Communication method and apparatus

Abstract

Embodiments of the present application relate to the technical field of communications, and provide a communication method and apparatus, used for reducing redundant configuration of communication signaling and improving the communication efficiency. In the method, a second network device can transmit, to a terminal device, a message comprising the configuration of at least one discontinuous time domain resource, wherein a time domain resource indicated by at least one time domain resource configuration does not comprise an unavailable downlink time domain resource of the second network device reported by the terminal device to a first network device. Therefore, a network device does not need to reconfigure each parameter in a rate matching field each time to indicate the unavailable downlink time domain resource, so that the reconfiguration time of the rate matching field can be shortened, thereby being capable of reducing the redundant configuration of communication signaling, improving the communication efficiency, and thus realizing flexible allocation of time domain resources.

Description

Communication method and device

[0001] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the State Intellectual Property Office on July 18, 2023, with application number 202310888047.5 and application name “Communication Method and Device,” the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

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

[0003] Latency differences between network devices can cause them to allocate discontinuous time domain resources for downlink channels, such as the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH). Currently, network devices can indicate contiguous time domain resources through time domain resource assignment (TDRA) information and indicate a segment of downlink time domain resources that are unavailable for PDSCH through the rate matching (rateMatched) field.

[0004] However, as the location of network devices continues to change, the network devices need to reconfigure the parameters in the rate matching field at regular intervals, which will lead to redundant configuration of communication signaling and thus reduce communication efficiency.

[0005] Summary of the Invention

[0006] The embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and apparatus for reducing redundant configuration of communication signaling and improving communication efficiency.

[0007] To achieve the above objectives, this application adopts the following technical solutions:

[0008] In a first aspect, a communication method is provided. The method includes: a terminal device sends first indication information to a first network device, and receives a first message from a second network device. The first indication information is used for unavailable downlink time domain resources, and the unavailable downlink time domain resources are unavailable downlink time domain resources of the second network device; the first message includes at least one downlink time domain resource configuration, the time domain resources indicated by the at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are time domain resources that can be used for downlink communication between the second network device and the terminal device, and the time domain resources indicated by the at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are non-continuous time domain resources; and the time domain resources indicated by the at least one time domain resource configuration do not include unavailable downlink time domain resources.

[0009] Based on the method described in the first aspect, it can be known that the second network device can send a message including the configuration of at least one non-continuous time domain resource to the terminal device. The time domain resources indicated by the at least one time domain resource configuration do not include the unavailable downlink time domain resources of the second network device reported by the terminal device to the first network device. Therefore, the network device does not need to reconfigure each parameter in the rate matching field each time to indicate a period of unavailable downlink time domain resources, which can reduce the time for reconfiguration of the rate matching field, thereby reducing the redundant configuration of communication signaling, improving the efficiency of communication, and thus realizing flexible allocation of time domain resources.

[0010] In one possible design, the method described in the first aspect may further include: the terminal device sending second indication information to the first network device. The second indication information is used to indicate that the network device to which the unavailable downlink time domain resource belongs is the second network device, and the second indication information includes an identifier of the second network device. In this way, the first network device can accurately determine that the unavailable downlink time domain resource is the unavailable downlink time domain resource of the second network device based on the identifier of the second network device, thereby avoiding misidentification or erroneous identification.

[0011] In one possible design, after the terminal device receives the first message from the second network device, the method described in the first aspect may further include: the terminal device receiving configuration information from the second network device and performing downlink communication with the second network device on the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration. The configuration information is used to instruct the terminal device to perform downlink communication with the second network device on the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration. In this way, the terminal device can avoid downlink communication with the second network device on unavailable downlink time domain resources, thereby reducing interference caused to the first network device.

[0012] Optionally, after the terminal device receives the first message from the second network device, the method of the first aspect further includes: when the downlink communication between the terminal device and the first network device does not meet the preset conditions, the terminal device sends a third indication information to the first network device. The third indication information is used to indicate that the downlink communication between the terminal device and the first network device does not meet the preset conditions. It can be understood that when the first network device is not interfered with by other network devices, such as the second network device, or is less interfered with by other network devices, such as the second network device, the terminal device can report to the first network device that the downlink communication of the first network device is not interfered with by the second network device, so that the second network device can subsequently resume communication on the previously unavailable downlink time domain resources. For example, the terminal device receives the second message from the second network device, and performs downlink communication with the second network device on the continuous time domain resources of the downlink communication configuration indicated by the second message, thereby reducing resource waste and improving resource utilization.

[0013] Optionally, the terminal device sending the first indication information to the first network device includes: when downlink communication between the terminal device and the first network device satisfies a preset condition, the terminal device sending the first indication information to the first network device. The preset condition includes at least one of the following: a block error rate greater than a first preset threshold; or a signal-to-interference-and-noise ratio greater than a second preset threshold; or a communication rate less than a third preset threshold. That is, only when the downlink communication of the first network device is interfered with by the second network device will the terminal device send the unavailable downlink time domain resources of the second network device to the first network device, so that the second network device can subsequently be triggered to allocate at least one downlink time domain resource configuration for the downlink communication, thereby achieving flexible downlink time domain resource configuration and avoiding interference.

[0014] Optionally, after the terminal device sends the third indication information to the first network device, the method of the first aspect further includes:

[0015] The terminal device receives a second message from the second network device and, based on the second message, performs downlink communication with the second network device on the continuous time domain resources configured for downlink communication. The second message indicates the continuous time domain resources configured for downlink communication by the second network device. This allows the second network device to resume communication on the previously unavailable downlink time domain resources, reducing resource waste and thereby improving resource utilization.

[0016] In one possible design, the first message carries information indicating continuous time domain resources, and the information indicating continuous time domain resources is further used to indicate at least one downlink time domain resource configuration. It is understood that the existing information indicating continuous time domain resources can be used to directly indicate at least one non-continuous time domain resource configuration to reduce implementation difficulty, or the existing information indicating continuous time domain resources can be combined with other information to indicate at least one non-continuous time domain resource configuration to increase implementation flexibility, without limitation.

[0017] In one possible design, the first time domain resource configuration is one of at least one time domain resource configuration, and the first time domain resource configuration includes a bitmap, where the bitmap is used to represent the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration. Different bits of the bitmap may correspond to different time units, and the value of each bit may indicate whether the corresponding time unit is a time unit available to the second network device. In this way, the terminal device can intuitively determine non-continuous time domain resources based on the different values ​​of multiple bits.

[0018] In one possible design, the first time domain resource configuration includes first information and second information; the first information is used to indicate the time domain resources configured for downlink communication between the terminal device and the second network device, and the second information is used to indicate unavailable downlink time domain resources; the configured time domain resources include unavailable downlink time domain resources. It can be understood that compared to the above-mentioned direct representation of the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration through a bitmap, the range of time domain resources that can be represented by the bitmap is limited by the number of bits, so the method of indicating the first time domain resource configuration through the first information and the second information is more flexible.

[0019] Optionally, the first information is information about the starting symbol and symbol length of the configured time domain resources, or any other possible information; and the second information is information about the starting symbol and symbol length of the unavailable time domain resources, or any other possible information. Both the first information and the second information are carried in existing information indicating continuous time domain resources to reduce implementation difficulty.

[0020] Optionally, the second information is an information element in a medium access control-control element MAC-CE. In this case, the first information and the second information are respectively carried in different information, thereby improving implementation flexibility.

[0021] In a possible design scheme, the first time domain resource configuration is one of at least one time domain resource configuration, and the first time domain resource configuration includes first information and second information, the first information is used to indicate the first time domain resource, and the second information is used to indicate the second time domain resource; the first time domain resource includes at least one continuous time domain resource in the time domain resource indicated by the first time domain resource configuration, and the second time domain resource includes the time domain resource other than at least one continuous time domain resource in the time domain resource indicated by the first time domain resource configuration. In this way, the terminal device can directly determine the time domain resource indicated by the first time domain resource configuration based on the continuous time domain resources indicated by the first information and the second information. Compared with the above-mentioned direct representation of the time domain resource indicated by the first time domain resource configuration through the bit map, the range of time domain resources that can be represented by the bit map is subject to the number of bits, so the method of indicating the first time domain resource configuration through the first information and the second information is more flexible.

[0022] Optionally, the first information is information about the starting symbol and symbol length of the first time domain resource, or any other possible information; and the second information is information about the starting symbol and symbol length of the second time domain resource, or any other possible information. Both the first information and the second information are carried in existing information indicating continuous time domain resources to reduce implementation difficulty.

[0023] Optionally, the second information is an information element in a medium access control-control element MAC-CE. In this case, the first information and the second information are respectively carried in different information, thereby improving implementation flexibility.

[0024] In one possible design, the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration include at least two consecutive time domain resources. In this way, the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration can meet the time domain resource requirements of the second network device in different scenarios.

[0025] In one possible design scheme, the cell of the first network device and the cell of the second network device are neighboring cells, that is, the first network device and the second network device can both provide services to the terminal device.

[0026] Optionally, the first message is carried in at least one of the following items: radio resource control RRC message, downlink control message DCI, MAC-CE, or system information block SIB1, that is, carried in an existing information element to reduce the difficulty of implementation, or it can also be carried in a new information element to improve the flexibility of implementation, without limitation.

[0027] In a second aspect, a communication method is provided. The method includes: a second network device receives first indication information from a first network device and sends a first message to a terminal device. The first indication information is used to indicate unavailable downlink time domain resources, and the unavailable downlink time domain resources are unavailable downlink time domain resources of the second network device; the first message includes at least one downlink time domain resource configuration, and the time domain resources indicated by the at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are time domain resources that can be used for downlink communication between the second network device and the terminal device, and the time domain resources indicated by the at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are non-continuous time domain resources; the time domain resources indicated by the at least one time domain resource configuration do not include unavailable downlink time domain resources.

[0028] In a possible design scheme, the first message carries information for indicating continuous time domain resources, and the information for indicating continuous time domain resources is also used to indicate at least one downlink time domain resource configuration.

[0029] In one possible design scheme, the first time domain resource configuration is one of at least one time domain resource configuration, and the first time domain resource configuration includes a bit map, and the bit map is used to represent the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration.

[0030] In one possible design scheme, the first time domain resource configuration includes first information and second information; the first information is used to indicate the time domain resources configured for downlink communication between the terminal device and the second network device, and the second information is used to indicate unavailable downlink time domain resources; the configured time domain resources include unavailable downlink time domain resources.

[0031] Optionally, the first information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the configured time domain resources; the second information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the unavailable time domain resources.

[0032] Optionally, the second information is an information element in a medium access control-control element MAC-CE.

[0033] In one possible design scheme, the first time domain resource configuration is one of at least one time domain resource configuration, and the first time domain resource configuration includes first information and second information, the first information is used to indicate the first time domain resource, and the second information is used to indicate the second time domain resource; the first time domain resource includes at least one continuous time domain resource in the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration, and the second time domain resource includes the time domain resources other than at least one continuous time domain resource in the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration.

[0034] Optionally, the first information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the first time domain resource; the second information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the second time domain resource.

[0035] Optionally, the second information is an information element in a medium access control-control element MAC-CE.

[0036] In one possible design scheme, the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration include at least two consecutive time domain resources.

[0037] In one possible design scheme, the cell of the first network device and the cell of the second network device are neighboring cells.

[0038] Optionally, the first message is carried in at least one of the following: a radio resource control RRC message, a downlink control message DCI, MAC-CE, or a system information block SIB1.

[0039] In addition, other technical effects of the method described in the second aspect can refer to the technical effects of the method described in the first aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0040] In a third aspect, a communication device is provided. The device includes: a module for executing the method described in the first aspect, for example, a transceiver module and a processing module.

[0041] The processing module is configured to control the transceiver module to send first indication information to the first network device. The transceiver module is configured to receive a first message from the second network device. The first indication information is configured to indicate unavailable downlink time domain resources, where the unavailable downlink time domain resources are unavailable downlink time domain resources of the second network device. The first message includes at least one downlink time domain resource configuration, where the time domain resources indicated by the at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are time domain resources that can be used by the second network device for downlink communication with the communication device described in the third aspect, where the time domain resources indicated by the at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are non-continuous time domain resources, and the time domain resources indicated by the at least one time domain resource configuration do not include unavailable downlink time domain resources.

[0042] In one possible design, the processing module is further configured to control the transceiver module to send a second indication message to the first network device, wherein the second indication message is configured to indicate that the network device to which the unavailable downlink time domain resource belongs is the second network device, and the second indication message may include an identifier of the second network device.

[0043] In one possible design, after the communication device described in the third aspect receives the first message from the second network device, the transceiver module is further configured to receive configuration information from the second network device. The processing module is further configured to perform downlink communication with the second network device on the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration. The configuration information is used to instruct the communication device to perform downlink communication with the second network device on the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration.

