Ta acquisition method, apparatus, terminal device and network device

Abstract

Disclosed in the present application are a TA acquisition method, an apparatus, a terminal device, and a network device. The method comprises: a terminal device receiving first signaling sent by a network device, wherein the first signaling is used for instructing or configuring or activating a first operation on a first cell, and the first operation comprises at least one of the following: measurement, downlink synchronization, and uplink synchronization; and the terminal device executing the first operation on the first cell, and, on the basis of the first operation, acquiring a TA of the first cell.

Description

TA acquisition method and device, terminal equipment, and network equipment

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application is based on the Chinese patent application with application number 202310773398.1 and application date of June 27, 2023, and claims the priority of the Chinese patent application. The entire content of the Chinese patent application is hereby introduced into this application as a reference. Technical Field

[0003] The present application relates to the field of wireless communication technology, and in particular to a TA acquisition method and apparatus, terminal equipment, and network equipment. Background Art

[0004] Cell handovers can cause data transmission interruption delays. To reduce this delay, a terminal device must perform both downlink and uplink synchronization with the target cell before performing a cell handover. Uplink synchronization relies on obtaining the timing advance (TA), and how to manage TA acquisition by the terminal device needs to be clarified.

[0005] Summary of the Invention

[0006] Embodiments of the present application provide a TA acquisition method and apparatus, a terminal device, a network device, a chip, and a computer-readable storage medium.

[0007] The TA acquisition method provided in the embodiment of the present application includes:

[0008] The terminal device receives first signaling sent by the network device, where the first signaling is used to instruct, configure, or activate a first operation on the first cell, where the first operation includes at least one of the following: measurement, downlink synchronization, and uplink synchronization;

[0009] The terminal device performs a first operation on the first cell, and obtains the TA of the first cell based on the first operation.

[0010] The TA acquisition method provided in the embodiment of the present application includes:

[0011] The network device sends a first signaling to the terminal device, where the first signaling is used to instruct, configure, or activate a first operation on a first cell, where the first operation includes at least one of the following: measurement, downlink synchronization, and uplink synchronization; wherein the first operation is used to obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0012] The TA acquisition device provided in an embodiment of the present application is applied to a terminal device, and the device includes:

[0013] a receiving unit configured to receive first signaling sent by a network device, where the first signaling is used to instruct, configure, or activate a first operation on a first cell, where the first operation includes at least one of the following: measurement, downlink synchronization, and uplink synchronization;

[0014] The determining unit is configured to perform a first operation on the first cell and obtain a TA of the first cell based on the first operation.

[0015] The TA acquisition device provided in an embodiment of the present application is applied to a network device, and the device includes:

[0016] A sending unit is configured to send a first signaling to a terminal device, wherein the first signaling is used to indicate, configure, or activate a first operation on a first cell, wherein the first operation includes at least one of the following: measurement, downlink synchronization, and uplink synchronization; wherein the first operation is used to obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0017] The terminal device provided in an embodiment of the present application includes: a processor and a memory, the memory is used to store a computer program, and the processor is used to call and run the computer program stored in the memory to execute any of the above-mentioned TA acquisition methods.

[0018] The network device provided in an embodiment of the present application includes: a processor and a memory, the memory is used to store a computer program, and the processor is used to call and run the computer program stored in the memory to execute any of the above-mentioned TA acquisition methods.

[0019] The chip provided in an embodiment of the present application includes: a processor, which is used to call and run a computer program from a memory, so that a device equipped with the chip executes any of the above methods.

[0020] The computer-readable storage medium provided in an embodiment of the present application is used to store a computer program, and the computer program enables a computer to execute any one of the above methods.

[0021] In the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application, the network device performs a first operation on the first cell through a first signaling instruction, configuration, or activation, and the terminal device performs the first operation on the first cell and obtains the TA of the first cell based on the first operation. In this way, the network device manages the terminal device's acquisition of the TA through the first signaling, provides a guarantee for uplink synchronization before cell switching, and reduces the data transmission interruption delay caused by cell switching. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with the present disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the present disclosure.

[0023] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario of an embodiment of the present application;

[0024] Figure 2-1 is a flowchart of TA acquisition method 1;

[0025] Figure 2-2 is a schematic diagram of the process of TA acquisition method 2;

[0026] FIG3 is a flow chart of a TA acquisition method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0027] FIG4 is a second flow chart of the TA acquisition method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0028] FIG5 is a third flow chart of the TA acquisition method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0029] FIG6 is a schematic diagram of a communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0030] FIG7-1 is a schematic diagram 1 of calculating TA2 provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0031] FIG7-2 is a second schematic diagram of calculating TA2 provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0032] FIG7-3 is a third schematic diagram of calculating TA2 provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0033] FIG8 is a schematic diagram of the first structure of a TA acquisition device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0034] FIG9 is a second schematic diagram of the structure of the TA acquisition device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0035] FIG10 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0036] FIG11 is a schematic structural diagram of a chip according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0037] The following will describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of this application. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of this application, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in this application, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without making creative efforts are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0038] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario of an embodiment of the present application.

[0039] As shown in Figure 1, a communication system 100 may include a terminal device 110 and a network device 120. The network device 120 may communicate with the terminal device 110 via an air interface.

[0040] It should be understood that the embodiments of the present application are only illustrative of the communication system 100, but the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto. In other words, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application can be applied to various communication systems, such as: 5G communication systems (also known as New Radio (NR) communication systems), or future communication systems.

[0041] In the communication system 100 shown in Figure 1, the network device 120 may be an access network device that communicates with the terminal device 110. The access network device may provide communication coverage for a specific geographical area and may communicate with the terminal device 110 (eg, UE) located within the coverage area.

[0042] The network device 120 may be a base station (gNB) in the NR system, or a network device in a future evolved public land mobile network (PLMN), etc.

[0043] The terminal device 110 may be any terminal device, including but not limited to a terminal device connected to the network device 120 or other terminal devices by wire or wireless connection.

[0044] For example, the terminal device 110 may refer to an access terminal, user equipment (UE), a subscriber unit, a subscriber station, a mobile station, a mobile station, a remote station, a remote terminal, a mobile device, a user terminal, a terminal, a wireless communication device, a user agent, or a user apparatus. An access terminal may be a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phone, an IoT device, a satellite handheld terminal, 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 device in a 5G network, or a terminal device in a future evolution network, etc.

[0045] It should be noted that Figure 1 is merely an example of a system applicable to this application. Of course, the methods described in the embodiments of this application can also be applied to other systems. Furthermore, the terms "system" and "network" are often used interchangeably herein. The term "and / or" herein simply describes an association relationship between associated objects, indicating that three possible relationships exist. For example, "A and / or B" can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, or B exists alone. Furthermore, the character " / " generally indicates that the associated objects are in an "or" relationship. It should also be understood that the "indication" mentioned in the embodiments of this application can be a direct indication, an indirect indication, or an indication of an association relationship. For example, "A indicates B" can mean that A directly indicates B, for example, B can obtain information through A; it can also mean that A indirectly indicates B, for example, A indicates C, and B can obtain information through C; or it can mean that A and B have an association relationship. It should also be understood that the "correspondence" mentioned in the embodiments of this application can mean that there is a direct or indirect correspondence between two objects, or that there is an association relationship between the two objects, or a relationship between an indicator and the indicated, a configuration and the configured, and so on. It should also be understood that the “predefined” or “predefined rules” mentioned in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented by pre-saving corresponding codes, tables or other methods that can be used to indicate relevant information in a device (for example, including a terminal device and a network device). The present application does not limit its specific implementation method. For example, predefined can refer to a definition in a protocol. It should also be understood that in the embodiments of the present application, the “protocol” may refer to a standard protocol in the field of communications, for example, it may include the NR protocol and related protocols used in future communication systems, and the present application does not limit this.

