connection with the network according to the network access mode of the second terminal.

[0116] For example, if the second terminal accesses the network through a terrestrial network device, that is, the access network corresponding to the coverage available information is a terrestrial network device, the first terminal can access the network through the second terminal, that is, the first terminal establishes an indirect connection with the terrestrial network device through the second terminal. For another example, if the second terminal accesses the network through a non-terrestrial network device, that is, the access network corresponding to the coverage available information is a non-terrestrial network device, the first terminal can access the network through the non-terrestrial network device, that is, the first terminal establishes an indirect connection with the non-terrestrial network device through the second terminal, or establish a direct connection with the non-terrestrial network device.

[0117] In another example, when the access network corresponding to the coverage availability information is a non-terrestrial network device, the first information may further include orbital information of the non-terrestrial network device. The orbital information of the non-terrestrial network device may include at least one of the orbital altitude, orbital period, and orbital inclination of the non-terrestrial network device.

[0118] Optionally, when the satellite provides coverage availability information, the coverage availability information is satellite coverage availability information. The orbit information of the non-terrestrial network device is satellite orbit information.

[0119] Optionally, after obtaining orbital information of the non-terrestrial network device, the terminal determines the air interface latency of the second terminal based on the orbital information. For example, the first terminal determines the air interface latency of the second terminal using the orbital altitude and light speed in the orbital information. In this way, the air interface latency of the second terminal can be determined without obtaining the air interface latency of the second terminal from the second terminal.

[0120] S401: The second terminal sends first information to the first terminal.

[0121] Correspondingly, the first terminal receives the first information from the second terminal.

[0122] Among them, the first terminal and the second terminal can use the aforementioned D2D technology or ProSe technology to perform SL communication, such as the second terminal sending the first information to the first terminal. The second terminal can adopt the method of mode A as described above to actively send the first information as an announcement message (or discovery message) to the first terminal, so that the first terminal receives the first information from the second terminal. Alternatively, the second terminal can adopt the method of mode B as described above to send the first information to the first terminal after receiving the request message from the first terminal. For details, please refer to the communication method described in Figure 5 below.

[0123] Optionally, the first information is included in a signaling message (such as a discovery message) and sent by the second terminal, or is sent by the second terminal to the first terminal in the form of a user plane message.

[0124] In one example, when the second terminal is in a coverage scenario, step S401 is performed.

[0125] It can be understood that in this example, when the first terminal receives the first information from the second terminal, if the second terminal is in a coverage scenario, the first terminal can establish an indirect connection with the network through the second terminal, which can further improve the success rate of the first terminal in establishing a communication connection.

[0126] S402: The first terminal enters an energy-saving state or accesses a network in a first manner according to the first information.

[0127] The first mode is a direct communication mode or an indirect communication mode. That is, the first terminal can establish a direct connection with the access network that provides coverage availability information to achieve UL communication or DL ​​communication. The first terminal can also establish an indirect connection with the access network that provides coverage availability information through a second terminal, that is, the first terminal establishes SL communication with the second terminal, and then the connection between the first terminal and the access network is achieved through a direct or indirect communication network established between the second terminal and the access network that provides coverage availability information.

[0128] The following describes step S402 in combination with different embodiments of different first information.

[0129] In one example, the first information includes coverage availability information. Specifically, step S402 includes: the first terminal may enter an energy-saving state or access the network using a first method based on the coverage availability information. For example, when the first terminal is in a coverage scenario or is not in a non-coverage scenario, the first terminal accesses the network using a direct or indirect communication method; or when the first terminal is in a non-coverage scenario or is not in a coverage scenario, the first terminal enters an energy-saving state.

[0130] It can be understood that the first terminal can determine whether the first terminal is in a coverage scenario or a non-coverage scenario based on the coverage available information. When the first terminal is in a coverage scenario or is not in a non-coverage scenario, the first terminal can access the network using a direct or indirect communication method. For example, the first terminal establishes a direct connection with the access network corresponding to the coverage available information, that is, the first terminal accesses the network using a direct communication method; for another example, the first terminal establishes an indirect connection with the access network corresponding to the coverage available information through the second terminal, that is, the first terminal accesses the network using an indirect communication method. When the first terminal is in a non-coverage scenario or is not in a coverage scenario, it means that it is difficult for the first terminal to access the network using a direct communication method or an indirect communication method, that is, a communication connection cannot be established, then the first terminal can enter an energy-saving state, thereby avoiding the first terminal from constantly trying to establish a network connection when a network connection cannot be established, thereby achieving energy saving.