[0044] Optionally, when downlink communication between the communication apparatus described in the third aspect and the first network device satisfies a preset condition, the processing module is further configured to control the transceiver module to send first indication information to the first network device. The preset condition includes at least one of the following: a block error rate greater than a first preset threshold; or a signal-to-interference-and-noise ratio greater than a second preset threshold; or a communication rate less than a third preset threshold.

[0045] Optionally, after the communication device described in the third aspect receives the first message from the second network device, the processing module is further configured to control the transceiver module to send third indication information to the first network device if downlink communication between the communication device and the first network device does not meet a preset condition. The third indication information is configured to indicate that downlink communication between the communication device and the first network device does not meet the preset condition.

[0046] Optionally, after the communication apparatus described in the third aspect sends the third indication information to the first network device, the transceiver module is further configured to receive a second message from the second network device. The processing module is further configured to perform downlink communication with the second network device on the continuous time domain resources configured for downlink communication based on the second message. The second message is used to indicate the continuous time domain resources configured for downlink communication of the second network device.

[0047] In a possible design scheme, the first message carries information for indicating continuous time domain resources, and the information for indicating continuous time domain resources is also used to indicate at least one downlink time domain resource configuration.

[0048] In one possible design scheme, the first time domain resource configuration is one of at least one time domain resource configuration, and the first time domain resource configuration includes a bit map, and the bit map is used to represent the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration.

[0049] In one possible design scheme, the first time domain resource configuration includes first information and second information; the first information is used to indicate the time domain resources configured for downlink communication between the communication device described in the third aspect and the second network device, and the second information is used to indicate unavailable downlink time domain resources; the configured time domain resources include unavailable downlink time domain resources.

[0050] Optionally, the first information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the configured time domain resources; the second information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the unavailable time domain resources.

[0051] Optionally, the second information is an information element in a medium access control-control element MAC-CE.

[0052] In one possible design scheme, the first time domain resource configuration is one of at least one time domain resource configuration, and the first time domain resource configuration includes first information and second information, the first information is used to indicate the first time domain resource, and the second information is used to indicate the second time domain resource; the first time domain resource includes at least one continuous time domain resource in the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration, and the second time domain resource includes the time domain resources other than at least one continuous time domain resource in the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration.

[0053] Optionally, the first information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the first time domain resource; the second information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the second time domain resource.

[0054] Optionally, the second information is an information element in a medium access control-control element MAC-CE.

[0055] In one possible design scheme, the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration include at least two consecutive time domain resources.

[0056] Optionally, the transceiver module may include a sending module and a receiving module, wherein the sending module is used to implement the sending function of the communication device described in the third aspect, and the receiving module is used to implement the receiving function of the communication device described in the third aspect.

[0057] Optionally, the communication device described in the third aspect may further include a storage module, wherein the storage module stores a program or instruction. When the processing module executes the program or instruction, the communication device may execute the communication method described in the first aspect.

[0058] It should be noted that the communication device described in the third aspect can be a terminal device, a chip (system) or other parts or components in the terminal device, or a device including a terminal device, and this application does not limit this.

[0059] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device described in the third aspect can refer to the technical effects of the communication method described in the first aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0060] In a fourth aspect, a communication device is provided, which includes: a module for executing the method described in the second aspect, for example, a transceiver module and a processing module.

[0061] The transceiver module is configured to receive first indication information from a first network device. The processing module is further configured to control the transceiver module to send a first message to a terminal device based on the first indication information. The first indication information is configured to indicate unavailable downlink time domain resources, where the unavailable downlink time domain resources are unavailable downlink time domain resources of the communication device. The first message includes at least one downlink time domain resource configuration, where the time domain resources indicated by the at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are time domain resources that can be used by the communication device for downlink communication with the terminal device, and where the time domain resources indicated by the at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are non-continuous time domain resources. The time domain resources indicated by the at least one time domain resource configuration do not include unavailable downlink time domain resources.

[0062] In a possible design scheme, the first message carries information for indicating continuous time domain resources, and the information for indicating continuous time domain resources is also used to indicate at least one downlink time domain resource configuration.

[0063] In one possible design scheme, the first time domain resource configuration is one of at least one time domain resource configuration, and the first time domain resource configuration includes a bit map, and the bit map is used to represent the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration.

[0064] In one possible design scheme, the first time domain resource configuration includes first information and second information; the first information is used to indicate the time domain resources configured for downlink communication between the terminal device and the communication device described in the fourth aspect, and the second information is used to indicate unavailable downlink time domain resources; the configured time domain resources include unavailable downlink time domain resources.

[0065] Optionally, the first information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the configured time domain resources; the second information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the unavailable time domain resources.

[0066] Optionally, the second information is an information element in a medium access control-control element MAC-CE.

[0067] In one possible design scheme, the first time domain resource configuration is one of at least one time domain resource configuration, and the first time domain resource configuration includes first information and second information, the first information is used to indicate the first time domain resource, and the second information is used to indicate the second time domain resource; the first time domain resource includes at least one continuous time domain resource in the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration, and the second time domain resource includes the time domain resources other than at least one continuous time domain resource in the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration.

[0068] Optionally, the first information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the first time domain resource; the second information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the second time domain resource.

[0069] Optionally, the second information is an information element in a medium access control-control element MAC-CE.

[0070] In one possible design scheme, the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration include at least two consecutive time domain resources.

[0071] In one possible design scheme, the cell of the first network device and the cell of the communication apparatus described in the fourth aspect are neighboring cells.

[0072] Optionally, the first message is carried in at least one of the following: a radio resource control RRC message, a downlink control message DCI, MAC-CE, or a system information block SIB1.

[0073] Optionally, the transceiver module may include a sending module and a receiving module, wherein the sending module is used to implement the sending function of the communication device described in the fourth aspect, and the receiving module is used to implement the receiving function of the communication device described in the fourth aspect.

[0074] Optionally, the transceiver module may include a sending module and a receiving module, wherein the sending module is used to implement the sending function of the communication device described in the fourth aspect, and the receiving module is used to implement the receiving function of the communication device described in the fourth aspect.

[0075] Optionally, the communication device described in the fourth aspect may further include a storage module, wherein the storage module stores a program or instruction. When the processing module executes the program or instruction, the communication device may execute the method described in the second aspect.

[0076] It can be understood that the communication device described in the fourth aspect can be a network device, a chip (system) or other parts or components in the network device, or a device that includes a network device. This application does not limit this.

[0077] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device described in the fourth aspect can refer to the technical effects of the method described in the second aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0078] In a fifth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising: a processor configured to execute the communication method described in the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0079] In one possible design solution, the communication device described in the fifth aspect may further include a transceiver. The transceiver may be a transceiver circuit or an interface circuit. The transceiver may be used for the communication device described in the fifth aspect to communicate with other communication devices.

[0080] In one possible design, the communication device described in the fifth aspect may further include a memory. The memory may be integrated with the processor or provided separately. The memory may be used to store computer programs and / or data involved in the communication method described in the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0081] In an embodiment of the present application, the communication device described in the fifth aspect may be the network device described in any one of the first aspect or the second aspect, or the chip (system) or other parts or components in the network device, or a device including the network device; or, the communication device may be the terminal device described in any one of the first aspect or the second aspect above, or the chip (system) or other parts or components in the terminal device, or a device including the terminal device.

[0082] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device described in the fifth aspect can refer to the technical effects of the communication method described in the first aspect or the second aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0083] In a sixth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising: a processor coupled to a memory, the processor configured to execute a computer program stored in the memory, so that the communication device performs the communication method described in the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0084] In one possible design solution, the communication device described in the sixth aspect may further include a transceiver. The transceiver may be a transceiver circuit or an interface circuit. The transceiver may be used for the communication device described in the sixth aspect to communicate with other communication devices.

[0085] In an embodiment of the present application, the communication device described in the sixth aspect may be the network device described in any one of the first aspect or the second aspect, or a chip (system) or other parts or components in the network device, or a device including the network device; or, the communication device may be the terminal device described in any one of the first aspect or the second aspect above, or a chip (system) or other parts or components in the terminal device, or a device including the terminal device.

[0086] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device described in the sixth aspect can refer to the technical effects of the communication method described in the first aspect or the second aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0087] In the seventh aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising: a processor and a memory; the memory is used to store a computer program, and when the processor executes the computer program, the communication device executes the communication method described in the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0088] In one possible design solution, the communication device described in the seventh aspect may further include a transceiver. The transceiver may be a transceiver circuit or an interface circuit. The transceiver may be used for the communication device described in the seventh aspect to communicate with other communication devices.

[0089] In an embodiment of the present application, the communication device described in the seventh aspect may be the network device described in any one of the first aspect or the second aspect, or the chip (system) or other parts or components in the network device, or a device including the network device; or, the communication device may be the terminal device described in any one of the first aspect or the second aspect above, or the chip (system) or other parts or components in the terminal device, or a device including the terminal device.

[0090] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device described in the seventh aspect can refer to the technical effects of the communication method described in the first aspect or the second aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0091] In an eighth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising: a processor; the processor is configured to be coupled to a memory, and after reading a computer program in the memory, execute the communication method as described in the first aspect or the second aspect according to the computer program.

[0092] In one possible design solution, the communication device described in the eighth aspect may further include a transceiver. The transceiver may be a transceiver circuit or an interface circuit. The transceiver may be used for the communication device described in the eighth aspect to communicate with other communication devices.

[0093] In an embodiment of the present application, the communication device described in the eighth aspect may be the network device described in any one of the first aspect or the second aspect, or the chip (system) or other parts or components in the network device, or a device including the network device; or, the communication device may be the terminal device described in any one of the first aspect or the second aspect above, or the chip (system) or other parts or components in the terminal device, or a device including the terminal device.

[0094] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device described in the eighth aspect can refer to the technical effects of the communication method described in the first aspect or the second aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0095] In a ninth aspect, a communication system is provided, which includes the terminal device, the first network device, and the second network device described in the first to fourth aspects.

[0096] In a tenth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, comprising: a computer program or instructions; when the computer program or instructions are run on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the communication method described in the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0097] In an eleventh aspect, a computer program product is provided, comprising a computer program or instructions, which, when executed on a computer, causes the computer to execute the communication method described in the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0098] In the twelfth aspect, a communication method is provided. The method includes: a terminal device sends first indication information to a first network device. A second network device receives the first indication information from the first network device, and sends a first message to the terminal device according to the first indication information. The first indication information is used to indicate unavailable downlink time domain resources, and the unavailable downlink time domain resources are unavailable downlink time domain resources of the second network device; the first message includes at least one downlink time domain resource configuration, and the time domain resources indicated by at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are time domain resources that can be used for downlink communication between the second network device and the terminal device, and the time domain resources indicated by at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are non-continuous time domain resources; the time domain resources indicated by at least one time domain resource configuration do not include unavailable downlink time domain resources.

[0099] It can be understood that other technical effects of the method described in aspect 12 can refer to the technical effects of the method described in aspect 1 or aspect 2, and will not be repeated here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0100] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of DMRS time-frequency resource occupancy of base station 1 and base station 2;

[0101] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of DMRS time-frequency resource occupancy of satellite 1 and satellite 2;

[0102] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of time domain resources reserved by satellite 2;

[0103] FIG4 is a schematic diagram showing that the PDSCH of satellite 2 occupies non-contiguous time domain resources;

[0104] FIG5 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0105] FIG6 is a second schematic diagram of the architecture of the communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0106] FIG7 is a third schematic diagram of the architecture of the communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0107] FIG8 is a flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0108] FIG9 is a structural diagram 1 of a MAC-CE configuration of unavailable downlink time domain resources provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0109] FIG10 is a second structural diagram of a MAC-CE configuration of unavailable downlink time domain resources provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0110] FIG11 is a structural diagram 1 of a MAC-CE configured with additional downlink time domain resources provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0111] FIG12 is a second structural diagram of a MAC-CE configured with additional downlink time domain resources according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0112] FIG13 is a first structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0113] FIG14 is a second structural diagram of the communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0114] For ease of understanding, the technical terms involved in the embodiments of this application are first introduced below.

[0115] 1. Non-terrestrial network (NTN)

[0116] With the development of society and advancement of technology, various mobile communication applications are constantly emerging, placing higher demands on communication systems. Future communication systems will not only need to support higher communication rates, but also require lower latency, higher reliability, and a larger number of connected devices. In addition, due to the high deployment costs and limited coverage of terrestrial cellular systems, the fifth-generation mobile communication system (5G) has proposed the construction of a networked network (NTN) to achieve truly seamless global coverage.