[0046] To facilitate understanding of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the relevant technologies of the embodiments of the present application are described below. The following relevant technologies can be arbitrarily combined with the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application as optional solutions, and they all fall within the protection scope of the embodiments of the present application.

[0047] In the mobility enhancement project, mobility enhancement based on layer 1 / layer 2 measurement is introduced, hoping to reduce the data transmission interruption delay (interruption time) caused by the terminal equipment when switching cells. By performing downlink synchronization and uplink synchronization on the target cell to be switched before the cell switching, the data transmission interruption delay can be effectively reduced. Among them, the implementation of uplink synchronization depends on the acquisition of TA. Regarding the acquisition of TA, the relevant projects agreed to obtain TA before performing cell switching. The acquisition of TA can include two methods, one is the Random Access Channel (RACH) method, that is, the TA of the target cell is obtained based on the transmission of the Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH), and the other is the RACH-less method, that is, the TA of the target cell is obtained not based on PRACH transmission. The two methods are explained below:

[0048] TA acquisition method 1: The terminal device sends PRACH to the target cell, so that the target cell measures the TA and sends the measured TA to the terminal device.

[0049] TA acquisition method 2: The terminal device calculates the TA through the time difference between two cells or the time difference between the arrival of signal transmissions from two cells.

[0050] For the above-mentioned TA acquisition method 1, the terminal device sends PRACH to the target cell. When the target cell receives the PRACH and measures the TA, the TA can be directly informed to the terminal device, or the serving cell informs the terminal device of the TA, so that the terminal device can obtain the TA of the target cell.

[0051] As shown in Figure 2-1, the specific process includes the following steps:

[0052] 1) The serving cell instructs the UE to send a PRACH to the candidate cell.

[0053] 2) The UE sends PRACH to the candidate cell according to the instruction of the serving cell.

[0054] 3-1) The candidate cell informs the UE of the obtained TA.

[0055] 3-2) The candidate cell informs the serving cell of the obtained TA.

[0056] 4) The serving cell informs the UE of the TA of the candidate cell.

[0057] 5) The serving cell sends a handover command to the UE, instructing the UE to handover to the target cell (ie, the candidate cell).

[0058] Here, before the UE performs cell switching, the serving cell can know that the UE has acquired the TA of the target cell, so that a switching command can be sent to allow the UE to switch to the target cell.

[0059] In the above-mentioned TA acquisition method 2, the TA is acquired by the terminal device, so the serving cell does not know whether the terminal device has acquired the TA of the target cell. Therefore, the serving cell does not know whether it can send a handover command to the terminal device.

[0060] As shown in Figure 2-2, the specific process includes the following steps:

[0061] 1), 2), and 3) The serving cell sends a downlink signal, candidate cell #1 sends a downlink signal, and candidate cell #2 sends a downlink signal. The downlink signal can be a synchronization signal block (SSB) or other downlink signal.

[0062] 4) The UE calculates the TA of candidate cell #1 based on the time difference between downlink signal reception between the serving cell and candidate cell #1, and the TA of the serving cell. The UE calculates the TA of candidate cell #2 based on the time difference between downlink signal reception between the serving cell and candidate cell #2, and the TA of the serving cell.

[0063] After 4), the serving cell does not know whether the UE has obtained the TA of the target cell (eg, candidate cell #1 or candidate cell #2).

[0064] 5) The serving cell sends a handover command to the UE, instructing the UE to handover to the target cell.

[0065] Here, by measuring the downlink signals of multiple cells, the UE can obtain the arrival time of the downlink signal from each cell, and then obtain the time difference of the downlink signal reception of each candidate cell compared to the serving cell. The UE can calculate the TA from the UE to each candidate cell based on this time difference. However, the serving cell has no way of knowing when the UE completes obtaining the TA, resulting in the serving cell being unable to clearly determine when to send a switching command to the UE. In addition, in some scenarios, due to factors such as the downlink timing error between cells and the conversion time between uplink and downlink in the implementation of the cell, the TA of the candidate cell cannot be accurately obtained based solely on the time difference of the downlink signal reception of multiple cells.

[0066] To this end, the following technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application are proposed.

[0067] To facilitate understanding of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the technical solutions of the present application are described in detail below through specific embodiments. The above related technologies can be combined arbitrarily with the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application as optional solutions, and all of them fall within the scope of protection of the embodiments of the present application. The embodiments of the present application include at least part of the following contents.

[0068] It should be noted that the “network device” described in the embodiments of the present application may be a base station or transmission node corresponding to a serving cell.

[0069] It should be noted that the “first cell” described in the embodiments of the present application may be a “candidate cell” or a “target cell”.

[0070] It should be noted that the "second cell" described in the embodiments of the present application may be a "reference cell" or a "serving cell" or a "target cell" or a "candidate cell".

[0071] It should be noted that the "third cell" described in the embodiments of the present application may be a "target cell" or a "handover target cell".

[0072] It should be noted that the first cell refers to a cell to be measured, and the number of cells to be measured may be one or more. The third cell refers to a target cell for cell handover or a handover target cell, which is a designated cell and may be one of the cells to be measured.

[0073] It should be noted that the terms "indication" and "configuration" described in the embodiments of the present application may be interchangeable. For example, the term "first signaling is used to indicate that a first operation is to be performed on a first cell" described in the embodiments of the present application may also be "first signaling is used to configure that a first operation is to be performed on the first cell."

[0074] FIG3 is a flow chart of a TA acquisition method according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG3 , the TA acquisition method includes the following steps:

[0075] Step 301: The terminal device receives a first signaling sent by a network device, where the first signaling is used to instruct, configure, or activate a first operation on a first cell, where the first operation includes at least one of the following: measurement, downlink synchronization, and uplink synchronization.

[0076] In an embodiment of the present application, a terminal device receives a first signaling sent by a network device. In some embodiments, the first signaling is a Media Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE). In other embodiments, the first signaling is a Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling.

[0077] In the embodiment of the present application, the first signaling is used to instruct, configure, or activate a first operation on the first cell, and the first operation includes at least one of the following: measurement, downlink synchronization, and uplink synchronization. Here, uplink synchronization can be acquisition of uplink timing or acquisition of TA.

[0078] It should be noted that measurement specifically refers to: the terminal device measuring or receiving the downlink signal of the cell. The downlink signal can be SSB or other types of downlink signals.