[0131] Furthermore, step S402 includes: if the first terminal determines that the first terminal is in a coverage scenario or not in a non-coverage scenario based on the coverage available information, the first terminal determines the first mode based on other first information; or if the first terminal determines that the first terminal is in a non-coverage scenario or not in a coverage scenario based on the coverage available information, the first terminal enters an energy-saving state. The method for determining the first mode can refer to the description of the network access mode used by the above-mentioned first information (such as the air interface latency, battery status, network access mode, etc. of the second terminal), and will not be repeated here.

[0132] In another example, the first information includes coverage availability information and the air interface delay of the second terminal. Specifically, step S402 includes: the first terminal can access the network or enter the energy-saving state in a first manner based on the coverage availability information and / or the air interface delay of the second terminal. For example, when the first terminal is in a coverage scenario or is not in a non-coverage scenario, and the air interface delay of the second terminal meets a preset air interface delay threshold, the network is accessed through the second terminal using an indirect communication method; or, when the first terminal is in a non-coverage scenario or is not in a coverage scenario, the first terminal enters the energy-saving state.

[0133] It can be understood that when it is determined based on the coverage availability information whether the first terminal is in a coverage scenario or not in a non-coverage scenario, and the air interface delay of the second terminal meets the air interface delay threshold, it means that the first terminal can access the network through the second terminal, and the first terminal can use indirect communication to access the network.

[0134] For another example, assuming that the distance between the first terminal and the second terminal is relatively close, it can be understood that the air interface delay of the first terminal is the air interface delay of the second terminal. In this case, if the first terminal is in a coverage scenario or not in an uncovered scenario, and the air interface delay of the second terminal meets the preset air interface delay threshold, the first terminal can access the network using direct communication. If the first terminal is in a coverage scenario or not in an uncovered scenario, and the air interface delay of the second terminal does not meet the preset air interface delay threshold, the communication time for the first terminal to access the network using direct communication or indirect communication through the second terminal is longer, and the network can be accessed indirectly through other terminals that meet the air interface delay threshold.

[0135] In another example, the first information includes coverage availability information and the battery status of the second terminal. Specifically, the first terminal can access the network or enter the energy-saving state in the first way according to the coverage availability information and / or the battery status of the second terminal. For example, when the first terminal is in a coverage scenario or not in a non-coverage scenario, and the battery status of the second terminal meets the preset battery status requirement (such as the battery status requirement of the first terminal), the first terminal uses a direct or indirect communication method to access the network; or, when the first terminal is in a coverage scenario or not in a non-coverage scenario, and the battery status of the second terminal does not meet the preset battery status requirement, the first terminal uses a direct communication method to access the network or uses other terminals that meet the battery status requirements to implement indirect communication methods to access the network; or, when the first terminal is in a non-coverage scenario or not in a coverage scenario, the first terminal enters the energy-saving state.

[0136] It can be understood that when the first terminal is in a coverage scenario or not in a non-coverage scenario, and the battery status of the second terminal meets the battery status requirement, the first terminal can access the network through the second terminal, that is, access the network using an indirect communication method. In addition, it can also be determined based on other information to access the network using a direct communication method. For example, the second terminal does not provide relay service. When the first terminal is in a coverage scenario or not in a non-coverage scenario, and the battery status of the second terminal does not meet the battery status requirement, it means that the battery status of the second terminal does not meet the requirements of indirect access. The first terminal can access the network using a direct communication method or the first terminal can use other terminals that can meet the battery status requirements to implement indirect communication methods, such as selecting a third terminal that meets the battery status requirements as the target terminal, so that the network can be accessed through the target terminal.

[0137] When the first information includes the network access method of the second terminal, the description in step S400 may be referred to, in which the first terminal accesses the network using a direct communication method or an indirect communication method according to the network access method of the second terminal.

[0138] When the first information includes orbital information of a non-terrestrial network device, reference may be made to the aforementioned description of entering an energy-saving state or accessing the network using the first method based on the air interface latency of the second terminal. The air interface latency of the second terminal can be determined based on the orbital information of the non-terrestrial network device. The determination method for this can be referred to above and will not be further described here.