[0117] NTN is a technology based on new air interface technology that allows direct communication between terminals and satellites. NTN has designed an enhanced air interface protocol and introduced advanced technologies such as scheduling timing management, uplink transmission delay compensation, and rapid air-to-ground handover. NTN now possesses basic satellite communication capabilities. Satellites are a key component of NTN, offering advantages such as wide coverage and immunity to natural disasters. In recent years, low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites, located 200 to 2000 km above the ground, have rekindled interest. Compared to satellites in higher orbits, LEO satellites offer reduced communication latency, lower path loss, and lower manufacturing costs, making them a critical infrastructure for global network coverage.

[0118] 2. Time domain resources

[0119] In the new radio (NR) system, uplink transmission can consist of multiple radio frames. The duration of each radio frame is 10ms. Each radio frame can be composed of ten subframes with a duration of 1ms. The 10 subframes in a radio frame can be arranged in sequence. For example, the order of the 10 subframes in a radio frame can be: subframe #0 to subframe #9. It can be understood that the numbering and order of subframes #0 to subframe #9 are only exemplary. For example, the starting number can also be #1, and then a radio frame includes subframe #1 to subframe #10. For another example, the order of the 10 subframes can be in descending order, and then a radio frame includes subframe #9 to subframe #0. This embodiment of the present application does not specifically limit this.

[0120] In the NR system, a subframe can include several time slots. For the subcarrier spacing configuration μ, the time slots can be numbered in ascending order within a subframe. Arranged, and can be numbered in ascending order within a radio frame In a time slot there are consecutive OFDM symbols, as shown in Table 1 and Table 2. Time slots in a subframe The beginning of the OFDM symbol in the same subframe For example, when a time slot includes 14 OFDM symbols, the OFDM symbols may be arranged in chronological order as: OFDM symbol #0 to OFDM symbol #13.

[0121] Table 1

[0122] Table 2

[0123] 3. Frequency domain resources

[0124] In the NR system, frequency domain resources can be divided into resource elements (RE), resource blocks (RB), and bandwidth parts (BWP) according to their size, which are introduced below.

[0125] (1)RE

[0126] In the NR system, a subcarrier in the frequency domain and an OFDM symbol in the time domain can be defined as an RE. RE is the smallest granularity resource in the physical layer. RE can also be understood as a time-frequency resource, meaning that RE includes both time-domain resources and frequency-domain resources.

[0127] (2)RB

[0128] In the frequency domain, regardless of the subcarrier spacing, the NR system can define 12 consecutive subcarriers as one RB. In the physical layer, an RB can be called a physical resource block (PRB).

[0129] (3)BWP

[0130] The NR system can support the terminal device to work only in a part of the system bandwidth, namely the BWP. Alternatively, the BWP can be multiple RBs within the frequency domain resources corresponding to a carrier supported by a cell. For example, a cell covered by a network device (such as a next-generation radio access network (NG-RAN) device in the NR system) can support two carrier frequencies (hereinafter referred to as carrier #1 and carrier #2). The cell allocates 40MHz bandwidth to carrier #1 and 60MHz bandwidth to carrier #2 respectively. The BWP can be a 20MHz bandwidth in the 40MHz bandwidth corresponding to carrier #1. The 20MHz bandwidth includes multiple RBs, and the terminal device can work only on the BWP.

[0131] It should be understood that in the embodiments of the present application, "carrier frequency," "carrier," "carrier frequency," and "frequency point" have the same meaning. In other words, "carrier frequency," "carrier," "carrier frequency," and "frequency point" can be used interchangeably, and are described here uniformly without further elaboration. It should also be understood that in the embodiments of the present application, "number" and "index" have the same meaning. In other words, "number" and "index" can be used interchangeably, and are described here uniformly without further elaboration.

[0132] 4. PDSCH time-frequency resource allocation method

[0133] In the NR system, the network device can allocate PDSCH time-frequency resources by sending radio resource control (RRC) messages and downlink control information (DCI) messages to the terminal device.

[0134] The time domain resources of the PDSCH may be determined by the TDRA in the DCI to determine the starting symbol and the number of continuous symbols, and the starting symbol and the number of continuous symbols may be determined by the start and length indicator value (SLIV).

[0135] TDRA supports time domain resource allocation methods of type A and type B. Type A is based on time slot scheduling. The starting symbol can be symbol #0 to symbol #3 of the current time slot, and the symbol length can be 3 to 14. The symbol length of type A is larger and is suitable for enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) scenarios.

[0136] Type B is based on mini-slot scheduling. The starting symbol can be symbol #0 to symbol #12 of the current slot, and the symbol length can be 2 to 13. The position of the starting symbol in type B is more flexible and the latency is lower, making it suitable for ultra-reliable low latency communications (URLLC) scenarios.

[0137] The frequency domain resources of PDSCH can be determined by the frequency domain resource assignment (FDRA) in the DCI. FDRA can support type 0 and type 1 frequency domain resource allocation methods. Among them, the minimum resource allocation granularity of type 0 is the resource block group (RBG). Each RBG is composed of multiple RBs. The frequency domain resources allocated by the network device to the terminal through type 0 can be continuous or discontinuous. For example, the network device can indicate the allocation of RBs through the bitmap of RBG. Each bit of the bitmap can represent an RBG. The bitmap can be carried in the resource allocation field in the downlink control information. The network device can send a DCI message to the terminal, thereby sending the information of the bitmap to the terminal device.

[0138] The minimum resource allocation granularity of type 1 is resource block RB. The frequency domain resources allocated by the network device to the terminal device through type 1 are usually continuous. The allocation of RB resources can be indicated by resource indication value (RIV), that is, the starting RB position and the number of RBs are indicated by RIV. The RIV can be carried in the resource allocation field in DCI, and the network device can send the RIV information to the terminal device through DCI.

[0139] The following describes the process of allocating PDSCH time domain resources by a network device using the following two cases as examples.

[0140] Case 1: The network device allocates continuous time domain resources for the PDSCH.

[0141] (1) The network device sends a PDSCH configuration list (pdsch-AllocationList) to the terminal device through an RRC message.

[0142] Among them, pdsch-AllocationList can be understood as a list containing multiple time domain resource configurations. For example, pdsch-AllocationList can be a list containing 16 rows, each row of the list represents a different time domain resource configuration, and the time domain resource configuration corresponding to each row is determined by the parameters in the PDSCH time domain resource configuration (PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation) information, that is, PDSCH-AllocationList contains 16 PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation information, and each PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation information can include the following parameters: k0, mapping type (mappingType) and start symbol and symbol length (startSymbolAndLength).

[0143] Among them, k0 can be used to indicate the number of offset time slots between PDSCH and physical downlink control channel (PDCCH); mappingType can be used to indicate that the frequency domain resource allocation mode is type A or type B; startSymbolAndLength (also known as SLIV) can be used to indicate the starting symbol and symbol length of PDSCH.

[0144] It can be understood that the pdsch-AllocationList for allocating continuous time domain resources can be recorded as pdsch-AllocationList#1, and the PDSCH time domain resource configuration information in pdsch-AllocationList#1 is recorded as PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#11, PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#12, ..., PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#1n, respectively, where the value of n is any integer greater than or equal to 1. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the amount of PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation information contained in the pdsch-AllocationList.

[0145] For example, pdsch-AllocationList#1 may be in the following format:

[0146] (2) The network device sends DCI to the terminal device.

[0147] Among them, the TDRA in the DCI can be used to indicate which time domain resource configuration of the above-mentioned multiple time domain resource configurations the terminal device selects, that is, TDRA can be used to indicate which time domain resource configuration in the above-mentioned pdsch-AllocationList the terminal device uses to receive the downlink signal from the network device. For example, TDRA can include 4 bits, and the 4 bits can have 16 different values, each of which corresponds to one of the above-mentioned 16 time domain resource configurations. The terminal device can determine the time domain resource configuration of the PDSCH based on the value of the 4 bits.

[0148] Case 2: The network device may allocate unavailable downlink time domain resources for the PDSCH.

[0149] When a network device needs to notify a terminal device of time-frequency resources occupied by certain signals or channels, or in other words, when a network device needs to notify a terminal device of unavailable time-frequency resources, the network device can indicate the location of unavailable time-frequency resources by configuring the rate matching information in the RRC message. For example, the network device can indicate the location of unavailable time-frequency resources by configuring the rate matching pattern (rateMatchPatternLTE-CRS) field of the cell reference signal (CRS) in the long term evolution (LTE) in the RRC message, or the rate matching pattern (rateMatchPattern) field. Among them, the rateMatchPatternLTE-CRS field is dedicated to indicating the unavailable time-frequency resources of the CRS signal in LTE, and the rateMatchPattern field can indicate any unavailable time-frequency resources.

[0150] The rateMatchPattern field may include: a resource block (resourceBlocks) bitmap, a symbol (symbolsInResourceBlock) bitmap, and a periodicity pattern (periodicityAndPattern) bitmap. The resource block bitmap may be used to indicate which RBs have unavailable time-frequency resources and may occupy 275 bits; the symbol (symbol) bitmap in the resource block may be used to indicate which symbols have unavailable time-frequency resources and may occupy 14 bits or 28 bits; the periodicity pattern bitmap may be used to indicate which time slots have unavailable time-frequency resources and may occupy 2 bits, 4 bits, 5 bits, 8 bits, 10 bits, 20 bits, or 40 bits, with no limitation.

[0151] It can be understood that the specific introduction of the above-mentioned method 1 and method 2 can be referred to the relevant introduction in the 3GPP protocol, which will not be repeated here.

[0152] 5. Coordinated multi-point (CoMP) transmission

[0153] CoMP refers to multiple geographically separated transmission points that collaborate to transmit data to a single terminal device or to receive data from a single terminal device. These transmission points typically represent base stations in different cells. In other words, in CoMP, multiple base stations collaborate to provide services to a single terminal device.

[0154] CoMP may include implementations such as dynamic point selection (DPS), coordinated scheduling (CS), coordinated beamforming (CBF), and joint transmission (JT).

[0155] DPS may mean that different base stations use different time domain resources to provide services to terminal devices. In other words, the terminal devices can dynamically choose to communicate with different base stations.

[0156] CS may mean that different base stations use different frequency domain resources on the same time domain resources to provide services to terminal devices. In other words, the terminal device can communicate with different base stations on different subcarriers.

[0157] CBF may mean that only one base station in one cell sends a useful signal to a terminal device, and the base stations in adjacent coordinated cells can reduce interference to the terminal device by adjusting the beamforming vector.

[0158] JT can refer to multiple base stations sending useful signals to terminal devices. JT can include coherent JT (CJT) and non-coherent JT (NCJT). CJT can refer to multiple base stations sending the same useful signal to terminal devices. CJT can achieve excellent system performance, but requires ideal backhaul between base stations, making system implementation more difficult. NCJT can refer to multiple base stations sending different useful signals to terminal devices. Non-ideal backhaul between base stations is possible, reducing the difficulty of system implementation, but with a certain performance loss compared to CJT.

[0159] It is understood that in terrestrial communication systems, since the distance between network devices and terminal devices is relatively close and the terminal devices move at a relatively low speed, when downlink signals sent by different network devices reach the terminal device, the delay difference between the network devices can be protected by the cyclic prefix (CP), and the Doppler shift difference can be protected by the subcarrier spacing (SCS). In this case, when the terminal device performs OFDM demodulation on the downlink signals from different network devices, there will be no inter-symbol interference (ISI) and inter-carrier interference (ICI).

[0160] For example, assume that network equipment in a terrestrial communication system, such as base stations 1 and 2, provide services to terminal device #1 via NCJT, using OFDM as the modulation scheme. Figure 1 shows the DMRS time-frequency resource occupancy for base stations 1 and 2. As shown in Figure 1, each small square represents a RE, the time domain width of each RE is the duration of one OFDM symbol, and the frequency domain width of each RE is an SCS. In the time domain, a timeslot contains 14 OFDM symbols, and the symbol indexes can be symbol #0 to symbol #13. In the frequency domain, a RB contains 12 REs, and the RE indexes can be RE #0 to RE #11.

[0161] The small squares in the shaded area may indicate that base station 1 and base station 2 send downlink signals on these REs, for example, a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS), a demodulation reference signal (DMRS), a time-frequency tracking reference signal (TRS), a phase noise tracking reference signal (phas), a primary synchronization signal PSS, or a secondary synchronization signal SSS. Here, base station 1 and base station 2 send DMRS to the terminal device as an example. It can be seen that the REs occupied by the DMRS of base station 1 and the REs occupied by the DMRS of base station 2 do not overlap with each other, or in other words, the REs occupied by the DMRS of base station 1 and the REs occupied by the DMRS of base station 2 are different REs on the same symbol.

[0162] At this time, the DMRS on the 1 RE occupied by base station 1 will only be interfered with by the DMRS of the signal on the 1 RE occupied by base station 2. For example, the DMRS sent by base station 1 on (symbol #2, RE#0) will only be interfered with by the downlink signal sent by base station 2 on (symbol #2, RE#0).