[0079] It should be noted that downlink synchronization / uplink synchronization is achieved based on measurement. Downlink synchronization / uplink synchronization can be achieved by measuring the downlink signal of the cell. Specifically, by measuring the downlink signal of the cell (such as SSB), downlink synchronization can be achieved. By measuring the downlink signal of the cell (such as SSB), uplink timing or TA can be obtained, thereby achieving uplink synchronization.

[0080] It should be noted that the number of the first cells may be one or more. For example, the number of the first cells is 3, and the first signaling is used to instruct, configure, or activate the first operation for cell 1, cell 2, and cell 3.

[0081] As an example: the base station configures one or more first cells, such as one or more candidate cells. The base station instructs, configures, or activates the terminal device to perform a first operation on the first cell through first signaling, wherein the first signaling includes one or more IDs of the first cells (such as candidate cells) or configuration IDs of the first cell (such as candidate cell configuration), and the cell indicated by the ID is the cell that needs to be measured and / or downlink synchronized and / or uplink synchronized.

[0082] In some implementations, the first signaling includes uplink scheduling information or uplink grant information. The uplink resource transmission indicated by the uplink scheduling information or uplink grant information can be used by the terminal device to send information to the network device, such as the first information below.

[0083] Step 302: The terminal device performs a first operation on the first cell, and obtains the TA of the first cell based on the first operation.

[0084] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal device performs a first operation on the first cell, and obtains the TA of the first cell based on the first operation, which can be achieved through any of the following solutions.

[0085] Option 1

[0086] In some implementations, the terminal device determines a first time difference between the first cell and the second cell based on the first operation. Further, the terminal device determines a TA of the first cell based on a TA of the second cell and the first time difference.

[0087] Here, the first time difference between the first cell and the second cell may be a downlink timing time difference between the first cell and the second cell, or may be a downlink receive timing time difference (RX timing difference) between the first cell and the second cell.

[0088] As an example: the TA of the second cell is TA1, the first time difference is offset, and the TA of the first cell is TA2, then: TA2=TA1+2*offset.

[0089] Option 2

[0090] In some implementations, the first signaling includes a second time offset corresponding to the first cell. On this basis, the terminal device determines the TA of the first cell based on the TA of the second cell, the first time difference, and the second time offset.

[0091] In some implementations, the second time offset corresponding to the first cell includes at least one of the following:

[0092] Uplink TA adjusts the corresponding time offset;

[0093] The time offset corresponding to the downlink timing error;

[0094] Time offset corresponding to uplink and downlink switching.

[0095] Here, the downlink timing error refers to the downlink timing error between the first cell and the second cell.

[0096] Here, the second time offset may include the adjustment value of the uplink TA (i.e., the time offset corresponding to the uplink TA adjustment) and / or the time offset caused by the downlink timing error (i.e., the time offset corresponding to the downlink timing error) and / or the time offset caused by the uplink-downlink conversion (i.e., the time offset corresponding to the uplink-downlink conversion).

[0097] Here, the second time offset may be used by the terminal device to correct or calculate the TA when performing TA calculation.

[0098] As an example: the TA of the second cell is TA1, the first time difference is offset, the second time offset includes the time offset (Delta) corresponding to the downlink timing error, and the TA of the first cell is TA2, then: TA2=TA1+2*(offset+Delta).

[0099] As an example: the TA of the second cell is TA1, the first time difference is offset, the second time offset includes the time offset (X) corresponding to the uplink and downlink conversion, and the TA of the first cell is TA2, then: TA2=TA1+2*offset-X.

[0100] As an example: the TA of the second cell is TA1, the first time difference is offset, the second time offset includes the time offset (Delta) corresponding to the downlink timing error and the time offset (X) corresponding to the uplink and downlink conversion, and the TA of the first cell is TA2, then: TA2 = TA1 + 2*(offset + Delta) - X.

[0101] In some implementations, the identification / confirmation / determination that "the terminal device is able to obtain the TA of the first cell" may be achieved through the following solutions:

[0102] Plan A

[0103] Method 1) After receiving the first signaling, the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0104] Here, the first signaling may be RRC signaling. The network device and / or the terminal device determines / confirms / determines / assumes that after the terminal device receives the first signaling, the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0105] Method 2) After a first time has passed after receiving the first signaling, the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0106] Here, the first signaling may be RRC signaling. The network device and / or the terminal device determines / confirms / determines / assumes that the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell after a first time has passed since the terminal device received the first signaling.

[0107] Method 3) After a second time has passed since the confirmation message corresponding to the first signaling was sent, the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0108] Here, the first signaling may be MAC CE, and the confirmation message corresponding to the first signaling may be HARQ-ACK information. The network device and / or the terminal device determines / confirms / determines / assumes that the terminal device is able to obtain the TA of the first cell after a second time has passed after the terminal device sends the confirmation message corresponding to the first signaling.

[0109] Plan B

[0110] In some implementations, after the terminal device acquires the TA of the first cell, the terminal device sends first information or second signaling to the network device. The first information or second signaling is used to indicate that the terminal device has acquired the TA of the first cell.

[0111] Here, the first information or the second signaling may instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of part or all of the first cell.

[0112] As an example: the network device instructs, configures, or activates, through first signaling, a first operation on cell 1, cell 2, and cell 3. The terminal device performs the first operation on cell 1, cell 2, and cell 3, obtains the TA of cell 1 and cell 2, and indicates to the network device through first information or second signaling that the terminal device has obtained the TA of cell 1 and cell 2.

[0113] As an example: the network device instructs, configures, or activates, through first signaling, a first operation on cell 1, cell 2, and cell 3. The terminal device performs the first operation on cell 1, cell 2, and cell 3, obtains the TAs of cell 1, cell 2, and cell 3, and indicates to the network device through first information or second signaling that the terminal device has obtained the TAs of cell 1, cell 2, and cell 3.

[0114] The specific implementation scheme of the above-mentioned first information or second signaling is described below.

[0115] Implementation 1) In some embodiments, the first information includes at least one of the following: a first time difference between the first cell and the second cell, a TA of the first cell, an identifier of the first cell, and first indication information, where the first indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell. Here, the first cell may be one or more candidate cells or a target cell.

[0116] Here, the first signaling may include information such as the ID of the cell whose TA the terminal device has acquired by the time of the uplink transmission scheduled by the first signaling. Here, the first signaling may only include the ID of the cell to indicate the cell for which TA acquisition has been completed. Alternatively, the first signaling may also include the ID of the cell and information such as the corresponding TA and / or downlink timing time difference and / or downlink reception timing time difference. The first signaling may also include indication information for indicating that the terminal has acquired the TA of all cells indicated by the first signaling. The first signaling may also include indication information for indicating that the terminal has acquired the TA of one or more cells indicated by the first signaling.

[0117] Furthermore, in some embodiments, the first information is transmitted via a first uplink resource; the first uplink resource is indicated by uplink scheduling information included in the first signaling; or, the first uplink resource is obtained via a scheduling request (SR) of the terminal device.

[0118] Here, the uplink scheduling information may also be replaced by uplink grant (UL grant) information.

[0119] Here, after executing the first operation, the terminal device transmits the first information using the first uplink resource scheduled by the first signaling; or, after executing the first operation, the terminal device makes a scheduling request for uplink transmission and transmits the first information using the obtained first uplink resource.