[0139] It should be noted that the above three examples are only one possible way to implement them. In fact, the above three examples can be used in combination. For example, when the first information includes coverage availability information, as well as the air interface delay and battery status of the second terminal, the three examples can be combined to implement step S402. At least one of the above three examples can also be used in combination with other information. Among them, the other information may be whether the first terminal supports direct communication mode or indirect communication mode. For example, if the first terminal supports both direct communication mode and indirect communication mode, step S402 can be executed. Or if the first terminal only supports direct communication mode, the first terminal uses direct communication mode to access the network when in a coverage scenario. Or if the first terminal only supports indirect communication mode, the first terminal uses indirect communication mode to access the network when in a coverage scenario.

[0140] In the communication method shown in Figure 4, the second terminal sends first information to the first terminal. The first terminal can then determine whether it is in a coverage scenario or a non-coverage scenario based on the first information and enter an energy-saving state in different scenarios, or access the network using a direct or indirect communication method. This can improve the success rate of communication connections and facilitate terminal energy conservation.

[0141] Optionally, before step S401, a step not shown in FIG. 4 may be further included: the second terminal sends second information to the first terminal.

[0142] Correspondingly, the first terminal receives the second information from the second terminal.

[0143] The second information includes the first indication and / or the network access mode of the second terminal, that is, whether the second terminal accesses the network through a terrestrial network device or a non-terrestrial network device. The first indication is used to indicate that the second terminal has the first information.

[0144] It is understood that if the second terminal has the first information, step S401 can be executed so that the first terminal receives the first information from the second terminal. The first terminal can refer to the network access method of the second terminal to determine how to process the first information received in step S401. For example, when the first terminal needs to access the network through a terrestrial network device and the second terminal device accesses the network through a non-terrestrial network device, or when the first terminal needs to access the network through a non-terrestrial network device and the first terminal device accesses the network through a terrestrial network device, the first terminal can ignore the first information when receiving the first information in step S401. For another example, when the first terminal needs to access the network through a terrestrial network device and the second terminal device accesses the network through a terrestrial network device, or when the first terminal needs to access the network through a non-terrestrial network device and the second terminal device accesses the network through a non-terrestrial network device, the first terminal can proceed to step S402 after receiving the first information in step S401.

[0145] Optionally, the first indication and the network access method of the second terminal may be sent separately to the first terminal. Alternatively, the first indication and the network access method of the second terminal may be carried in the second information and sent to the first terminal via a signaling message or a user plane message. If the first information includes the network access method of the second terminal, the network access method of the second terminal may not be sent, or the first indication may be sent separately.

[0146] It is understandable that the first terminal may refer to the network access method of the second terminal to determine whether to request the first information from the second terminal.

[0147] Please refer to Figure 5 again, which is an interactive diagram of another communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application. In the method shown in Figure 5, the first message is triggered after the second terminal receives the message from the first terminal. As shown in Figure 5, the communication method includes the following.

[0148] S500: The second terminal obtains first information.

[0149] The description of step S500 may refer to that of step S400 and will not be repeated here.

[0150] S501: A first terminal sends a network connection requirement of the first terminal and / or third information to a second terminal.

[0151] Correspondingly, the second terminal receives the third information from the first terminal and / or the network connection request of the first terminal.

[0152] The third information is used to trigger the second terminal to send the first information to the first terminal.

[0153] S502: The first terminal receives first information from the second terminal.

[0154] Correspondingly, the second terminal sends the first information to the first terminal.

[0155] In one example, the network connection requirement may include at least one of the following: a time requirement for the network connection, a location requirement for the network connection, a battery status requirement for the network connection, and a track information requirement for the network connection.

[0156] Among them, the time requirement for network connection may include time connection requirement and / or air interface delay requirement. The time connection requirement is used to indicate the network connection time required by the first terminal, such as the time connection requirement of the first terminal is that there is a network connection requirement (or communication requirement) during the time period from 9:00 to 10:00. The time connection requirement may include a default location requirement, such as the aforementioned certain location. The location requirement for network connection is used to indicate the network connection location required by the first terminal, such as the location requirement of the first terminal is to require connection to the network at the current location or a specified location. The location requirement may include a default time connection requirement, such as the aforementioned certain time period. The air interface delay requirement and the battery status requirement can refer to the aforementioned, and the track information requirement is used to indicate the track information or air interface delay of the network connection required by the first terminal.