[0163] However, in satellite communication systems, due to the long distance between satellites and the ground, and the fact that terminal devices move at relatively low speeds, while satellites are constantly in high-speed motion, the delay differences between satellites when downlink signals sent from different satellites reach the terminal devices on the ground cannot be protected by the CP, and the Doppler shift differences cannot be protected by the SCS. In this case, when the terminal device performs OFDM demodulation on the downlink signals from different satellites, severe ISI and ICI will be present. Moreover, with the high-speed movement of the satellites, ISI and ICI will change dynamically and are generally difficult to predict.

[0164] For example, assume that network devices in a satellite communication system, such as satellites 1 and 2, provide services to terminal device #a via NCJT, using OFDM as the modulation scheme. Figure 2 shows the time-frequency resource occupancy of DMRSs for satellites 1 and 2. As shown in Figure 2, the shaded blocks represent the resource elements (REs) on which satellites 1 and 2 transmit downlink signals. This example uses satellites #1 and #2 transmitting DMRSs to a terminal device. It can be seen that the REs occupied by satellite #1's DMRS do not overlap with those occupied by satellite 2's DMRS. In other words, the REs occupied by satellite 1's DMRS and satellite 2's DMRS are different REs on the same symbol.

[0165] At this time, the DMRS on one RE occupied by satellite 1 will be interfered with by the downlink signals on multiple REs occupied by satellite 2. For example, the DMRS sent by satellite 1 on (symbol #2, RE#0) may be simultaneously interfered with by the downlink signals sent by satellite 2 on (symbol #2, RE#0), (symbol #2, RE#1), (symbol #2, RE#2), (symbol #3, RE#0), (symbol #3, RE#1) and (symbol #3, RE#2).

[0166] If satellite 1's DMRS is subject to severe interference, the terminal device's channel estimation for satellite 1 will result in large channel estimation errors, severely degrading signal detector performance and causing a sharp drop in the communication system's throughput. To minimize interference from satellite 2 on satellite 1's DMRS, satellite 2 must not transmit any signals on certain time domain resources. As shown in Figure 3, symbols #2 and #3 are reserved for satellite #2. Satellite 2 does not transmit any downlink signals on symbols #2-#3, thus preventing satellite 1's DMRS from interfering with satellite 2.

[0167] Therefore, in some cases, network equipment needs to allocate discontinuous time domain resources for PDSCH. For example, as shown in Figure 4, if there is a delay difference of 7.5 OFDM symbols between satellite 1 and satellite 2, satellite 1 transmits DMRS to the terminal device on (symbol #2, RE#0), (symbol #2, RE#2), (symbol #2, RE#4), (symbol #2, RE#6), (symbol #2, RE#8), and (symbol #2, RE#10) in time slot #i and time slot #i+1. At this time, satellite 2 transmits downlink signals on symbols #8 and #9 in time slot #i, which will interfere with the DMRS transmitted by satellite 1 on symbol #2 in time slot #i+1. To prevent satellite 1's DMRS from being interfered with by satellite 2, satellite 2 cannot transmit any downlink signals on symbols #8 and #9 in time slot #i. That is, satellite 2's PDSCH can occupy symbols #2-symbol #7 and symbols #10-symbol #13 in time slot #i to transmit downlink signals.

[0168] However, as can be seen from the above, the time domain configuration method of the above case 1 can only support continuous time resource allocation, or satellite 2 uses symbol #2-symbol #7, or symbol #10-symbol #13 to send downlink signals, which will result in a waste of communication resources.

[0169] In order to implement the allocation of non-contiguous time domain resources, the network device can allocate non-contiguous time domain resources through the time domain configuration method of Case 2. That is, the network device can indicate the unavailable downlink time domain resource location of the terminal device through the rate matching mode field in the RRC message. However, as the network device continues to move, the network device needs to reconfigure each parameter of the rate matching mode field in the RRC message at regular intervals and send the reconfigured rate matching mode field to the terminal device.

[0170] However, when a network device indicates a segment of unavailable downlink time domain resources for a PDSCH by reconfiguring the parameters of the rate matching mode field, redundant indications may occur. For example, in reality, the network device only needs to reconfigure symbolsInResourceBlock in the rate matching mode field, and resourceBlocks and periodicityAndPattern do not need to be reconfigured. This redundant indication overhead will lead to a decrease in transmission efficiency, resulting in redundant configuration of communication signaling, and thus a decrease in communication efficiency. In addition, since it takes a long time for the network device to reconfigure the rate matching mode field, if the network device needs to reconfigure each parameter of the rate matching mode field in the RRC message at regular intervals, it will further lead to a decrease in communication efficiency.

[0171] In response to the above technical problems, the embodiments of the present application propose the following technical solutions to reduce redundant configuration of communication signaling and improve communication efficiency.

[0172] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0173] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application can be applied to various communication systems, such as wireless fidelity (WiFi) systems, vehicle to everything (V2X) communication systems, device-to-device (D2D) communication systems, 4G, such as long-term evolution (LTE) systems, world-wide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) communication systems, 5G, such as new air interface systems, and future communication systems.

[0174] The embodiments of the present application will present various aspects, embodiments, or features around a system that may include multiple devices, components, modules, etc. It should be understood and appreciated that each system may include additional devices, components, modules, etc., and / or may not include all of the devices, components, modules, etc. discussed in conjunction with the figures. Furthermore, combinations of these solutions may also be used.

[0175] Additionally, in the embodiments of this application, words such as "exemplary" and "for example" are used to indicate examples, illustrations, or descriptions. Any embodiment or design described as "exemplary" in the embodiments of this application should not be construed as being preferred or advantageous over other embodiments or designs. Rather, the use of the word "exemplary" is intended to present concepts in a concrete manner.

[0176] In the embodiments of the present application, "information", "signal", "message", "channel" and "signaling" can sometimes be used interchangeably. It should be noted that when the distinction between them is not emphasized, the meanings they intend to express are matched. "of", "corresponding, relevant" and "corresponding" can sometimes be used interchangeably. It should be noted that when the distinction between them is not emphasized, the meanings they intend to express are matched. In addition, the " / " mentioned in the embodiments of the present application can be used to express an "or" relationship.

[0177] It is understood that in the embodiments of the present application, "indication" may include direct indication, indirect indication, explicit indication, and implicit indication. When describing that a certain indication information is used to indicate A, it can be understood that the indication information carries A, directly indicates A, or indirectly indicates A.

[0178] In the embodiment of the present application, the information indicated by the indication information is referred to as information to be indicated. In the specific implementation process, there are many ways to indicate the information to be indicated, such as but not limited to, the information to be indicated can be directly indicated, such as the information to be indicated itself or the index of the information to be indicated, etc., or the information to be indicated can be indirectly indicated by indicating other information, wherein there is an association relationship between the other information and the information to be indicated. It is also possible to indicate only a part of the information to be indicated, while the other parts of the information to be indicated are known or agreed in advance. For example, the indication of specific information can also be achieved with the help of the arrangement order of each piece of information agreed in advance (such as specified in the protocol), thereby reducing the indication overhead to a certain extent.

[0179] The information to be indicated can be sent as a whole or divided into multiple sub-information and sent separately. The sending period and / or sending timing of these sub-information can be the same or different. The specific sending method is not limited in the embodiments of this application. The sending period and / or sending timing of these sub-information can be predefined, for example, predefined according to a protocol, or can be configured by the transmitting device by sending configuration information to the receiving device.

[0180] The network architecture and business scenarios described in the embodiments of the present application are intended to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application. Ordinary technicians in this field will know that with the evolution of network architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application are also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0181] To facilitate understanding of the embodiments of the present application, a communication system applicable to the embodiments of the present application will be described in detail using the communication system shown in Figure 5 as an example. For example, Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system applicable to the communication method provided in the embodiments of the present application.

[0182] As shown in FIG5 , the communication system mainly includes: network equipment and terminal equipment.

[0183] Among them, there can be multiple network devices, such as a first network device, a second network device, etc. Without causing ambiguity, the network device in the embodiment of the present application can be a device with wireless transceiver functions, or a chip or chip system of the device, located in the access network (AN) of the communication system, to provide access services for the terminal. For example, the network device can be called a radio access network device (RAN) device, which can specifically be a next-generation mobile communication system, such as a 6G access network device, such as a 6G base station, or in the next-generation mobile communication system, the network device can also have other naming methods, which are all covered within the scope of protection of the embodiment of the present application, and the present application does not impose any restrictions on this. Alternatively, the network device may include 5G, such as a gNB in ​​a new radio (NR) system, or one or a group of antenna panels (including multiple antenna panels) of a base station in 5G, or a network node constituting a gNB, a transmission and reception point (TRP or TP), or a transmission measurement function (TMF), such as a central unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), a CU-control plane (CP), a CU-user plane (UP), a radio unit (RU), an RSU with base station functions, a wired access gateway, or a 5G core network element. Alternatively, the network device may include an access point (AP) in a wireless fidelity (WiFi) system, a wireless relay node, a wireless backhaul node, various types of macro base stations, micro base stations (also known as small cells), relay stations, access points, wearable devices, vehicle-mounted devices, and the like.

[0184] Among them, the CU and DU can be set separately, or can also be included in the same network element, such as a baseband unit (BBU). The RU can be included in a radio frequency device or a radio frequency unit, for example, a remote radio unit (RRU), an active antenna unit (AAU) or a remote radio head (RRH). It can be understood that the network device can be a CU node, or a DU node, or a device including a CU node and a DU node. In addition, the CU can be divided into a network device in the access network RAN, or the CU can be divided into a network device in the core network, and there is no limitation here.

[0185] In different systems, CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU or RU may also have different names, but those skilled in the art can understand their meanings. For example, in the ORAN system, CU may also be called O-CU (Open CU), DU may also be called O-DU, CU-CP may also be called O-CU-CP, CU-UP may also be called O-CU-UP, and RU may also be called O-RU. For the convenience of description, this application uses CU, CU-CP, CU-UP, DU and RU as examples for description. Any unit of CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU and RU in this application can be implemented by a software module, a hardware module, or a combination of a software module and a hardware module.

[0186] In the embodiments of the present application, the form of the network device is not limited. The device used to implement the function of the network device can be a network device; it can also be a device that can support the network device to implement the function, such as a chip system. The device can be installed in the network device or used in conjunction with the network device.

[0187] Without causing ambiguity, the terminal device in the embodiments of the present application can be a terminal device with transceiver functions, or a chip or chip system of the terminal device. The terminal device may also be referred to as user equipment (UE), access terminal equipment, subscriber unit (subscriber unit), user station, mobile station (MS), mobile station, remote station, remote terminal equipment, mobile device, user terminal equipment, terminal equipment, wireless communication equipment, user agent or user device. The terminal device in the embodiments of the present application can be a mobile phone, a cellular phone, a smart phone, a tablet computer, a wireless data card, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a wireless modem, a handheld device (handset), a laptop computer, a machine type communication (MTC) terminal device, a computer with wireless transceiver function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a smart home device (for example, a refrigerator, a television, an air conditioner, an electric meter, etc.), an intelligent robot, a robotic arm, a workshop equipment, a wireless terminal device in unmanned driving, a wireless terminal device in industrial control, a wireless terminal device in self-driving, a wireless terminal device in remote medical care, a wireless terminal device in a smart grid, a wireless terminal device in transportation safety, a wireless terminal device in a smart city, a smart home, etc. The terminal device of the present application may also be a vehicle-mounted module, a vehicle-mounted module, a vehicle-mounted component, a vehicle-mounted chip or a vehicle-mounted unit that is built into a vehicle as one or more components or units. The terminal device may also be other devices with terminal device functions, for example, the terminal device may also be a device that functions as a terminal device in D2D communication.

[0188] The embodiments of this application do not limit the form of the terminal device. The device used to implement the functions of the terminal device can be the terminal device; it can also be a device that supports the terminal device to implement the functions, such as a chip system. The device can be installed in the terminal device or used in conjunction with the terminal device. In the embodiments of this application, the chip system can be composed of a chip or include a chip and other discrete devices.

[0189] In this communication system, the second network device can send a message including the configuration of at least one non-continuous time domain resource to the terminal device. The time domain resources indicated by the at least one time domain resource configuration do not include the unavailable downlink time domain resources of the second network device reported by the terminal device to the first network device. Therefore, the network device does not need to reconfigure each parameter in the rate matching field each time to indicate a period of unavailable downlink time domain resources, which can reduce the time for reconfiguration of the rate matching field, thereby avoiding redundant configuration of communication signaling, improving communication efficiency, and realizing flexible allocation of time domain resources.