[0120] Implementation 2) In some implementations, the second signaling is a specific SR, and the specific SR is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0121] Here, the SR may be configured based on RRC signaling.

[0122] Implementation 3) In some implementations, the first information is reporting information of the first cell, and the reporting information of the first cell is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0123] Here, the reporting information is reported in a periodic reporting mode, a semi-continuous reporting mode, or an aperiodic reporting mode.

[0124] Furthermore, in some implementations, the reporting information is transmitted via a second uplink resource; the second uplink resource is indicated by uplink grant (UL grant) information included in the first signaling.

[0125] Here, the reporting information may be channel state information (CSI) reporting information. The CSI reporting information may include at least one of the following: reference signal receiving power (RSRP), channel quality indication (CQI), CSI-RS resource indication (CRI), SSB index (SSB index), signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR), and other information. More specifically, it may include at least one of the following: cri-RI-PMI-CQI, cri-RI-i1, cri-RI-i1-CQI, cri-RI-CQI, cri-RSRP, cri-SINR, ssb-Index-RSRP, ssb-Index-SINR, cri-RI-LI-PMI-CQI, cri-RSRP-Index, ssb-Index-RSRP-Index, cri-SINR-Index, ssb-Index-SINR-Index.

[0126] In some embodiments, after the terminal device obtains the TA of the first cell, the method further includes: the terminal device receives a switching command sent by the network device, the switching command is used to instruct the terminal device to switch to the third cell; wherein the switching command includes at least one of the following: an identifier of the third cell, and a TA of the third cell.

[0127] In some implementations, the third cell may be a cell other than the first cell.

[0128] In other implementations, the third cell may be a cell within the range of the first cell, that is, the third cell may be a cell in the first cell (the first cell may be multiple cells).

[0129] Here, the third cell refers to a target cell for cell handover or a handover target cell, which is a designated cell. The third cell may be one of the cells performing the first operation.

[0130] Here, the handover command may be a handover instruction of a third cell or a cell switch instruction.

[0131] In some embodiments, if the handover command includes the TA of the third cell, the terminal device uses the TA of the third cell included in the handover command to perform uplink transmission on the third cell; and / or if the handover command does not include the TA of the third cell, the terminal device uses the calculated TA of the third cell to perform uplink transmission on the third cell. Here, the calculated TA of the third cell may also be a TA measured by the terminal device.

[0132] FIG4 is a second flow chart of a TA acquisition method provided in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG4 , the TA acquisition method includes the following steps:

[0133] Step 401: The network device sends a first signaling to the terminal device, where the first signaling is used to instruct, configure, or activate a first operation on a first cell, where the first operation includes at least one of the following: measurement, downlink synchronization, and uplink synchronization; wherein the first operation is used to obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0134] In an embodiment of the present application, a network device sends a first signaling to a terminal device. In some embodiments, the first signaling is a MAC CE. In other embodiments, the first signaling is an RRC signaling.

[0135] In the embodiment of the present application, the first signaling is used to instruct, configure, or activate a first operation on the first cell, and the first operation includes at least one of the following: measurement, downlink synchronization, and uplink synchronization. Here, uplink synchronization can be acquisition of uplink timing or acquisition of TA.

[0136] It should be noted that measurement specifically refers to: the terminal device measuring or receiving the downlink signal of the cell. The downlink signal can be SSB or other types of downlink signals.

[0137] It should be noted that downlink synchronization / uplink synchronization is achieved based on measurement. Downlink synchronization / uplink synchronization can be achieved by measuring the downlink signal of the cell. Specifically, by measuring the downlink signal of the cell (such as SSB), downlink synchronization can be achieved. By measuring the downlink signal of the cell (such as SSB), uplink timing or TA can be obtained, thereby achieving uplink synchronization.

[0138] It should be noted that the number of the first cells may be one or more. For example, the number of the first cells is 3, and the first signaling is used to instruct, configure, or activate the first operation for cell 1, cell 2, and cell 3.

[0139] In some implementations, the first signaling includes a second time offset corresponding to the first cell. The second time offset is used by the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell. The specific acquisition method can refer to the solution related to FIG. 3 above.

[0140] In some implementations, the second time offset corresponding to the first cell includes at least one of the following:

[0141] Uplink TA adjusts the corresponding time offset;

[0142] The time offset corresponding to the downlink timing error;

[0143] Time offset corresponding to uplink and downlink switching.

[0144] Here, the second time offset may include the adjustment value of the uplink TA (i.e., the time offset corresponding to the uplink TA adjustment) and / or the time offset caused by the downlink timing error (i.e., the time offset corresponding to the downlink timing error) and / or the time offset caused by the uplink-downlink conversion (i.e., the time offset corresponding to the uplink-downlink conversion).

[0145] Here, the downlink timing error refers to the downlink timing error between the first cell and the second cell.

[0146] In some implementations, the identification / confirmation / determination that "the terminal device is able to obtain the TA of the first cell" may be achieved through the following solutions:

[0147] Plan A

[0148] Method 1) After sending the first signaling, the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0149] Here, the first signaling may be RRC signaling. The network device determines / confirms / determines / assumes that, after the network device sends the first signaling, the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0150] Method 2) After a first time has passed since the first signaling was sent, the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0151] Here, the first signaling may be RRC signaling. The network device determines / confirms / determines / assumes that the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell after a first time has passed after the network device sends the first signaling.

[0152] Method 3) After a second time has passed since receiving the confirmation message corresponding to the first signaling, the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0153] Here, the first signaling may be MAC CE, and the confirmation message corresponding to the first signaling may be HARQ-ACK information. The network device determines / confirms / determines / assumes that the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell after a second time has passed after the network device receives the confirmation message corresponding to the first signaling.

[0154] For the above-mentioned solution A, the terminal device does not need to provide feedback to the network device. The network device believes that the terminal device can calculate or obtain the TA of the first cell through the first operation. Alternatively, the network device believes that the error of the terminal device in the TA of the first cell can be adjusted in subsequent uplink transmission, or that the error does not affect the uplink transmission quality. After the network device confirms that the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell, it can send a handover instruction to the terminal device.

[0155] Plan B

[0156] In some implementations, the network device receives first information or second signaling sent by the terminal device, where the first information or second signaling is used to instruct the terminal device to acquire the TA of the first cell.

[0157] Here, the first information or the second signaling may instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of part or all of the first cell.

[0158] As an example: the network device instructs, configures, or activates, through first signaling, a first operation on cell 1, cell 2, and cell 3. The terminal device performs the first operation on cell 1, cell 2, and cell 4, obtains the TA of cell 1 and cell 2, and indicates to the network device through first information or second signaling that the terminal device has obtained the TA of cell 1 and cell 2.

[0159] As an example: the network device instructs, configures, or activates, through first signaling, a first operation on cell 1, cell 2, and cell 3. The terminal device performs the first operation on cell 1, cell 2, and cell 4, obtains the TAs of cell 1, cell 2, and cell 3, and indicates to the network device through first information or second signaling that the terminal device has obtained the TAs of cell 1, cell 2, and cell 3.