[0157] It should be noted that the network connection time required in a time connection requirement can be the current time or a future time, and the network connection location required in a location requirement can be the current location or another specified location. That is, after a first terminal sends a network connection requirement to a second terminal, the second terminal can learn of the first terminal's network connection requirement and, based on the network connection requirement, determine whether to send the first information to the first terminal. If so, step S502 is executed, causing the second terminal to send the first information to the first terminal. For example, if the second terminal determines that the first information meets the first terminal's network connection requirement, step S502 is executed.

[0158] Optionally, the network connection requirement of the first terminal and the third information may be sent to the second terminal separately, or the network connection requirement of the first terminal and the third information may be carried in a message and sent to the second terminal via a signaling message or a user plane message.

[0159] Optionally, the third information includes a second indication, which is used to instruct the second terminal to send the first information to the first terminal. The second indication can be replaced by a request message, which is used to request the second terminal to send the first information to the first terminal. This request message can be a specific message in an existing protocol, such as the request message in Mode B. The request message can also be a new message, which is not limited here. It is understood that after the first terminal sends the second indication to the second terminal, the second terminal can be triggered to execute step S502, so that the first terminal receives the first information from the second terminal.

[0160] Optionally, before step S501, the method may further include a step not shown in FIG5: the second terminal sends a first indication to the first terminal; step S501 may include: the first terminal sends third information to the second terminal according to the first indication.

[0161] It is understood that after the first terminal determines that the second terminal has the first information, it can send the third information to the second terminal so that the second terminal sends the first information to the first terminal, which can improve the effectiveness of data transmission.

[0162] S503: The first terminal enters an energy-saving state or accesses the network in a first manner according to the first information.

[0163] Here, step S503 may refer to the description of step S402 and will not be repeated here.

[0164] In the communication method shown in Figure 5, after the first terminal sends the third information to the second terminal, the second terminal sends the first information to the first terminal, allowing the first terminal to obtain the first information. The first information includes coverage availability information indicating the location and time period of coverage scenarios and / or non-coverage scenarios. This allows the first terminal to determine whether it is in a coverage scenario or non-coverage scenario based on the first information and, in different scenarios, enter an energy-saving state or access the network using direct or indirect communication methods. This improves the success rate of communication connections and facilitates energy conservation for the terminal.

[0165] In one example, when the first mode is an indirect communication mode, the method shown in Figures 4 and 5 may further include: determining that the second terminal is a target terminal of the first terminal according to the first information; and accessing the network using the first mode includes: accessing the network through the target terminal.

[0166] The target terminal refers to the second terminal used when accessing the network via indirect communication. This application does not limit the method for determining the target terminal. It is possible to determine whether the second terminal is in a coverage scenario based on the first information, and if so, determine that the second terminal is the target terminal. Alternatively, the target terminal capable of establishing an indirect connection with the network can be determined based on the first information.

[0167] In one example, determining the second terminal as the target terminal of the first terminal according to the first information includes: determining the second terminal as the target terminal of the first terminal according to the first information and a network connection requirement of the first terminal.

[0168] The network connection requirements can be referred to above. The determination of whether to adopt an indirect communication method based on various types of information in the first information can also be referred to above and will not be repeated here. When the first information meets the corresponding information in the network connection requirements (e.g., the air interface latency meets the air interface latency requirement, the battery status meets the battery status requirement, etc.), it can be determined that the second terminal is the target terminal of the first terminal.

[0169] In this example, the second terminal is determined as the target terminal for the first terminal based on the first information and the first terminal's network connection requirements. This can be understood as selecting the second terminal that meets the first terminal's network connection requirements as the target terminal, thereby increasing the success rate of network access through the target terminal. This eliminates the need for further connection attempts after a successful connection, thus achieving energy savings.

[0170] It should be noted that this example is applicable to a scenario with a single second terminal, that is, the second terminal is the target terminal. This example is also applicable to a scenario with multiple second terminals, for selecting at least one of the multiple second terminals as the target terminal.

[0171] The above describes in detail the method of the embodiment of the present application, and the following provides an apparatus of the embodiment of the present application.