[0190] Exemplarily, Figure 6 is a second architectural diagram of a communication system applicable to the communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 6, the communication system is a satellite communication system, which mainly includes: terminal equipment, a gateway (GW) and a satellite, for example, satellite 1 and satellite 2, and satellite 1 and satellite 2 can both provide services for the terminal equipment.

[0191] The link between a satellite and a terminal device is called a user link, the link between a satellite and a GW is called a feeder link, and the link between satellites is called an inter-satellite link. Satellite operating modes include transparent and regenerative modes. When operating in transparent mode, the satellite only forwards signals, and the GW performs gNB functions or partial gNB functions. In this case, the GW can be considered a base station. When operating in regenerative mode, the satellite processes digital signals and performs gNB functions or partial gNB functions. In this case, the satellite can be considered a base station. Multiple satellites collaborate to provide services to terminal devices in overlapping coverage areas. Satellites can obtain information about unavailable downlink time domain resources via inter-satellite links (ISLs) or feeder links (FLs), and send RRC messages and DCI to terminal devices via user links to inform them of the allocated non-contiguous time domain resources.

[0192] Exemplarily, Figure 7 is a third architectural diagram of a communication system applicable to the communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 7, the communication system is a terrestrial communication system, which mainly includes: terminal equipment and base stations, such as base station 1 and base station 2. Base station 1 and base station 2 can both provide services for terminal equipment.

[0193] It can be understood that Figures 5 to 7 are simplified schematic diagrams for ease of understanding, and the communication system may also include other network devices and / or other terminal devices, which are not shown in Figures 5 to 7.

[0194] For ease of understanding, the communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application will be specifically described below with reference to Figures 8 to 12.

[0195] 8 is a flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application. The method can be applied to the interaction between the first network device, the second network and the terminal device in the above communication system.

[0196] Specifically, as shown in FIG8 , the process of the communication method is as follows:

[0197] S801: A terminal device sends first indication information to a first network device. Correspondingly, the first network device receives the first indication information from the terminal device.

[0198] The first indication information is used to indicate unavailable downlink time domain resources, and the unavailable downlink time domain resources are unavailable downlink time domain resources of the second network device.

[0199] The cell of the first network device and the cell of the second network device are neighboring cells, or in other words, the first network device and the second network device are adjacent or neighboring network devices. That is, the first network device and the second network device provide services to the terminal device on the same time-frequency resources through collaboration, such as non-coherent joint transmission. The first network device can be the primary network device providing services to the terminal device, and the second network device can be the secondary network device providing services to the terminal device.

[0200] The unavailable downlink time domain resources may include at least one continuous time domain resource, and the at least one continuous time domain resource may be a time domain resource within the same time unit, and the time unit may be a symbol, a time slot, a subframe, a frame, etc., without limitation. Continuous time domain resources may be understood as: consisting of time domain resources corresponding to multiple continuous time domain resource positions, or consisting of time domain resources corresponding to separate time domain resource positions. For example, symbol #6 to symbol #8 in time slot #i, and symbol #12 are unavailable downlink time domain resources of the second network device. At this time, symbol #6 to symbol #8 and symbol #12 may all be understood as continuous time domain resources, without limitation. The embodiment of the present application is introduced by taking the unavailable downlink time domain resources including a continuous time domain resource as an example. For example, as shown in FIG4 , if the first network device is the above-mentioned satellite 1 and the second network device is the above-mentioned satellite 2, at this time, the unavailable downlink time domain resources of satellite 2 are the above-mentioned symbols #8 to symbol #9 in time slot #i.

[0201] It can be understood that the unavailable downlink time domain resources can be determined by the terminal device based on the PDSCH time domain resource configuration of the first network device, the PDSCH time domain resource configuration of the second network, and the delay difference between the first network device and the second device. For example, as shown in Figure 4, the terminal device can determine that the unavailable downlink time domain resources of satellite 2 are symbols #8 and symbol #9 in time slot #i based on the time domain resources occupied by the DMRS of satellite 1, the PDSCH time domain resource configuration of satellite 2, and the delay difference between satellite 1 and satellite 2. The specific implementation process can refer to the relevant introduction in the above background technology, and will not be repeated here.

[0202] In one possible design, when downlink communication between the terminal device and the first network device satisfies a preset condition, the terminal device sends first indication information to the first network device. The preset condition may include at least one of the following: a block error rate greater than a first preset threshold; a signal-to-interference-and-noise ratio greater than a second preset threshold; or a communication rate less than a third preset threshold.

[0203] Among them, the block error rate, signal-to-interference-and-noise ratio, and communication rate are all parameters that characterize the performance of a communication system.

[0204] The block error rate (BLER) can be: the percentage of erroneous blocks in all transmitted blocks in a communication system, or the error probability of a transmission block after a cyclic redundancy check (CRC). The first preset threshold value can be a reference value of the block error rate, which can be denoted as P1. If the BLER of the downlink signal of the first network device is greater than P1, it can be considered that the second network device has caused serious interference to the downlink signal of the first network device; if the BLER of the downlink signal of the first network device is less than or equal to P1, it can be considered that the second network device has not caused interference to the downlink signal of the first network device, or the interference is small. At this time, it can be considered that the interference caused by the second network device to the downlink signal of the first network device can be ignored. It can be understood that the value of the first preset threshold value can be selected according to the specific scenario, and the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this.

[0205] The signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR) can be: the ratio of the signal to the sum of interference and noise in the communication system, and the SINR can characterize the quality of the signal. The second preset threshold can be a reference value of the signal to interference plus noise ratio, which can be recorded as P2. If the SINR of the downlink signal of the first network device is less than or equal to P2, it can be considered that the second network device has caused serious interference to the downlink signal of the first network device; if the SINR of the downlink signal of the first network device is greater than P2, it can be considered that the second network device has not caused interference to the downlink signal of the first network device, or the interference is small. At this time, it can be considered that the interference caused by the second network device to the downlink signal of the first network device can be ignored. It can be understood that the value of the second preset threshold can be selected according to the specific scenario, and the embodiment of the present application does not limit this.

[0206] The communication rate can be: the rate at which a network device transmits a signal to a terminal device. The communication rate can include bit rate, baud rate, data transfer rate, etc. Among them, the bit rate can be the amount of information transmitted by the communication line (or system) per unit time (such as per second); the baud rate can be the number of code elements (or pulses) transmitted by the communication line (or system) per unit time (such as per second), or the baud rate can represent the number of changes in the modulated signal waveform per unit time during the signal modulation process; the data transfer rate can be the number of characters transmitted by the communication line (or system) per unit time (such as per second), or the number of code groups (or word blocks) or bits transmitted per unit time (such as per second). It can be understood that the communication rate can also include any other possible parameters without limitation.

[0207] The third preset threshold value can be a reference value of the communication rate, for example, a reference value of the bit rate, a reference value of the baud rate, or a reference value of the data transmission rate. The third preset threshold value can be denoted as P3. If the communication rate of the downlink communication between the first network device and the terminal device is less than P3, it can be considered that the second network device has caused serious interference to the downlink signal of the first network device; if the communication rate of the downlink signal of the first network device is greater than P3, it can be considered that the second network device has not caused interference to the downlink signal of the first network device, or the interference is small. At this time, it can be considered that the interference caused by the second network device to the downlink signal of the first network device can be ignored. It can be understood that the value of the second preset threshold value can be selected according to the specific scenario, and the embodiment of the present application does not limit this.

[0208] It is understood that in embodiments of the present application, the preset condition may be a combination of one or more of the above conditions. For example, the terminal device may jointly determine whether downlink communication with the first network device meets the preset condition based on a block error rate greater than a first preset threshold and a signal-to-interference-and-noise ratio greater than a second preset threshold. The specific implementation process may refer to the implementation process of each of the above parameters and is not described in detail here. The preset condition may also include any other possible conditions, without limitation.

[0209] Optionally, the first indication information can also be used to indicate that the downlink communication between the terminal device and the first network device meets a preset condition. In this case, the first network device can determine whether it is interfered with by the second network device based on the first indication information reported by the terminal device, so that the first network device can subsequently schedule the PDSCH time domain resources. For example, after the first network device determines that it is interfered with by the second network device, the first network device can selectively send a downlink signal, such as the first network device can not send a downlink signal (such as CSI-RS) on a specific time domain resource to avoid the second network from interfering with the CSI-RS signal of the first network device. It can be understood that the embodiment of the present application does not limit the specific implementation of the scheduling of PDSCH time domain resources by the first network device.

[0210] The naming of the above-mentioned first indication information is only an example, and the first information may also be called indication information #1, indication information #a, etc., without limitation.

[0211] S802: The first network device sends first indication information to the second network device. Correspondingly, the second network device receives the first indication information from the first network device.

[0212] It will be appreciated that the first network device may directly forward the first indication information from the terminal device to the second network device to inform the second network device of the unavailable downlink time domain resources. For example, continuing with the above implementation, satellite 1 may send the first indication information to satellite 2 via an intersatellite link to notify satellite 2 that it cannot downlink communicate with the terminal device during symbols #8 to #9 in time slot #i.

[0213] S803: The second network device sends a first message to the terminal device according to the first instruction information. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the first message from the second network device.

[0214] Among them, the first message may include at least one downlink time domain resource configuration, that is, the second network device can indicate one or more downlink time domain resource configurations through the first message, and the time domain resources indicated by the at least one downlink time domain resource configuration can be non-continuous time domain resources that can be used for downlink communication between the second network device and the terminal device, and the terminal device can communicate downlink with the second network device on the non-continuous time domain resources indicated by the at least one downlink time domain resource configuration.

[0215] Non-continuous time domain resources can be understood as the presence of gaps between the time domain resources occupied by the PDSCH of the second network device. For example, as shown in FIG4 , the non-continuous time domain resources allocated by satellite 2 for PDSCH can be recorded as time domain resource a. Time domain resource a can be: symbol #2-symbol #7 of time slot #i, and symbol #10-symbol #13. There is a gap between symbol #2-symbol #7 and symbol #2-symbol #7.

[0216] The time domain resources indicated by at least one time domain resource configuration may not include unavailable downlink time domain resources. For example, the first time domain resource among the time domain resources indicated by at least one time domain resource configuration may not include unavailable downlink time domain resources. That is, the time domain interval between the non-continuous time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration may include unavailable downlink time domain resources. For example, continuing with the above embodiment, satellite 2 may indicate non-continuous time domain resource a through the first time domain resource configuration. The non-continuous time domain resource a does not include the unavailable downlink time domain resources of satellite 2: symbol #8-symbol #9.

[0217] It can be understood that the first message carries information that can be used to indicate continuous time domain resources. The information indicating continuous time domain resources can be pdsch-AllocationList. The information used to indicate continuous time domain resources can also be used to indicate multiple time domain resource configurations, that is, pdsch-AllocationList can also be used to indicate multiple non-continuous time domain resource configurations. The fact that pdsch-AllocationList can be used to indicate multiple non-continuous time domain resource configurations can be understood as follows: the second network device can directly reuse pdsch-AllocationList to indicate multiple non-continuous time domain resource configurations, or, can use pdsch-AllocationList and other information, such as medium access control-control unit (MAC-CE), to jointly indicate multiple non-continuous time domain resource configurations. The following is a detailed introduction taking the following 6 cases of the first time domain resource configuration as an example.

[0218] Case a: the first time domain resource configuration may include a bitmap, and the bitmap may be carried in the time domain resource configuration information.

[0219] Among them, the time domain resource configuration information can indicate the first time domain resource configuration by reusing the PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation in the pdsch-AllocationList, where the pdsch-AllocationList is recorded as pdsch-AllocationList#2, and the PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation in the pdsch-AllocationList#2 can be recorded as PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#21, PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#22,..., PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#2n, respectively, where the value of n is any integer greater than or equal to 1.

[0220] It can be understood that PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#21, PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#22, ..., PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#2n can respectively indicate a time domain resource configuration. Assuming that the time domain resource indicated by the first time domain resource configuration can be indicated by PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#21, the following will be introduced using PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#21 as an example.

[0221] PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#21 may include the following parameters: k0, mappingType, and bitmap. The meanings of k0 and mappingType are the same as those in "pdsch-AllocationList#1" in the above technical terms and are not repeated here.