[0160] The specific implementation scheme of the above-mentioned first information or second signaling is described below.

[0161] Implementation 1) In some embodiments, the first information includes at least one of the following: a first time difference between the first cell and the second cell, a TA of the first cell, an identifier of the first cell, and first indication information, where the first indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell. Here, the first cell may be one or more candidate cells or a target cell.

[0162] Furthermore, in some embodiments, the first information is transmitted via a first uplink resource; the first uplink resource is indicated by uplink scheduling information included in the first signaling; or, the first uplink resource is obtained via the SR of the terminal device.

[0163] Here, the uplink scheduling information may also be replaced by uplink grant (UL grant) information.

[0164] Implementation 2) In some implementations, the second signaling is a specific SR, and the specific SR is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0165] Implementation 3) In some implementations, the first information is reporting information of the first cell, and the reporting information of the first cell is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0166] Here, the reporting information is reported in a periodic reporting mode, a semi-continuous reporting mode, or an aperiodic reporting mode.

[0167] Furthermore, in some implementations, the reporting information is transmitted via a second uplink resource; the second uplink resource is indicated by uplink grant (UL grant) information included in the first signaling.

[0168] Here, the reported information may be CSI reporting information. The CSI reporting information may include at least one of the following: RSRP, CQI, CRI, SSB index, SINR, and other information. More specifically, it may include at least one of the following: cri-RI-PMI-CQI, cri-RI-i1, cri-RI-i1-CQI, cri-RI-CQI, cri-RSRP, cri-SINR, ssb-Index-RSRP, ssb-Index-SINR, cri-RI-LI-PMI-CQI, cri-RSRP-Index, ssb-Index-RSRP-Index, cri-SINR-Index, and ssb-Index-SINR-Index.

[0169] In some embodiments, after the network device identifies / confirms / determines / believes through the above-mentioned scheme A or scheme B that the terminal device obtains the TA of the first cell, the method further includes: the network device sends a switching command to the terminal device, and the switching command is used to instruct the terminal device to switch to the third cell; wherein the switching command includes at least one of the following: an identifier of the third cell, and a TA of the third cell.

[0170] Here, the third cell refers to a target cell for cell handover or a handover target cell, which is a designated cell. The third cell may be one of the cells performing the first operation.

[0171] Here, the handover command may be a handover instruction of a third cell or a cell switch instruction.

[0172] FIG5 is a third flow diagram of a TA acquisition method provided in an embodiment of the present application. The base station refers to the base station corresponding to the serving cell, the terminal device is the UE, the first cell includes candidate cell #1 and candidate cell #2 (i.e., the number of first cells is 2), the second cell is the serving cell, and the third cell is candidate cell #1. As shown in FIG5 , the TA acquisition method includes the following steps:

[0173] Step 501: The base station sends a first signaling to the UE, where the first signaling is used to instruct, configure, or activate measurement and / or downlink synchronization and / or uplink synchronization of candidate cell #1 and candidate cell #2.

[0174] Step 502: Candidate cell #1 sends a downlink signal, and candidate cell #2 sends a downlink signal. The downlink signal can be SSB or other types of signals.

[0175] Step 503: The UE measures the downlink signal of candidate cell #1 and the downlink signal of candidate cell #2.

[0176] Step 504: The UE calculates the TA of candidate cell #1 based on the reception time difference of the downlink signal between candidate cell #1 and the serving cell (i.e., the downlink reception timing time difference), the TA of the serving cell, and the second time offset (optional). The UE calculates the TA of candidate cell #2 based on the reception time difference of the downlink signal between candidate cell #2 and the serving cell (i.e., the downlink reception timing time difference), the TA of the serving cell, and the second time offset (optional).

[0177] Step 505: The UE sends the first information or the second signaling to the base station, where the first information or the second signaling is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TAs of the candidate cell #1 and the candidate cell #2.

[0178] Here, the specific implementation of the first information or the second signaling can refer to the solutions related to the aforementioned Figures 3 and 4.

[0179] Step 506: The base station sends a handover command to the UE.

[0180] Here, the handover command may be a handover command to the candidate cell #1 (ie, the target cell) or a cell handover command.

[0181] Here, the handover command may include the ID and TA of the candidate cell #1. In this case, the UE uses the TA included in the handover command to perform uplink transmission to the candidate cell #1.

[0182] Here, the handover command may only include the ID of candidate cell # 1. In this case, the UE uses the calculated TA of candidate cell # 1 (or the measured TA of candidate cell # 1) to perform uplink transmission to candidate cell # 1.

[0183] The following examples illustrate how to calculate a cell's TA, using specific application examples. In the following application examples, the UE calculates the cell's TA based on the downlink receive timing difference. However, this is not limiting; the UE can also calculate the cell's TA based on the downlink timing difference. As shown in Figure 6, Cell 1 and Cell 2 can be Transmitting Node 1 (or Base Station 1) and Transmitting Node 2 (or Base Station 2). Cell 1 sends a downlink signal (e.g., SSB#1) to the UE, and Cell 2 sends a downlink signal (e.g., SSB#2) to the UE.

[0184] Application Example 1

[0185] Refer to Figure 7-1, which shows a schematic diagram of calculating TA2, as follows:

[0186] 1) Determination of TA

[0187] In the case of a single cell, TA is twice the propagation delay, so the TA of cell 1 and cell 2 satisfies the following formula:

[0188] TA1=2*TP1

[0189] TA2=2*TP2

[0190] Among them, TA1 is the TA of cell 1, and TA2 is the TA of cell 2.

[0191] 2) Determination of downlink reception timing difference

[0192] Offset is the downlink reception timing difference, that is, the time difference between the UE receiving the downlink signal from node 1 and node 2. Offset satisfies the following formula:

[0193] Offset=TP2-TP1

[0194] 3) The UE can calculate the TA2 of cell 2 based on TA1 and offset. TA2 satisfies the following formula:

[0195] TA2=TA1+2*offset

[0196] Application Example 2

[0197] Refer to Figure 7-2, which shows a schematic diagram of calculating TA2, as follows:

[0198] 1) Determination of TA

[0199] In the case of a single cell, TA is twice the propagation delay, so the TA of cell 1 and cell 2 satisfies the following formula:

[0200] TA1=2*TP1

[0201] TA2=2*TP2

[0202] Among them, TA1 is the TA of cell 1, and TA2 is the TA of cell 2.

[0203] 2) Determination of downlink reception timing difference

[0204] There is an error in the downlink timing between cells. The error is delta (i.e., the downlink timing error). In this case, the downlink receiving timing time difference Offset satisfies the following formula:

[0205] offset=TP2-TP1+Delta

[0206] Delta can be obtained through interaction between cells or through information reported by other terminals.

[0207] 3) The UE can calculate the TA2 of cell 2 based on TA1 and offset. TA2 satisfies the following formula:

[0208] TA2=TA1+2*(offset+Delta)

[0209] Application Example 3

[0210] Refer to Figure 7-3, which shows a schematic diagram of calculating TA2, as follows:

[0211] 1) Determination of TA

[0212] In the case of a single cell, TA is twice the propagation delay, so the TA of cell 1 and cell 2 satisfies the following formula:

[0213] TA1=2*TP1

[0214] TA2=2*TP2

[0215] Among them, TA1 is the TA of cell 1, and TA2 is the TA of cell 2.