[0172] Please refer to Figure 6, which is a structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. The communication device may include a transceiver unit 601 and a processing unit 602. Among them, the transceiver unit 601 may be a device with signal input (reception) or output (transmission), used to transmit signals with other devices or other devices in the device. The processing unit 602 may be a device with a processing function, which may include one or more processors for executing instructions (or codes or programs), for example, processing communication protocols and communication data. The communication device may be a terminal, for example, a first terminal or a second terminal. The functions performed by the terminal in the embodiment of the present application may be performed by a device in the terminal.

[0173] In an optional implementation, the communication device is a first terminal, and the transceiver unit 601 is used to receive first information from a second terminal, where the first information includes coverage availability information, and the coverage availability information is used to indicate the location and time period of the coverage scenario and / or non-coverage scenario; the processing unit 602 is used to enter an energy-saving state or access the network in a first manner according to the first information, where the first manner is a direct communication manner or an indirect communication manner.

[0174] In some feasible examples, the coverage availability information is satellite coverage availability information.

[0175] In some feasible examples, the first information also includes information of the second terminal, and the information of the second terminal includes at least one of the following: air interface delay, battery status, and network access method, where the network access method is accessing the network through a ground network device or accessing the network through a non-ground network device.

[0176] In some feasible examples, the first information also includes orbit information of non-ground network equipment.

[0177] In some feasible examples, when the first mode is an indirect communication mode, the processing unit 602 is also used to determine that the second terminal is the target terminal of the first terminal based on the first information; the processing unit 602 is specifically used to access the network through the target terminal.

[0178] In some feasible examples, the processing unit 602 is specifically configured to determine, based on the first information and a network connection requirement of the first terminal, that the second terminal is a target terminal of the first terminal.

[0179] In some feasible examples, the network connection requirement includes at least one of the following: a time requirement for network connection, a location requirement for network connection, a battery status requirement for network connection, and a track information requirement for network connection. The time requirement for network connection includes a time connection requirement and / or an air interface delay requirement. The time connection requirement is used to indicate the network connection time required by the first terminal, and the location requirement is used to indicate the network connection location required by the first terminal.

[0180] In some feasible examples, the transceiver unit 601 is also used to receive second information from the second terminal, where the second information includes a first indication and / or a network access method of the second terminal, and the first indication is used to indicate that the second terminal has the first information.

[0181] In some feasible examples, the transceiver unit 601 is further used to send third information and / or the network connection requirements of the first terminal to the second terminal, and the third information is used to trigger the second terminal to send the first information to the first terminal.

[0182] In some feasible examples, the third information includes a second indication, and the second indication is used to instruct the second terminal to send the first information to the first terminal.

[0183] In another optional implementation, the communication device is a second terminal, and the transceiver unit 601 is used to obtain first information, where the first information includes coverage availability information, and the coverage availability information is used to indicate the location and time period of the coverage scenario and / or non-coverage scenario; and send the first information to the first terminal.

[0184] In some feasible examples, the transceiver unit 601 is specifically configured to send the first information to the first terminal when the second terminal is in a coverage scenario.

[0185] In some feasible examples, the coverage availability information is satellite coverage availability information.

[0186] In some feasible examples, the first information also includes information of the second terminal, and the information of the second terminal includes at least one of the following: air interface delay, battery status, and network access method, where the network access method is accessing the network through a ground network device or accessing the network through a non-ground network device.

[0187] In some feasible examples, the first information also includes orbit information of non-ground network equipment.

[0188] In some feasible examples, the transceiver unit 601 is also used to send second information to the first terminal, where the second information includes a first indication and / or a network access method of the second terminal, and the first indication is used to indicate that the second terminal has the first information.

[0189] In some feasible examples, the transceiver unit 601 is further used to receive third information from the first terminal and / or the network connection requirements of the first terminal, and the third information is used to trigger the second terminal to send the first information to the first terminal.

[0190] In some feasible examples, the third information includes a second indication, and the second indication is used to instruct the second terminal to send the first information to the first terminal.

[0191] In some feasible examples, the network connection requirement includes at least one of the following: a time requirement for network connection, a location requirement for network connection, a battery status requirement for network connection, and a track information requirement for network connection. The time requirement for network connection includes a time connection requirement and / or an air interface delay requirement. The time connection requirement is used to indicate the network connection time required by the first terminal, and the location requirement is used to indicate the network connection location required by the first terminal.