[0222] The difference between PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#21 and PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation in PDSCH-AllocationList#1, such as PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#11, is that the embodiment of the present application replaces the startSymbolAndLength in PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#11 with a bitmap. The value of the bitmap can indicate the time domain resource indicated by the first time domain resource configuration. It can be understood that PDSCH-AllocationList#2 can be in the following format:

[0223] The bitmap may contain multiple bits, each bit may correspond to a symbol, and the value of the bit may indicate whether the symbol corresponding to the bit is a time domain resource that can be used by the second network device. For example, a bit value of 1 may be used to represent that the symbol indicated by the bit is a time domain resource available to the second network device, and a bit value of 0 may be used to represent that the symbol indicated by the bit is a downlink time domain resource that is unavailable to the second network device. In this way, multiple bits of the bitmap may jointly indicate the time domain resource indicated by the first time domain resource configuration. For example, continuing with the above example, the bitmap may include 14 bits, where the 14 bits correspond from left to right to symbol #0 to symbol #13 on time slot #i. If the value of the bitmap is 00111111001111, the bitmap may indicate that symbol #2 to symbol #7 and symbol #10 to symbol #13 on time slot #i are time domain resources available for the PDSCH of satellite 2. That is, the downlink time domain resources unavailable for the PDSCH of satellite 2 are symbol #8 to symbol #9.

[0224] It can be understood that the implementation principle of the discontinuous time domain resource configuration indicated by PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#22, ..., PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#2n is similar to that of PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#21, which can be used as a reference for understanding and will not be repeated here.

[0225] Case b: The first time domain resource configuration may include first information and second information, which may be carried in the time domain resource configuration information. The first information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the configured time domain resources, and the second information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the unavailable time domain resources.

[0226] Among them, the time domain resource configuration information can indicate the first time domain resource configuration by multiplexing the PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation in the pdsch-AllocationList, where the pdsch-AllocationList is recorded as pdsch-AllocationList#3, and the PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation in the pdsch-AllocationList#3 can be recorded as PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#31, PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#32,…, PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#3n, respectively, where the value of n is any integer greater than or equal to 1.

[0227] It can be understood that PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#31, PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#32, ..., PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#3n can respectively indicate a time domain resource configuration. It is assumed that the time domain resource indicated by the first time domain resource configuration is indicated by PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#31, that is, the first information and the second information are carried in the PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#31 information. The following is introduced using PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#31 as an example.

[0228] PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#31 may include the following parameters: k0, mappingType, startSymbolAndLength, and the starting symbol and symbol length of unavailable time domain resources (unavailableStartSymbolAndLength). k0, mappingType, and startSymbolAndLength have the same meanings as those in "pdsch-AllocationList#1" in the technical terms above and are not repeated here.

[0229] The difference between PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#31 and PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation in pdsch-AllocationList#1, such as PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#11, is that the embodiment of the present application adds a new parameter unavailableStartSymbolAndLength in PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#11, and pdsch-AllocationList#3 can be in the following format:

[0230] It can be understood that the first information can be the starting symbol and symbol length information of the configured time domain resources (i.e., the parameter startSymbolAndLength in the above-mentioned PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#31). startSymbolAndLength can be used to indicate the time domain resources configured for downlink communication between the terminal device and the second network device. The configured time domain resources are time domain resources configured when the second network device does not consider interference to other network devices or the interference to other network devices is small. For example, continuing the above example, as shown in Figure 4, satellite 2 can indicate the configured PDSCH time domain resources through startSymbolAndLength: the starting symbol is symbol #2, and the symbol length is 11. At this time, the PDSCH time domain resources configured by satellite 2 are symbol #2-symbol #13 in time slot #i.

[0231] The second information may be the starting symbol and symbol length information of the unavailable time domain resources (i.e., the parameter unavailableStartSymbolAndLength in the above-mentioned PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#31). The unavailableStartSymbolAndLength may be used to indicate unavailable downlink time domain resources. For example, continuing with the above example, as shown in FIG4 , satellite 2 may use the unavailableStartSymbolAndLength to indicate unavailable PDSCH time domain resources: if the starting symbol is symbol #8 and the symbol length is 2, the unavailable time domain resources of satellite 2 are symbols #8 to #9 in time slot #i.

[0232] The configured time domain resources may include unavailable downlink time domain resources. In other words, the unavailable downlink time domain resources may be regarded as a subset of the configured time domain resources. For example, continuing with the above embodiment, symbol #8-symbol #9 are a subset of symbol #2-symbol #13, and the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration may be the time domain resources in symbol #2-symbol #13 except symbol #8-symbol #9, that is, the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration are symbol #2-symbol #8, and symbol #10-symbol #13.

[0233] It can be understood that the implementation principle of the discontinuous time domain resource configuration indicated by PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#32, ..., PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#3n is similar to that of PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#31, which can be used as a reference for understanding and will not be repeated here.

[0234] Case c: the first time domain resource configuration may include first information and second information, the first information may be time domain resource configuration information, and the second information may be an information element in a medium access control-element MAC-CE.

[0235] Among them, the time domain resource configuration information can be any PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation in the pdsch-AllocationList#1 in the above technical terminology part, such as PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#11, that is, the first information can be the parameter startSymbolAndLength in PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#11, and startSymbolAndLength can indicate the time domain resources configured for the downlink communication between the terminal device and the second network device. The configured time domain resources can refer to the relevant introduction in situation b and will not be repeated here.

[0236] Figure 9 is a structural schematic diagram of a MAC-CE configured with unavailable downlink time domain resources provided in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 9, the MAC-CE can be a bit string, which can include bit group #1a and bit group #2a. Bit group #1a can be understood as the first row of MAC-CE, and bit group #2a can be understood as the second row of MAC-CE. Bit group #1a and bit group #2a can both contain 8 bits and are aligned.

[0237] The bit group #1a may include: a reserved bit, a serving cell identity (ID), and a bandwidth part (BWP) ID.

[0238] The reserved bit may be an undefined bit, or a bit reserved for subsequent direct use, occupying a total of 1 bit, which may be denoted by R.

[0239] The serving cell ID may be used to indicate an identifier of a cell of the second network device, and occupies 5 bits in total.

[0240] The BWP ID may be used to indicate an identifier of a portion of the bandwidth of the second network device, and occupies 2 bits in total.

[0241] It can be understood that the signaling included in bit group #1a is only an example, and bit group #1 may also include any other possible information or signaling without limitation.

[0242] Bit group #2a may include: reserved bits and unavailable downlink time domain resource start symbol and symbol length (notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength) information.

[0243] Among them, the reserved bit can be an undefined bit, or in other words, a bit reserved for subsequent direct use, occupying a total of 1 bit. For example, the reserved bit can be an activation flag, denoted as S, which can indicate activation information of the unavailable downlink time domain resource. If S=1, it means that the unavailable downlink time domain resource is activated, or the unavailable downlink time domain resource is effective, and the second network device cannot send downlink signals on the unavailable downlink time domain resource; if S=0, it means that the unavailable downlink time domain resource is deactivated, or the unavailable downlink time domain resource is invalid, and the second network device can send downlink signals on the unavailable downlink time domain resource.

[0244] The notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength field can be used to indicate unavailable downlink time domain resources, occupying a total of 7 bits. The notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength field, combined with the serving cell ID, can indicate that the unavailable downlink time domain resources are unavailable downlink time domain resources of the second network device. It can be understood that the second information is the information element (notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength) in the MAC-CE. For example, continuing with the above embodiment, the notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength field can indicate that the starting symbol is symbol #8 and the symbol length is 2, meaning that the unavailable time domain resources for satellite 2 are symbols #8 through #9 in time slot #i.

[0245] In this case, the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration can be jointly indicated by the parameter startSymbolAndLength in PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#11 and notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength in MAC-CE. For example, continuing the above example, symbol #8-symbol #9 are a subset of symbol #2-symbol #13, and the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration can be the time domain resources in symbol #2-symbol #13 except symbol #8-symbol #9, that is, the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration are symbol #2-symbol #8, and symbol #10-symbol #13.

[0246] Optionally, MAC-CE can also indicate multiple unavailable downlink time domain resource configurations. For example, Figure 10 is a second structural schematic diagram of a MAC-CE configuration of unavailable downlink time domain resources provided in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 10, the MAC-CE can be a bit string, which can include multiple bit groups, such as bit group #1b, bit group #2b, bit group #3b,..., bit group #Nb. Bit group #1b can be understood as the first row of MAC-CE, bit group #2b can be understood as the second row of MAC-CE, bit group #3b can be understood as the third row of MAC-CE, and so on. Bit group #Nb can be understood as the Nth row of MAC-CE. Bit group #1b, bit group #2b, bit group #3b,..., bit group #Nb can all contain 8 bits and be aligned.

[0247] Among them, the structure of bit group #1b is the same as that of the above-mentioned bit group #1a, which can be understood by reference and will not be repeated here.

[0248] Bit group #2b may include: an activation flag (denoted as S0) and unavailable downlink time domain resource (denoted as notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength-0) information #0.

[0249] Among them, S0 can indicate the activation information of the unavailable downlink time domain resource, which occupies a total of 1 bit. If S0=1, it means that the notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength-0 configuration is activated, or the notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength-0 configuration is effective, and the second network device cannot send downlink signals on the time domain resource indicated by notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength-0; if S0=0, it means that the notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength-0 configuration is deactivated, or the notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength-0 configuration is invalid, and the second network device can send downlink signals on the time domain resource indicated by the unavailable downlink time domain resource.

[0250] notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength-0 is used to indicate the first type of unavailable time domain resource configuration. For example, continuing with the above embodiment, notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength-0 may indicate that the starting symbol is symbol #8 and the symbol length is 2, and the unavailable downlink time domain resources of satellite 2 are symbols #8 to #9 in time slot #i.

[0251] It can be understood that the structure and indication method of bit group #3b to bit group #Nb are the same as those of bit group #2b. For example, bit group #3b can include activation flag S1 and notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength-1. Similarly, bit group #Nb can include SN-2 and notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength-(N-2). You can refer to it for understanding and will not repeat it here.

[0252] It can be understood that, for example, continuing with the above embodiment, it is assumed that satellite 2 indicates the configured time domain resources through the parameter startSymbolAndLength in PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#11: the starting symbol is symbol #2, and the symbol length is 11; satellite 2 indicates the unavailable downlink time domain resources through notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength-0 in MAC-CE: the starting symbol is symbol #8, and the symbol length is 2. In this case, S0=1, and the values ​​of S1 to SN-2 are all 0. That is, the unavailable downlink time domain resource configuration indicated by notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength-1 to notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength-(N-2) is invalid. In this case, the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration may be symbols #2 to #8, and symbols #10 to #13.

[0253] The above implementation process of jointly indicating the first time domain resource configuration through PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#11 in pdsch-AllocationList#1 and MAC-CE is only an example. The first time domain resource configuration can also be jointly indicated by other PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocations in pdsch-AllocationList#1, such as PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#12 and MAC-CE. You can refer to it for understanding without limitation.

[0254] Case d: The first time domain resource configuration may include first information and second information, and the first information and the second information may be carried in the time domain resource configuration information. The first information is used to indicate the first time domain resource, and the second information is used to indicate the second time domain resource. The first information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the first time domain resource, and the second information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the second time domain resource.

[0255] Among them, the time domain resource configuration information can indicate the first time domain resource configuration by multiplexing the PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation in the pdsch-AllocationList, where the pdsch-AllocationList is recorded as pdsch-AllocationList#4, and the PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation in the pdsch-AllocationList#4 can be recorded as PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#41, PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#42,…, PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#4n, respectively, where the value of n is any integer greater than or equal to 1.

[0256] It can be understood that PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#41, PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#42, ..., PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#4n can respectively indicate a time domain resource configuration. It is assumed that the time domain resource indicated by the first time domain resource configuration is indicated by PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#41, that is, the first information and the second information are carried in PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#4. The following is introduced using PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#41 as an example.

[0257] PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#41 may include the following parameters: k0, mappingType, startSymbolAndLength, and the starting symbol and symbol length of the additional time domain resources (additionalStartSymbolAndLength). k0, mappingType, and startSymbolAndLength have the same meanings as those in "pdsch-AllocationList#1" in the technical terms above and are not repeated here.

[0258] The difference between PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#41 and PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation in pdsch-AllocationList#1, such as PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#11, is that the embodiment of the present application adds a new parameter in PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#41: additionalStartSymbolAndLength, and pdsch-AllocationList#4 can be in the following format:

[0259] It can be understood that the first information can be the starting symbol and symbol length information of the first time domain resource (that is, the parameter startSymbolAndLength in the above-mentioned PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#41). The first time domain resource can include at least one continuous time domain resource in the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration, that is, startSymbolAndLength can indicate at least one continuous time domain resource in the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration. For example, continuing the above example, satellite 2 can indicate the first time domain resource through startSymbolAndLength: the starting symbol is symbol #2, and the symbol length is 5. At this time, the first time domain resource can be symbol #2-symbol #7 in time slot #i.