[0216] 2) Determination of downlink reception timing difference

[0217] There is an error in the downlink timing between cells. The error is delta (i.e., the downlink timing error). In this case, the downlink receiving timing time difference Offset satisfies the following formula:

[0218] offset=TP2-TP1+Delta

[0219] Here, Delta can be obtained through interaction between cells or through information reported by other terminals.

[0220] 3) Determination of TA2 for Cell 2

[0221] There is a transition time (gap) X between downlink and uplink transmissions in cell 2. In this case, the UE can calculate TA2 for cell 2 based on TA1, offset, and X. TA2 satisfies the following formula:

[0222] TA2=TA1+2*(offset+Delta)-X

[0223] Here, the uplink / downlink switching time is an implementation parameter of the base station, and may be notified to the UE through further instructions of the base station.

[0224] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application are as follows: 1) the uplink TA is estimated based on the downlink measurement of the UE, which can avoid the delay caused by the scheduling and TA indication introduced by the RACH of the PDCCH order. The UE can calculate the TA of the target cell based on its own measurement and the existing TA information of the current serving cell, which can reduce the delay and improve the flexibility of the UE. 2) the downlink measurement indication is reused, on the one hand, to narrow the cell range for the UE to perform downlink synchronization and TA calculation. At the same time, the feature of multiplexing the indication to indicate downlink measurement or synchronization can better serve the reception time difference based on multiple candidate cells in this solution, reducing the amount of indication and UE calculation. 3) The indication based on the TA in the cell switch or the indication information of the candidate cell is introduced to indicate the uplink TA that the UE needs to use, so as to ensure that the UE has more accurate TA or timing information, and to inform the UE which calculated TA value to use for uplink transmission by reducing the overhead.

[0225] FIG8 is a schematic diagram of the first structure of a TA acquisition device provided in an embodiment of the present application, which is applied to a terminal device. As shown in FIG8 , the TA acquisition device includes:

[0226] A receiving unit 801 is configured to receive first signaling sent by a network device, where the first signaling is used to instruct, configure, or activate a first operation on a first cell, where the first operation includes at least one of the following: measurement, downlink synchronization, and uplink synchronization;

[0227] The determining unit 802 is configured to perform a first operation on the first cell, and obtain a TA of the first cell based on the first operation.

[0228] In some implementations, the determining unit 802 is configured to determine a first time difference between the first cell and the second cell based on the first operation, and to determine a TA of the first cell based on the TA of the second cell and the first time difference.

[0229] In some embodiments, the first signaling includes a second time offset corresponding to the first cell.

[0230] In some implementations, the determining unit 802 is configured to determine the TA of the first cell based on the TA of the second cell, the first time difference, and the second time offset.

[0231] In some embodiments, the second time offset includes at least one of the following:

[0232] Uplink TA adjusts the corresponding time offset;

[0233] The time offset corresponding to the downlink timing error;

[0234] Time offset corresponding to uplink and downlink switching.

[0235] In some embodiments, after receiving the first signaling, the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell; and / or, after a first time has passed after receiving the first signaling, the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell; and / or, after a second time has passed after sending a confirmation message corresponding to the first signaling, the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0236] In some implementations, the apparatus further includes: a sending unit 803 configured to send the first information or the second signaling to the network device.

[0237] In some embodiments, the first information or the second signaling is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0238] In some embodiments, the first information includes at least one of the following: a first time difference between the first cell and the second cell, a TA of the first cell, an identifier of the first cell, and first indication information, wherein the first indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0239] In some embodiments, the first information is transmitted via a first uplink resource;

[0240] The first uplink resource is indicated by uplink scheduling information included in the first signaling; or,

[0241] The first uplink resource is obtained through the SR of the terminal device.

[0242] In some embodiments, the second signaling is a specific SR, and the specific SR is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0243] In some embodiments, the first information is reporting information of the first cell, and the reporting information of the first cell is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0244] In some implementations, the reporting information is reported in a periodic reporting, semi-continuous reporting, or aperiodic reporting manner.

[0245] In some implementations, the reporting information is transmitted via a second uplink resource;

[0246] The second uplink resource is indicated by uplink authorization information included in the first signaling.

[0247] In some embodiments, the receiving unit 801 is configured to receive a switching command sent by the network device, and the switching command is used to instruct the terminal device to switch to a third cell; wherein the switching command includes at least one of the following: an identifier of the third cell, and a TA of the third cell.

[0248] In some embodiments, if the switching command includes the TA of the third cell, the sending unit 803 uses the TA of the third cell included in the switching command to perform uplink transmission to the third cell; and / or, if the switching command does not include the TA of the third cell, the sending unit 803 uses the calculated TA of the third cell to perform uplink transmission to the third cell.

[0249] In some implementations, the first signaling is MAC CE or RRC signaling.

[0250] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the functions implemented by each unit in the TA acquisition device shown in FIG8 can be understood by referring to the relevant description of the aforementioned method. The functions of each unit in the TA acquisition device shown in FIG8 can be implemented by a program running on a processor or by a specific logic circuit.

[0251] FIG9 is a second schematic diagram of the structure of a TA acquisition device provided in an embodiment of the present application, which is applied to a network device. As shown in FIG9 , the TA acquisition device includes:

[0252] The sending unit 901 is configured to send a first signaling to the terminal device, where the first signaling is used to indicate, configure or activate a first operation on the first cell, where the first operation includes at least one of the following: measurement, downlink synchronization, and uplink synchronization; wherein the first operation is used to obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0253] In some embodiments, the first signaling includes a second time offset corresponding to the first cell.

[0254] In some embodiments, the second time offset includes at least one of the following:

[0255] Uplink TA adjusts the corresponding time offset;

[0256] The time offset corresponding to the downlink timing error;

[0257] Time offset corresponding to uplink and downlink switching.

[0258] In some implementations, after sending the first signaling, the terminal device is able to acquire the TA of the first cell; and / or,

[0259] After a first time has passed since the first signaling was sent, the terminal device is able to acquire the TA of the first cell; and / or,

[0260] After a second time has passed since receiving the confirmation message corresponding to the first signaling, the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0261] In some implementations, the apparatus further includes: a receiving unit 902 configured to receive the first information or the second signaling sent by the terminal device.

[0262] In some embodiments, the first information or the second signaling is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0263] In some embodiments, the first information includes at least one of the following: a first time difference between the first cell and the second cell, a TA of the first cell, an identifier of the first cell, and first indication information, wherein the first indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0264] In some embodiments, the first information is transmitted via a first uplink resource;

[0265] The first uplink resource is indicated by uplink scheduling information included in the first signaling; or,

[0266] The first uplink resource is obtained through the SR of the terminal device.

[0267] In some embodiments, the second signaling is a specific SR, and the specific SR is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0268] In some embodiments, the first information is reporting information of the first cell, and the reporting information of the first cell is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

[0269] In some implementations, the reporting information is reported in a periodic reporting, semi-continuous reporting, or aperiodic reporting manner.