[0192] For the implementation of the above-mentioned transceiver unit 601 and the processing unit 602, reference may be made to the relevant description of any method embodiment shown in FIG. 4 or FIG. 5 , and no further details are given here.

[0193] Please refer to Figure 7, which is a schematic diagram of the structure of another communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. The communication device can be a terminal (such as a first terminal or a second terminal, etc.) or a device in a terminal, used to implement the method described in the method embodiment.

[0194] As shown in FIG7 , the communication device may include a processor 111 and a storage medium 112. Processor 111 may also be referred to as a processing unit and may implement certain control functions. Storage medium 112 may also be referred to as a storage unit or memory. Storage medium 112 stores instructions 114. These instructions 114 may be executed on processor 111 to cause the communication device to perform any of the methods described in FIG4 or FIG5 in the embodiments of the present application.

[0195] Optionally, the processor 111 may include an instruction 113, which may be executed on the processor 111 to enable the communication device to perform any method described in FIG. 4 or FIG. 5 in the embodiments of the present application.

[0196] The communication device described in the above embodiments may be a terminal, but the scope of the device described in this application is not limited thereto. The communication device may be an independent device or may be part of a larger device. For example, the communication device may be:

[0197] (1) An independent integrated circuit (IC), or chip, or chip system or subsystem;

[0198] (2) having a set of one or more ICs, which may optionally include a storage component for storing data and / or instructions;

[0199] (3) ASICs, such as modems;

[0200] (4) Modules that can be embedded in other devices;

[0201] Please refer to Figure 8, which is a structural diagram of a terminal provided in an embodiment of the present application. For ease of explanation, Figure 8 only shows the main components of the terminal. As shown in Figure 8, the terminal includes a processor, a memory, a control circuit, an antenna, and input and output devices. The processor is mainly used to process communication protocols and communication data, as well as to control the entire terminal, execute software programs, and process data of software programs. The memory is mainly used to store software programs and data. The radio frequency circuit is mainly used for conversion between baseband signals and radio frequency signals and for processing radio frequency signals. The antenna is mainly used to transmit and receive radio frequency signals in the form of electromagnetic waves. Input and output devices, such as touch screens, display screens, keyboards, etc., are mainly used to receive data input by users and output data to users.

[0202] When the terminal is powered on, the processor reads the software program from the storage unit, parses and executes the instructions of the software program, and processes the data of the software program. When data needs to be sent wirelessly, the processor performs baseband processing on the data to be sent and outputs the baseband signal to the RF circuit. The RF circuit processes the baseband signal to obtain an RF signal and transmits the RF signal to the outside in the form of electromagnetic waves via the antenna. When data is sent to the terminal, the RF circuit receives the RF signal via the antenna, which is further converted into a baseband signal and output to the processor. The processor converts the baseband signal into data and processes the data.

[0203] For ease of explanation, FIG8 shows only one memory and processor. In an actual terminal, there may be multiple processors and memories. The memory may also be referred to as a storage medium or storage device, etc., which is not limited in the present embodiment.

[0204] In one embodiment, the antenna is configured to perform the operations performed by the transceiver unit 601 in the above embodiment. The processor is configured to perform the operations performed by the processing unit 602 in the above embodiment. The terminal may also be configured to perform the method performed by the first terminal or the second terminal in the method embodiments of FIG. 4 or FIG. 5 , which will not be described in detail herein.

[0205] An embodiment of the present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon. When the program is executed by a processor, the program can implement the process related to the first terminal or the second terminal in the communication method provided in the above method embodiment.

[0206] The present application also provides a computer program product for storing a computer program that, when executed on a computer (or processor), causes the computer to perform one or more steps of any of the aforementioned communication methods. If the various component modules of the aforementioned devices are implemented as software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium.

[0207] An embodiment of the present application provides a chip, including a processor, for calling and executing instructions stored in a memory, so that a communication device equipped with the chip executes any of the above methods.

[0208] An embodiment of the present application also provides another chip, comprising: an input interface, an output interface, and a processing circuit, wherein the input interface, the output interface, and the circuit are connected via an internal connection path, and the processing circuit is configured to execute any of the above methods. Optionally, the chip also includes a memory. The input interface, the output interface, the processor, and the memory are connected via an internal connection path, and the processor is configured to execute code in the memory. When the code is executed, the processor is configured to execute any of the above methods.