[0260] The second information may include the starting symbol and symbol length information of the second time domain resource (i.e., the parameter additionalStartSymbolAndLength in the aforementioned PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#41). The second time domain resource may include time domain resources other than at least one continuous segment of time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration. That is, additionalStartSymbolAndLength may indicate time domain resources other than at least one continuous segment of time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration. For example, continuing with the aforementioned example, satellite 2 may use additionalStartSymbolAndLength to indicate the second time domain resource: the starting symbol is symbol #10, and the symbol length is 3. In this case, the second time domain resource may include symbols #10 through #13 in time slot #i.

[0261] In this case, the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration may consist of the first time domain resources and the second time domain resources. For example, continuing with the above embodiment, the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration may consist of symbol #2-symbol #7, and symbol #10-symbol #13.

[0262] It can be understood that the implementation principle of the discontinuous time domain resource configuration indicated by PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#42, ..., PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#4n is similar to that of PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#41, which can be used as a reference for understanding and will not be repeated here.

[0263] Case e: The first time domain resource configuration may include first information and second information, the first information is used to indicate the first time domain resource, and the second information is used to indicate the second time domain resource. The first information may be time domain resource configuration information, and the second information may be an information element in the medium access control-control element MAC-CE.

[0264] Among them, the time domain resource configuration information can be any PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation in the pdsch-AllocationList#1 in the above technical terminology part, such as PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#11, that is, the first information can be the parameter startSymbolAndLength in PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#11, and startSymbolAndLength can indicate the first time domain resource. The first time domain resource can include at least one continuous time domain resource in the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration. For example, continuing the above example, satellite 2 can indicate the first time domain resource through startSymbolAndLength: the starting symbol is symbol #2, and the symbol length is 5. At this time, the first time domain resource can be symbol #2-symbol #7 in time slot #i.

[0265] Figure 11 is a structural schematic diagram of a MAC-CE configuration with additional downlink time domain resources provided in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 11, the MAC-CE can be a bit string, which can include bit group #1c and bit group #2c. Bit group #1c can be understood as the first row of MAC-CE, and bit group #2c can be understood as the second row of MAC-CE. Bit group #1c and bit group #2c can both contain 8 bits and are aligned.

[0266] Among them, the structure of bit group #1c is the same as that of the above-mentioned bit group #1a, which can be understood by reference and will not be repeated here.

[0267] Bit group #2c may include: reserved bits and additional start symbol and symbol length (additionalStartSymbolAndLength) information of additional time domain resources.

[0268] The reserved bit may be an undefined bit, or in other words, a bit reserved for subsequent direct use, occupying a total of one bit. For example, the reserved bit may be an activation flag, denoted as S, which may indicate activation information of the additional downlink time domain resource, denoted as S. If S=1, it indicates that the additional downlink time domain resource is activated, or that the additional downlink time domain resource is effective, and the second network device may send a downlink signal on the additional time domain resource; if S=0, it indicates that the additional downlink time domain resource is deactivated, or that the additional downlink time domain resource is invalid, and the second network device may not send a downlink signal on the additional time domain resource.

[0269] The additionalStartSymbolAndLength can be used to indicate additional downlink time domain resources, occupying a total of 7 bits. The additionalStartSymbolAndLength and the serving cell ID can jointly indicate that the additional downlink time domain resources are downlink time domain resources that can be used by the second network device. It can be understood that the second information is the information element in the MAC-CE: additionalStartSymbolAndLength, that is, the starting symbol and symbol length information of the second time domain resources can be additionalStartSymbolAndLength, and additionalStartSymbolAndLengthh can indicate the time domain resources other than at least one continuous time domain resource in the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration. For example, continuing with the above embodiment, additionalStartSymbolAndLength can indicate the second time domain resources: the starting symbol is symbol #10, and the symbol length is 3. In this case, the second time domain resources can be symbols #10 to #13 in time slot #i.

[0270] In this case, the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration may consist of the first time domain resources and the second time domain resources. For example, continuing with the above embodiment, the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration may consist of symbol #2-symbol #7, and symbol #10-symbol #13.

[0271] Optionally, MAC-CE can also indicate multiple additional downlink time domain resource configurations. For example, Figure 12 is a second structural schematic diagram of a MAC-CE configuration of additional downlink time domain resources provided in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 12, the MAC-CE can be a bit string, which can include multiple bit groups, such as bit group #1d, bit group #2d, bit group #3d,..., bit group #4d. Bit group #1d can be understood as the first row of MAC-CE, bit group #2d can be understood as the second row of MAC-CE, bit group #3d can be understood as the third row of MAC-CE, and so on. Bit group #Nd can be understood as the Nth row of MAC-CE. Bit group #1d, bit group #2d, bit group #3d,..., bit group #Nd can all contain 8 bits and be aligned.

[0272] Among them, the structure of bit group #1d is the same as that of the above-mentioned bit group #1a, which can be understood by reference and will not be repeated here.

[0273] Bit group #2d may include: an activation flag (denoted as S0) and additional downlink time domain resource (denoted as additionalStartSymbolAndLength-0) information #0.

[0274] S0 can indicate the activation information of the additional downlink time domain resource, that is, S0 can indicate that it occupies 1 bit in total. If S0=1, it means that the additionalStartSymbolAndLength-0 configuration is activated, or the additionalStartSymbolAndLength-0 configuration is effective, and the second network device can send downlink signals on the time domain resource indicated by additionalStartSymbolAndLength-0; if S0=0, it means that the additionalStartSymbolAndLength-0 configuration is deactivated, or the additionalStartSymbolAndLength-0 configuration is invalid, and the second network device cannot send downlink signals on the time domain resource indicated by the unavailable downlink time domain resource.

[0275] additionalStartSymbolAndLength-0 is used to indicate the first additional time domain resource configuration. For example, continuing with the above embodiment, additionalStartSymbolAndLength-0 may indicate that the starting symbol is symbol #10 and the symbol length is 3, and the second time domain resource of satellite 2 may be symbol #10 to symbol #13 in time slot #i.

[0276] It can be understood that the structure and indication method of bit group #3d to bit group #Nd are the same as those of bit group #2d. For example, bit group #3d can include activation identifier S1 and additionalStartSymbolAndLength-1. Similarly, bit group #Nd can include SN-2 and additionalStartSymbolAndLength-(N-2). You can refer to it for understanding and will not repeat it here.

[0277] It can be understood that, for example, continuing with the above embodiment, it is assumed that satellite 2 indicates the first time domain resource through the parameter startSymbolAndLength in PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#11: the starting symbol is symbol #2, and the symbol length is 5; satellite 2 indicates the second time domain resource through notAvailableStartSymbolAndLength-0 in MAC-CE: the starting symbol is symbol #10, and the symbol length is 3. In this case, S0=1, and the values ​​of S1 to SN-2 are all 0, that is, the additional time domain resource configuration indicated by additionalStartSymbolAndLength-1 to additionalStartSymbolAndLength-(N-2) is invalid. In this case, the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration can be symbol #2 to symbol #8, and symbol #10 to symbol #13.

[0278] The above implementation process of jointly indicating the first time domain resource configuration through pdsch-AllocationList#1 and MAC-CE is only an example. The first time domain resource configuration can also be jointly indicated by other PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocations in pdsch-AllocationList#1, such as PDSCH-TimeDomainResourceAllocation#12 and MAC-CE. You can refer to it for understanding without limitation.

[0279] Optionally, the first message can be carried in at least one of the following items: RRC message, DCI, MAC-CE, or system information block (SIB) 1, that is, the second network device can send the first message to the terminal device based on the RRC message, DCI, MAC-CE, or SIB1, without limitation.

[0280] The naming of the first message above is only an example, and the first message may also be called message #1, message #a, etc. without limitation.

[0281] It can be understood that the above is introduced using the six cases of the first time domain resource configuration as an example. The principle of the other time domain resource configurations in at least one downlink time domain resource configuration indicating unavailable non-continuous time domain resources is the same as the above-mentioned first time domain resource configuration. The specific implementation can refer to the implementation process of the unavailable non-continuous time domain resources indicated by the above-mentioned first time domain resource configuration, and will not be repeated here.

[0282] In summary, the second network device can send a message including the configuration of at least one non-continuous time domain resource to the terminal device. The time domain resources indicated by the at least one time domain resource configuration do not include the unavailable downlink time domain resources of the second network device reported by the terminal device to the first network device. Therefore, the network device does not need to reconfigure each parameter in the rate matching field each time to indicate a period of unavailable downlink time domain resources, which can reduce the time for reconfiguration of the rate matching field, thereby reducing the redundant configuration of communication signaling, improving the efficiency of communication, and realizing flexible allocation of time domain resources.

[0283] In combination with the above embodiment, the method further includes: the terminal device sends second indication information to the first network device.

[0284] The second indication information is used to indicate that the network device to which the unavailable downlink time domain resource belongs is the second network device. The second indication information may include an identifier of the second network device, for example, an ID of the second network device. The terminal device can determine, by using the ID of the second network device carried in the second indication information, that the time domain resource indicated by the first indication information is the downlink time domain resource that is unavailable for the second network device, thereby avoiding misidentification or erroneous identification.

[0285] It is understandable that the first indication information and the second indication information can be the same information, that is, the first indication information and the second indication information can be carried in the same information. In this case, the first indication information can also include the identifier of the second network device. The first indication information and the second indication information can also be different information, that is, the first indication information and the second indication information can be carried in different information. In this case, the first network device needs to determine that the network device to which the unavailable downlink time domain resources belong is the second network device based on the first indication information and the second indication information.

[0286] The naming of the second indication information is only an example. The second indication information may also be indication information #2, information #b, etc., without limitation.

[0287] In a possible design scheme, after the terminal device receives the first message from the second network device, the method may further include: the terminal device receives configuration information from the second network device.

[0288] The terminal device performs downlink communication with the second network device on the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration.

[0289] Among them, the configuration information can be used to instruct the terminal device to communicate downlink with the second network device on the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration. The configuration information can be carried in the TDRA of the DCI, and the TDRA can indicate the first time domain resource configuration in at least one time domain resource configuration. This step is similar to the specific implementation process of the above-mentioned situation 2, and can be used as a reference for understanding and will not be repeated here.

[0290] Optionally, after the terminal device receives the first message from the second network device, the method may further include:

[0291] When the downlink communication between the terminal device and the first network device does not meet the preset conditions, the terminal device sends third indication information to the first network device.

[0292] Among them, the third indication information can be used to indicate that the downlink communication between the terminal device and the first network device does not meet the preset conditions.

[0293] When the first network device is not interfered with by other network devices, such as the second network device, or the interference caused is small, the terminal device can report to the first network device that the downlink communication of the first network device is not interfered with by the second network device, so that the second network device can subsequently resume communication on the previously unavailable downlink time domain resources, thereby reducing resource waste and improving resource utilization.

[0294] The naming of the third indication information mentioned above is only an example. The second indication information may also be indication information #3, information #c, etc., without limitation.

[0295] Optionally, after the terminal device sends the third indication information to the first network device, the method further includes:

[0296] The terminal device receives a second message from the second network device.

[0297] The terminal device performs downlink communication with the second network device in a continuous manner of the downlink communication configuration.

[0298] Among them, the second message can be used to indicate the continuous time domain resources configured for the downlink communication of the second network device. The continuous time domain resources configured for the downlink communication of the second network device can be understood as: the continuous time domain resources pre-allocated to the terminal device by the second network device without considering the interference caused to other network devices or the interference caused is relatively small. When the downlink communication between the terminal device and the first network device does not meet the preset conditions, the second network device can resume communication on the previously unavailable downlink time domain resources, which can reduce resource waste and thus improve resource utilization.

[0299] Optionally, the second message can be carried in at least one of the following items: RRC message, DCI, MAC-CE, or SIB1, that is, the second network device can send the second message to the terminal device based on the RRC message, DCI, MAC-CE, or SIB1, without limitation.

[0300] The naming of the second message mentioned above is only an example, and the second message may also be message #2, message #b, etc., without limitation.

[0301] It can be understood that the downlink time domain resources that are unavailable to the above-mentioned second network device are introduced using the symbol dimension within a time slot as an example. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the dimension of the time unit, that is, the downlink time domain resources that are unavailable to the second network device can also be dimensions such as time slots, subframes, and radio frames. The implementation principles are the same as the above-mentioned symbol dimensions. The specific implementation can be understood by reference and will not be repeated here.

[0302] The communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application is described in detail above in conjunction with Figures 8 to 12. The communication device for executing the communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application is described in detail below in conjunction with Figures 13 and 14.

[0303] Figure 13 is a structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 13 , the communication device 1300 includes a transceiver module 1301 and a processing module 1302. For ease of illustration, Figure 13 only shows the main components of the communication device 1300.

[0304] In some embodiments, the communication device 1300 may be applicable to the communication system shown in FIG. 5 to perform the functions of the above-mentioned terminal device.