[0270] In some implementations, the reporting information is transmitted via a second uplink resource;

[0271] The second uplink resource is indicated by uplink authorization information included in the first signaling.

[0272] In some embodiments, the sending unit 901 is configured to send a switching command to the terminal device, and the switching command is used to instruct the terminal device to switch to a third cell; wherein the switching command includes at least one of the following: an identifier of the third cell, and a TA of the third cell.

[0273] In some implementations, the first signaling is MAC CE or RRC signaling.

[0274] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the functions implemented by each unit in the TA acquisition device shown in FIG9 can be understood with reference to the relevant description of the aforementioned method. The functions of each unit in the TA acquisition device shown in FIG9 can be implemented by a program running on a processor or by a specific logic circuit.

[0275] Figure 10 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device 1000 provided in an embodiment of the present application. The communication device can be a terminal device or a network device. The communication device 1000 shown in Figure 10 includes a processor 1010, which can call and run a computer program from a memory to implement the method in the embodiment of the present application.

[0276] Optionally, as shown in FIG10 , the communication device 1000 may further include a memory 1020. The processor 1010 may call and execute a computer program from the memory 1020 to implement the method in the embodiment of the present application.

[0277] The memory 1020 may be a separate device independent of the processor 1010 , or may be integrated into the processor 1010 .

[0278] Optionally, as shown in FIG10 , the communication device 1000 may further include a transceiver 1030 , and the processor 1010 may control the transceiver 1030 to communicate with other devices, specifically, to send information or data to other devices, or to receive information or data sent by other devices.

[0279] The transceiver 1030 may include a transmitter and a receiver. The transceiver 1030 may further include an antenna, and the number of antennas may be one or more.

[0280] Optionally, the communication device 1000 may specifically be a network device in an embodiment of the present application, and the communication device 1000 may implement the corresponding processes implemented by the network device in each method in the embodiment of the present application. For the sake of brevity, they will not be repeated here.

[0281] Optionally, the communication device 1000 may specifically be a mobile terminal / terminal device of an embodiment of the present application, and the communication device 1000 may implement the corresponding processes implemented by the mobile terminal / terminal device in each method of the embodiment of the present application. For the sake of brevity, they will not be repeated here.

[0282] Figure 11 is a schematic structural diagram of a chip according to an embodiment of the present application. The chip 1100 shown in Figure 11 includes a processor 1110, which can call and run a computer program from a memory to implement the method according to the embodiment of the present application.

[0283] Optionally, as shown in FIG11 , the chip 1100 may further include a memory 1120. The processor 1110 may call and execute a computer program from the memory 1120 to implement the method in the embodiment of the present application.

[0284] The memory 1120 may be a separate device independent of the processor 1110 , or may be integrated into the processor 1110 .

[0285] Optionally, the chip 1100 may further include an input interface 1130. The processor 1110 may control the input interface 1130 to communicate with other devices or chips, and specifically, may obtain information or data sent by other devices or chips.

[0286] Optionally, the chip 1100 may further include an output interface 1140. The processor 1110 may control the output interface 1140 to communicate with other devices or chips, and specifically, may output information or data to other devices or chips.

[0287] Optionally, the chip can be applied to the network device in the embodiments of the present application, and the chip can implement the corresponding processes implemented by the network device in each method of the embodiments of the present application. For the sake of brevity, they will not be repeated here.

[0288] Optionally, the chip can be applied to the mobile terminal / terminal device in the embodiments of the present application, and the chip can implement the corresponding processes implemented by the mobile terminal / terminal device in the various methods of the embodiments of the present application. For the sake of brevity, they will not be repeated here.

[0289] It should be understood that the chip mentioned in the embodiments of the present application can also be called a system-on-chip, a system-on-chip, a chip system, or a system-on-chip chip, etc.

[0290] It should be understood that the processor of the embodiments of the present application may be an integrated circuit chip with signal processing capabilities. During implementation, each step of the above method embodiment can be completed by hardware integrated logic circuits in the processor or software instructions. The above processor can be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, or discrete hardware components. The various methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented or executed. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor or any conventional processor. The steps of the method disclosed in the embodiments of the present application can be directly embodied as being executed by a hardware decoding processor, or can be executed by a combination of hardware and software modules in the decoding processor. The software module can be located in a storage medium mature in the art, such as random access memory, flash memory, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory, electrically erasable programmable memory, registers, etc. The storage medium is located in the memory, and the processor reads the information in the memory and completes the steps of the above method in combination with its hardware.

[0291] It is understood that the memory in the embodiments of the present application may be a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory, or may include both volatile and non-volatile memories. Among them, the non-volatile memory may be a read-only memory (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 may be a random access memory (RAM), which is used as an external cache. By way of example and not limitation, many forms of RAM are available, such as static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (DDR SDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (ESDRAM), synchronous link dynamic random access memory (SLDRAM), and direct RAM bus random access memory (DR RAM). It should be noted that the memory of the systems and methods described herein is intended to include, but is not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0292] It should be understood that the above-mentioned memories are exemplary but not restrictive. For example, the memories in the embodiments of the present application may also be static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (DDR SDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (ESDRAM), synchronous link dynamic random access memory (SLDRAM), and direct RAM RAM (DR RAM), etc. In other words, the memories in the embodiments of the present application are intended to include, but are not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memories.

[0293] An embodiment of the present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium for storing a computer program.

[0294] Optionally, the computer-readable storage medium can be applied to the network device in the embodiments of the present application, and the computer program enables the computer to execute the corresponding processes implemented by the network device in the various methods of the embodiments of the present application. For the sake of brevity, they are not repeated here.

[0295] Optionally, the computer-readable storage medium can be applied to the mobile terminal / terminal device in the embodiments of the present application, and the computer program enables the computer to execute the corresponding processes implemented by the mobile terminal / terminal device in the various methods of the embodiments of the present application. For the sake of brevity, they will not be repeated here.

[0296] An embodiment of the present application also provides a computer program product, including computer program instructions.

[0297] Optionally, the computer program product can be applied to the network device in the embodiments of the present application, and the computer program instructions enable the computer to execute the corresponding processes implemented by the network device in the various methods of the embodiments of the present application. For the sake of brevity, they are not repeated here.

[0298] Optionally, the computer program product can be applied to the mobile terminal / terminal device in the embodiments of the present application, and the computer program instructions enable the computer to execute the corresponding processes implemented by the mobile terminal / terminal device in the various methods of the embodiments of the present application. For the sake of brevity, they will not be repeated here.

[0299] The embodiment of the present application also provides a computer program.

[0300] Optionally, the computer program can be applied to the network device in the embodiments of the present application. When the computer program runs on a computer, the computer executes the corresponding processes implemented by the network device in the various methods of the embodiments of the present application. For the sake of brevity, they are not described here.

[0301] Optionally, the computer program can be applied to the mobile terminal / terminal device in the embodiments of the present application. When the computer program runs on the computer, the computer executes the corresponding processes implemented by the mobile terminal / terminal device in the various methods of the embodiments of the present application. For the sake of brevity, they will not be repeated here.

[0302] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the units and algorithm steps of each example described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed 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.