[0209] The present application also provides a chip system, comprising at least one processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface and the at least one processor are interconnected via a circuit, and the at least one processor is configured to execute a computer program or instruction to perform any of the aforementioned methods. The chip system may be composed of a chip alone, or may include a chip and other discrete components.

[0210] An embodiment of the present application further provides a communication system, which includes a first terminal and a second terminal. For a specific description, reference may be made to any method shown in FIG. 4 or FIG. 5 .

[0211] An embodiment of the present application also provides another communication system, which includes a first terminal, a second terminal, and an access network. For a specific description, reference may be made to the method shown in FIG. 4 or FIG. 5 .

[0212] It should be understood that the memory mentioned in the embodiment of the present application can be a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory, or can include both volatile and non-volatile memories. Wherein, the non-volatile memory can be a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid-state drive (SSD), a ROM, a programmable read-only memory (PROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM) or a flash memory. The volatile memory can be a RAM, which is used as an external cache. The memory is any other medium that can be used to carry or store a desired program code in the form of an instruction or data structure and can be accessed by a computer, but is not limited thereto. The memory in the embodiment of the present application can also be a circuit or other arbitrarily capable of realizing a storage function, for storing program instructions and / or data.

[0213] It should also be understood that the processor mentioned in the embodiments of the present application may be a central processing unit (CPU), or may be other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSP), application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC), field programmable gate arrays (FPGA) or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components, etc. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or the processor or any conventional processor, etc.

[0214] It should be noted that when the processor is a general-purpose processor, DSP, ASIC, FPGA or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic device, discrete hardware component, the memory (storage module) is integrated into the processor.

[0215] It should be noted that the memory described herein is intended to include, but not be limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0216] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the units and algorithm steps of each example described in conjunction with the embodiments provided herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are performed in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professional and technical personnel can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

[0217] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, devices and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are merely schematic. For example, the division of units is only a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods, such as multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. Another point is that the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be through some interfaces, indirect coupling or communication connection of devices or units, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0218] Units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate, and components shown as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of these units may be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0219] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit.

[0220] The steps in the method of the embodiment of the present application can be adjusted in order, combined and deleted according to actual needs. The steps of each embodiment can be partially executed (for example, the terminal may not execute the steps performed by the terminal in the above embodiment). The execution order of different steps can be changed. The embodiments described herein can be combined with other embodiments, different embodiments can be combined with each other, and different steps of different embodiments of this document can be combined.

[0221] The modules / units in the device of the embodiment of the present application can be merged, divided and deleted according to actual needs.

[0222] Reference herein to an "embodiment" means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment may be included in at least one embodiment of the present application. The appearance of the phrase in various places in the specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, nor is it an independent or alternative embodiment mutually exclusive of other embodiments.

[0223] In this application, it may refer to a communication protocol or specification, such as the 3GPP communication protocol.

[0224] The terms "first", "second", "third", "fourth", etc. (if any) in the embodiments of the present application are used to distinguish similar objects and are not necessarily used to describe a specific order or sequence.

[0225] In the embodiments of the present application, "include" can be an inclusion relationship or an equality relationship. For example, A includes B, which means that A includes B and can also include other content, or A and B are the same content.

[0226] In the description of this application, unless otherwise specified, " / " indicates that the objects associated before and after are in an "or" relationship. For example, A / B can represent A or B. "And / or" in this application is only a description of the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that there can be three relationships. For example, A and / or B can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. In addition, in the description of this application, unless otherwise specified, "multiple" refers to two or more than two. "At least one of the following items" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single items or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can represent: a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, or abc, where a, b, c can be single or multiple.