[0305] Among them, the transceiver module 1301 can be used to execute the function of sending and receiving messages of the terminal device, and the processing module 1302 can execute functions of the terminal device other than sending and receiving messages. For example, the processing module 1302 is used to control the transceiver module to send a first indication information to the first network device. The transceiver module 1301 is used to receive a first message from the second network device. Among them, the first indication information is used for unavailable downlink time domain resources, and the unavailable downlink time domain resources are unavailable downlink time domain resources of the second network device; the first message includes at least one downlink time domain resource configuration, and the time domain resources indicated by at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are time domain resources that can be used by the second network device to perform downlink communication with the communication device described in the third aspect, and the time domain resources indicated by at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are non-continuous time domain resources; the time domain resources indicated by at least one time domain resource configuration do not include unavailable downlink time domain resources.

[0306] Optionally, the transceiver module 1301 may include a sending module (not shown in FIG13 ) and a receiving module (not shown in FIG13 ). The sending module is used to implement the sending function of the communication device 1300 , and the receiving module is used to implement the receiving function of the communication device 1300 .

[0307] Optionally, the communication device 1300 may further include a storage module (not shown in FIG13 ) storing a program or instruction. When the processing module 1302 executes the program or instruction, the communication device 1300 may perform the above-mentioned communication method.

[0308] It should be noted that the communication device 1300 can be a terminal device, a chip (system) or other parts or components in the terminal device, or a device including a terminal device, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0309] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device 1300 can refer to the technical effects of the communication method shown in Figure 8, and will not be repeated here.

[0310] In some embodiments, the communication apparatus 1300 may be applicable to the communication system shown in FIG. 4 to perform the functions of the aforementioned second network device.

[0311] Among them, the transceiver module 1301 can be used to execute the function of sending and receiving messages of the terminal device, and the processing module 1302 can execute functions of the terminal device other than sending and receiving messages. For example, the transceiver module 1301 is used to receive indication information from the first network device. The processing module 1302 is used to send a first message to the terminal device according to the indication information. Among them, the indication information is used to indicate unavailable downlink time domain resources, and the unavailable downlink time domain resources are unavailable downlink time domain resources of the communication device; the first message includes at least one downlink time domain resource configuration, and the time domain resources indicated by at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are time domain resources that can be used for downlink communication between the communication device and the terminal device described in the fourth aspect, and the time domain resources indicated by at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are non-continuous time domain resources; the time domain resources indicated by at least one time domain resource configuration do not include unavailable downlink time domain resources.

[0312] Optionally, the transceiver module 1301 may include a sending module and a receiving module, wherein the sending module is used to implement the sending function of the communication device 1000 , and the receiving module is used to implement the receiving function of the communication device 1300 .

[0313] Optionally, the communication device 1300 may further include a storage module, wherein the storage module stores a program or instruction. When the processing module 1302 executes the program or instruction, the communication device 300 may execute the above-mentioned communication method.

[0314] It should be noted that the communication device 1300 can be a network device, a chip (system) or other parts or components in the network device, or a device including a network device, and this application does not limit this.

[0315] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device 1300 can refer to the technical effects of the above-mentioned communication method, which will not be repeated here.

[0316] For example, FIG14 is a second structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. The communication device may be a terminal, or a chip (system) or other component or assembly of a terminal. As shown in FIG14 , a communication device 1400 may include a processor 1401. Optionally, the communication device 1400 may further include a memory 1402 and / or a transceiver 1403. The processor 1401 is coupled to the memory 1402 and the transceiver 1403, such as by a communication bus.

[0317] The following is a detailed introduction to the various components of the communication device 1400 with reference to FIG14 :

[0318] The processor 1401 is the control center of the communication device 1400 and can be a single processor or a collective term for multiple processing elements. For example, the processor 1401 can be one or more central processing units (CPUs), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits configured to implement the embodiments of the present application, such as one or more digital signal processors (DSPs) or one or more field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs).

[0319] Optionally, the processor 1401 can execute various functions of the communication device 1400 by running or executing software programs stored in the memory 1402 and calling data stored in the memory 1402, such as executing the communication method shown in Figures 8 to 12 above.

[0320] In a specific implementation, as an embodiment, the processor 1401 may include one or more CPUs, such as CPU0 and CPU1 shown in FIG14 .

[0321] In a specific implementation, as an embodiment, the communication device 1400 may also include multiple processors, such as the processor 1401 and the processor 1404 shown in FIG14 . Each of these processors may be a single-core processor (single-CPU) or a multi-core processor (multi-CPU). The processor herein may refer to one or more devices, circuits, and / or processing cores for processing data (e.g., computer program instructions).

[0322] The memory 1402 is used to store the software program for executing the solution of the present application, and the execution is controlled by the processor 1401. The specific implementation method can refer to the above method embodiment and will not be repeated here.

[0323] Alternatively, the memory 1402 may be a read-only memory (ROM) or other type of static storage device that can store static information and instructions, a random access memory (RAM) or other type of dynamic storage device that can store information and instructions, or an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disc storage, an optical disc storage (including a compact disc, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc, Blu-ray disc, etc.), a magnetic disk storage medium or other magnetic storage device, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by a computer, but is not limited thereto. The memory 1402 may be integrated with the processor 1401 or exist independently and be coupled to the processor 1401 via an interface circuit (not shown in FIG. 14 ) of the communication device 1400, which is not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present application.

[0324] Transceiver 1403 is used for communication with other communication devices. For example, if communication device 1400 is a terminal device, transceiver 1403 can be used to communicate with a network device or another terminal device. For another example, if communication device 1400 is a network device, transceiver 1403 can be used to communicate with a terminal device or another network device.

[0325] Optionally, the transceiver 1403 may include a receiver and a transmitter (not shown separately in FIG14 ), wherein the receiver is used to implement a receiving function, and the transmitter is used to implement a sending function.

[0326] Optionally, the transceiver 1403 can be integrated with the processor 1401, or can exist independently and be coupled to the processor 1401 through the interface circuit of the communication device 1400 (not shown in Figure 14), which is not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present application.

[0327] It should be noted that the structure of the communication device 1400 shown in FIG14 does not constitute a limitation on the communication device. An actual communication device may include more or fewer components than shown in the figure, or combine certain components, or arrange the components differently.

[0328] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device 1400 can refer to the technical effects of the communication method described in the above method embodiment, and will not be repeated here.

[0329] An embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, which may include the terminal device, the first network device, and the second network device in the above method embodiment.

[0330] It should be understood that the processor in the embodiments of the present application may be a central processing unit (CPU), and the processor may also 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 any conventional processor, etc.

[0331] It should also be 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 random access memory (RAM) are available, such as static RAM (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), double data rate SDRAM (DDR SDRAM), enhanced SDRAM (ESDRAM), synchronous link DRAM (SLDRAM), and direct rambus RAM (DR RAM).

[0332] The above embodiments can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware (such as circuits), firmware or any other combination. When implemented using software, the above embodiments can be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions or computer programs. When the computer instructions or computer program are loaded or executed on a computer, the process or function described in the embodiment of the present application is generated in whole or in part. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from one website, computer, server or data center to another website, computer, server or data center via a wired (such as infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) method. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server or data center that contains one or more available media sets. The available medium can be a magnetic medium (for example, a floppy disk, a hard disk, a tape), an optical medium (for example, a DVD), or a semiconductor medium. The semiconductor medium can be a solid-state drive.

[0333] It should be understood that the term "and / or" as used herein simply describes a relationship between associated objects, indicating that three possible relationships exist. For example, "A and / or B" can represent: A alone, A and B together, or B alone. A and B can be singular or plural. Furthermore, the character " / " as used herein generally indicates an "or" relationship between the associated objects, but it may also indicate an "and / or" relationship. For specific understanding, please refer to the context.

[0334] In this application, "at least one" means one or more, and "plurality" means two or more. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can mean: a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, or abc, where a, b, and c can be single or plural.

[0335] It should be understood that in the various embodiments of the present application, the size of the serial numbers of the above-mentioned processes does not mean the order of execution. The execution order 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.

[0336] 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.

[0337] 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.

[0338] 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.

[0339] 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 purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0340] 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.

[0341] 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.

[0342] 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 this application should be included in the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be based on the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: The communication device sends first indication information to the first network device; wherein the first indication information is used to indicate unavailable downlink time domain resources, and the unavailable downlink time domain resources are unavailable downlink time domain resources of the second network device; The communication device receives a first message from the second network device; wherein the first message includes at least one downlink time domain resource configuration, the time domain resources indicated by the at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are time domain resources that can be used by the second network device and the communication device for downlink communication, and the time domain resources indicated by the at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are non-continuous time domain resources; the time domain resources indicated by the at least one time domain resource configuration do not include the unavailable downlink time domain resources.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method further comprises: The communication device sends second indication information to the first network device; wherein the second indication information is used to indicate that the network device to which the unavailable downlink time domain resource belongs is the second network device.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that The second indication information includes an identifier of the second network device.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that The communication device sends first indication information to the first network device, including: When the downlink communication between the communication device and the first network device meets a preset condition, the communication device sends first indication information to the first network device; wherein the preset condition includes at least one of the following: The block error rate is greater than a first preset threshold; The signal to interference plus noise ratio is greater than a second preset threshold; or, The communication rate is less than a third preset threshold.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that After the communication device receives the first message from the second network device, the method further includes: When the downlink communication between the communication device and the first network device does not meet the preset condition, the communication device sends second indication information to the first network device; wherein the second indication information is used to indicate that the downlink communication between the communication device and the first network device does not meet the preset condition.

6. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: The second network device receives first indication information from the first network device; wherein the first indication information is used to indicate unavailable downlink time domain resources, and the unavailable downlink time domain resources are unavailable downlink time domain resources of the second network device; The second network device sends a first message to the communication device according to the first indication information; wherein the first message includes at least one downlink time domain resource configuration, the time domain resources indicated by the at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are time domain resources that can be used by the second network device and the communication device for downlink communication, and the time domain resources indicated by the at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are non-continuous time domain resources; the time domain resources indicated by the at least one time domain resource configuration do not include the unavailable downlink time domain resources.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that The first message carries information for indicating continuous time domain resources, and the information for indicating continuous time domain resources is also used to indicate the at least one downlink time domain resource configuration.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that The first time domain resource configuration is one of the at least one time domain resource configuration, and the first time domain resource configuration includes a bit map, and the bit map is used to represent the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that: The first time domain resource configuration is one of the at least one time domain resource configuration, and the first time domain resource configuration includes first information and second information; the first information is used to indicate the time domain resources configured for downlink communication between the communication device and the second network device, and the second information is used to indicate the unavailable downlink time domain resources; the configured time domain resources include the unavailable downlink time domain resources.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that The first information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the configured time domain resources, and the second information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the unavailable time domain resources.

11. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that The second information is an information element in a medium access control-control element MAC-CE.

12. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that The first time domain resource configuration is one of the at least one time domain resource configuration, and the first time domain resource configuration includes first information and second information, the first information is used to indicate the first time domain resource, and the second information is used to indicate the second time domain resource; the first time domain resource includes at least one continuous time domain resource in the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration, and the second time domain resource includes the time domain resources in the time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration except the at least one continuous time domain resource.

13. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that The first information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the first time domain resource, and the second information is the starting symbol and symbol length information of the second time domain resource.

14. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that The second information is an information element in a medium access control-control element MAC-CE.

15. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 14, characterized in that The time domain resources indicated by the first time domain resource configuration include at least two continuous time domain resources.

16. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 15, characterized in that The cell of the first network device and the cell of the second network device are neighboring cells.

17. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 16, characterized in that The first message is carried in at least one of the following: Radio resource control RRC message, downlink control message DCI, MAC-CE, or system information block SIB1.

18. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: The communication device sends first indication information to the first network device; wherein the first indication information is used to indicate unavailable downlink time domain resources, and the unavailable downlink time domain resources are unavailable downlink time domain resources of the second network device; The second network device receives first indication information from the first network device; The second network device sends a first message to the communication device according to the first indication information; wherein the first message includes at least one downlink time domain resource configuration, the time domain resources indicated by the at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are time domain resources that can be used by the second network device and the communication device for downlink communication, and the time domain resources indicated by the at least one downlink time domain resource configuration are non-continuous time domain resources; the time domain resources indicated by the at least one time domain resource configuration do not include the unavailable downlink time domain resources.

19. A communication device, characterized in that: The apparatus comprises: one or more modules for executing the method according to any one of claims 1-17.

20. A communication device, characterized in that: The communication device comprises: a processor and a memory; the memory is used to store computer instructions, and when the processor executes the instructions, the communication device executes the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 17.

21. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The method comprises computer instructions, which, when executed on an electronic device, cause the electronic device to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 17.

22. A communication system, characterized in that: The method comprises a terminal device and a network device, wherein the terminal device is used to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, and the network device is used to execute the method according to any one of claims 6 to 17.

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