[0303] Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of description, the specific working processes of the systems, devices and units described above can refer to the corresponding processes in the aforementioned method embodiments and will not be repeated here.

[0304] 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 the units is merely 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.

[0305] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate, and the components shown as units may or may not be physical units, 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 objectives of this embodiment as needed.

[0306] 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.

[0307] If the functions are implemented in the form of software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or the part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions for enabling a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the method described in each embodiment of the present application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media that can store program codes, such as a USB flash drive, a mobile hard disk, a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk, or an optical disk.

[0308] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of the present application, but the scope of protection of the present application is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions that can be easily conceived by a person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in the present application should be included in the scope of protection of the present application. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present application should be based on the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A method for acquiring a timing advance TA, the method comprising: The terminal device receives a first signaling sent by a network device, where the first signaling is used to instruct, configure, or activate a first operation on a first cell, where the first operation includes at least one of the following: measurement, downlink synchronization, and uplink synchronization; The terminal device performs a first operation on the first cell, and obtains the TA of the first cell based on the first operation.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The method further comprises: A first time difference between the first cell and the second cell is determined based on the first operation.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein: The acquiring the TA of the first cell based on the first operation includes: The TA of the first cell is determined based on the TA of the second cell and the first time difference.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The first signaling includes a second time offset corresponding to the first cell.

5. The method according to claim 2, wherein: The determining the TA of the first cell based on the first operation includes: The TA of the first cell is determined based on the TA of the second cell, the first time difference, and the second time offset.

6. The method according to claim 4, wherein: The second time offset includes at least one of the following: The uplink TA adjusts the corresponding time offset; The time offset corresponding to the downlink timing error; The time offset corresponding to the uplink and downlink switching.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein: After receiving the first signaling, the terminal device can obtain the first cell TA; and / or, After a first time has passed after receiving the first signaling, the terminal device is able to acquire the TA of the first cell; and / or, After a second time has passed since a confirmation message corresponding to the first signaling was sent, the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The method further comprises: The terminal device sends the first information or the second signaling to the network device.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein: The first information or the second signaling is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

10. The method according to claim 8, wherein: The first information includes at least one of the following: a first time difference between the first cell and the second cell, a TA of the first cell, an identifier of the first cell, and first indication information, wherein the first indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein: The first information is transmitted via a first uplink resource; The first uplink resource is indicated by uplink scheduling information included in the first signaling; or, The first uplink resource is obtained through a scheduling request SR of the terminal device.

12. The method according to claim 8, wherein: The second signaling is a specific SR, and the specific SR is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

13. The method according to claim 8, wherein: The first information is reporting information of the first cell, and the reporting information of the first cell is used to indicate that the terminal device obtains the TA of the first cell.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein: The reporting information is reported in a periodic reporting, semi-continuous reporting or non-periodic reporting manner.

15. The method according to claim 13, wherein: The reporting information is transmitted via a second uplink resource; The second uplink resource is indicated by uplink grant information included in the first signaling.

16. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 15, wherein: The method further comprises: The terminal device receives a switching command sent by the network device, where the switching command is used to instruct the terminal device to switch to a third cell; wherein the switching command includes at least one of the following: an identifier of the third cell, and a TA of the third cell.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein: The method further comprises: If the switching command includes the TA of the third cell, the terminal device uses the TA of the third cell included in the switching command to perform uplink transmission to the third cell; and / or, If the switching command does not include the TA of the third cell, the terminal device uses the calculated TA of the third cell to perform uplink transmission to the third cell.

18. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 15, wherein: The first signaling is MAC CE or RRC signaling.

19. A TA acquisition method, the method comprising: The network device sends a first signaling to the terminal device, where the first signaling is used to instruct, configure, or activate a first operation on a first cell, where the first operation includes at least one of the following: measurement, downlink synchronization, and uplink synchronization; wherein the first operation is used to obtain the TA of the first cell.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein: The first signaling includes a second time offset corresponding to the first cell.

21. The method according to claim 20, wherein: The second time offset includes at least one of the following: The uplink TA adjusts the corresponding time offset; The time offset corresponding to the downlink timing error; The time offset corresponding to the uplink and downlink switching.

22. The method according to claim 19, wherein: The method further comprises: After sending the first signaling, the terminal device can acquire the TA of the first cell; and / or, After a first time has passed since the first signaling was sent, the terminal device is able to acquire the TA of the first cell; and / or, After a second time has passed since receiving the confirmation message corresponding to the first signaling, the terminal device can obtain the TA of the first cell.

23. The method according to claim 19, wherein: The method further comprises: The network device receives the first information or the second signaling sent by the terminal device.

24. The method according to claim 23, wherein: The first information or the second signaling is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

25. The method according to claim 23, wherein: The first information includes at least one of the following: a first time difference between the first cell and the second cell, a TA of the first cell, an identifier of the first cell, and first indication information, wherein the first indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

26. The method according to claim 25, wherein: The first information is transmitted via a first uplink resource; The first uplink resource is indicated by uplink scheduling information included in the first signaling; or, The first uplink resource is obtained through the SR of the terminal device.

27. The method according to claim 23, wherein: The second signaling is a specific SR, and the specific SR is used to instruct the terminal device to obtain the TA of the first cell.

28. The method of claim 23, wherein: The first information is reporting information of the first cell, and the reporting information of the first cell is used to indicate that the terminal device obtains the TA of the first cell.

29. The method according to claim 28, wherein: The reporting information is reported in a periodic reporting, semi-continuous reporting or non-periodic reporting manner.

30. The method of claim 28, wherein: The reporting information is transmitted via a second uplink resource; The second uplink resource is indicated by uplink grant information included in the first signaling.

31. The method according to any one of claims 19 to 30, wherein: The method further comprises: The network device sends a switching command to the terminal device, where the switching command is used to instruct the terminal device to switch to a third cell; wherein the switching command includes at least one of the following: an identifier of the third cell, and a TA of the third cell.

32. The method according to any one of claims 19 to 30, wherein: The first signaling is MAC CE or RRC signaling.

33. A TA acquisition device, applied to a terminal device, comprising: A receiving unit, configured to receive a first signaling sent by a network device, where the first signaling is used to instruct, configure, or activate a first operation on a first cell, where the first operation includes at least one of the following: measurement, downlink synchronization, and uplink synchronization; The determining unit is configured to perform a first operation on the first cell, and obtain a TA of the first cell based on the first operation.

34. A TA acquisition device, applied to a network device, comprising: A sending unit is configured to send a first signaling to a terminal device, wherein the first signaling is used to indicate, configure or activate a first operation on a first cell, wherein the first operation includes at least one of the following: measurement, downlink synchronization, and uplink synchronization; wherein the first operation is used to obtain a TA of the first cell.

35. A terminal device, comprising: A processor and a memory, the memory being used to store a computer program, the processor being used to call and run the computer program stored in the memory to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 18.

36. A network device comprising: A processor and a memory, the memory being used to store a computer program, the processor being used to call and run the computer program stored in the memory to execute the method as claimed in any one of claims 19 to 32.

37. A computer-readable storage medium for storing a computer program, wherein the computer program causes a computer to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 18, or the method according to any one of claims 19 to 32.

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