[0227] It should be understood that in the various embodiments of the present application, the order of the sequence numbers of the above-mentioned processes does not necessarily indicate the order of execution. The order of execution of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of the present application. The embodiments of the present application disclose a communication method and related apparatus that can alleviate the burden of access network equipment on caching downlink data of terminal equipment.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that: The method is applied to a first terminal, and the method includes: Receiving first information from a second terminal, the first information including coverage availability information, the coverage availability information being used to indicate a location and a time period of a coverage scenario and / or a non-coverage scenario; According to the first information, an energy-saving state is entered, or a first method is adopted to access a network, where the first method is a direct communication method or an indirect communication method.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The coverage availability information is satellite coverage availability information.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The first information also includes information of the second terminal, and the information of the second terminal includes at least one of the following: air interface delay, battery status, and network access method, where the network access method is accessing the network through a ground network device or accessing the network through a non-ground network device.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that The first information also includes orbit information of the non-ground network equipment.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that When the first mode is an indirect communication mode, the method further includes: Determining, according to the first information, that the second terminal is a target terminal of the first terminal; The accessing the network in the first manner includes: The target terminal accesses the network.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that The determining, according to the first information, that the second terminal is a target terminal of the first terminal includes: According to the first information and a network connection requirement of the first terminal, the second terminal is determined to be a target terminal of the first terminal.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that The network connection requirement includes at least one of the following: a time requirement for network connection, a location requirement for network connection, a battery status requirement for network connection, and a track information requirement for network connection; The time requirement for the network connection includes a time connection requirement and / or an air interface delay requirement, the time connection requirement is used to indicate the network connection time required by the first terminal, and the location requirement is used to indicate the network connection location required by the first terminal.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that The method further comprises: Second information is received from the second terminal, where the second information includes a first indication and / or a network access method of the second terminal, and the first indication is used to indicate that the second terminal has the first information.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that Before receiving the first information from the second terminal, the method further includes: The network connection requirement of the first terminal and / or third information is sent to the second terminal, where the third information is used to trigger the second terminal to send the first information to the first terminal.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that The third information includes a second indication, where the second indication is used to instruct the second terminal to send the first information to the first terminal.

11. A communication method, characterized in that: The method is applied to a second terminal, and the method includes: Acquire first information, where the first information includes coverage availability information, where the coverage availability information is used to indicate a location and a time period of a coverage scene and / or a non-coverage scene; The first information is sent to the first terminal.

12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that The sending the first information to the first terminal includes: When the second terminal is in the coverage scenario, the first information is sent to the first terminal.

13. The method according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that: The coverage availability information is satellite coverage availability information.

14. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 13, characterized in that The first information also includes information of the second terminal, and the information of the second terminal includes at least one of the following: air interface delay, battery status, and network access method, where the network access method is accessing the network through a ground network device or accessing the network through a non-ground network device.

15. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 14, characterized in that The first information also includes orbit information of the non-ground network device.

16. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 15, characterized in that The method further comprises: Sending second information to the first terminal, wherein the second information includes a first instruction and / or a network access method of the second terminal, The first indication is used to indicate that the second terminal has the first information.

17. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 16, characterized in that Before sending the first information to the first terminal, the method further includes: Receive third information from the first terminal and / or a network connection requirement of the first terminal, where the third information is used to trigger the second terminal to send the first information to the first terminal.

18. The method according to claim 17, characterized in that The third information includes a second indication, where the second indication is used to instruct the second terminal to send the first information to the first terminal.

19. The method according to claim 17, characterized in that The network connection requirement includes at least one of the following: a time requirement for network connection, a location requirement for network connection, a battery status requirement for network connection, and a track information requirement for network connection; The time requirement for the network connection includes a time connection requirement and / or an air interface delay requirement, the time connection requirement is used to indicate the network connection time required by the first terminal, and the location requirement is used to indicate the network connection location required by the first terminal.

20. A communication device, characterized in that: The method comprises a unit for executing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, or comprises a unit for executing the method according to any one of claims 11 to 19.

21. A communication device, characterized in that: The invention comprises a processor and a storage medium, wherein the storage medium stores instructions, and when the instructions are executed by the processor, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10 is implemented, or the method according to any one of claims 11 to 19 is implemented.

22. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The computer-readable storage medium comprises instructions, and when the instructions are executed by a processor, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10 is implemented, or the method according to any one of claims 11 to 19 is implemented.

23. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises the method of any one of claims 1 to 10, or the method comprises the method of any one of claims 11 to 19.

24. A communication system, characterized in that: The communication system comprises a first terminal and a second terminal, the first terminal being configured to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, and the second terminal being configured to execute the method according to any one of claims 11 to 19.

25. A computer program product, characterized in that The computer program product is used to store a computer program, and when the computer program is run on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, or the computer is caused to execute the method according to any one of claims 11 to 19.

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