Relay discovery method, apparatus, communication device, storage medium and communication system

Abstract

Provided in the present disclosure are a relay discovery method, an apparatus, a communication device, a storage medium and a communication system. The method comprises: a first relay device sending a first parameter set to a first terminal, wherein the first parameter set comprises at least one of information of a second relay device, information of a second terminal and information of the first relay device. The method in the present disclosure realizes a users to users (U2U) relay discovery method that supports multi-hop in a model A.

Description

Relay discovery method, device, communication equipment, storage medium and communication system Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a relay discovery method, apparatus, communication equipment, storage medium, and communication system. Background Art

[0002] In a communication system, terminals can use relay discovery to determine the relay devices required for user-to-user (U2U) relay services. In related art, Model A relay discovery between terminals uses only one hop, and there is no multi-hop relay discovery method that supports Model A.

[0003] Summary of the Invention

[0004] The present disclosure provides a relay discovery method, apparatus, communication equipment, storage medium, and communication system.

[0005] According to a first aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a relay discovery method is proposed, which is executed by a first relay device. The method includes: sending a first parameter set to a first terminal, wherein the first parameter set includes at least one of information of a second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device.

[0006] According to the second aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a relay discovery method is proposed, which is executed by a first terminal. The method includes: obtaining a first parameter set, wherein the first parameter set includes at least one of information of the second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device.

[0007] According to the third aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a first relay device is proposed, which includes: a transceiver module for sending a first parameter set to a first terminal, wherein the first parameter set includes at least one of information of a second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device.

[0008] According to the fourth aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a first terminal is proposed, which includes: a transceiver module for obtaining a first parameter set, wherein the first parameter set includes at least one of information of the second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device.

[0009] According to the fifth aspect of the embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication device is proposed, including: a transceiver; a memory; a processor, which is connected to the transceiver and the memory respectively, and is configured to control the wireless signal reception and transmission of the transceiver by executing computer-executable instructions on the memory, and can implement the method described in any one of the above-mentioned first and second aspects.

[0010] According to the sixth aspect of the embodiment of the present disclosure, the embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a computer storage medium, wherein the computer storage medium stores computer-executable instructions; after the computer-executable instructions are executed by the processor, the method of any one of the first aspect and the second aspect can be implemented.

[0011] According to the seventh aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication system is proposed, which includes a first relay device and a first terminal, wherein: the first relay device is configured to execute the method in the above-mentioned first aspect; the first terminal is configured to execute the method in the second aspect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] The above and / or additional aspects and advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent and readily understood from the following description of the embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0013] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0014] 2a-2b are interactive schematic diagrams of some relay discovery methods provided by embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0015] 3a-3c are schematic flow charts of some relay discovery methods provided by embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0016] 4a-4d are schematic flow diagrams of some relay discovery methods provided by embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0017] FIG5 is an interactive diagram of a relay discovery method provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0018] FIG6 is an example diagram of an interaction of a relay discovery method provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0019] FIG7a is a schematic structural diagram of a first relay device provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0020] FIG7b is a schematic structural diagram of a first terminal provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0021] FIG8a is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0022] FIG8 b is a schematic structural diagram of a chip provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] The disclosed method can be used to address the technical issue of "Model A's inter-terminal relay discovery is limited to a single hop, while no multi-hop relay discovery method supporting Model B exists." Model A can utilize announcement information in the protocol. The disclosed embodiments provide a relay discovery method, apparatus, communication device, storage medium, and communication system.

[0024] In the first aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a relay discovery method, which is executed by a first relay device. The method includes: sending a first parameter set to a first terminal, wherein the first parameter set includes at least one of information of a second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device.

[0025] In the above embodiment, the first relay device sends the first parameter set to the terminal, so that the first terminal obtains information in the first parameter set and determines the relay device for terminal-to-terminal communication, thereby realizing U2U multi-hop relay discovery.

[0026] In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the information of the second terminal includes at least one of identification information and indication information of the second terminal, and the indication information is used to indicate that the first relay device can send the identification information of the second terminal.

[0027] In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, sending a first parameter set to the first terminal includes: sending a first message to the first terminal, wherein the first message is used to assist the first terminal in selecting a terminal-to-terminal U2U relay device, and the first message carries the first parameter set.

[0028] In the above embodiment, the first relay device sends the first parameter set by sending the first message to the first terminal, thereby reducing signaling interaction between the first relay device and the first terminal and saving communication resources.

[0029] In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes: acquiring a first parameter set.

[0030] In the above embodiment, the first relay device obtains the first parameter set to obtain information about the terminal and the relay device in the relay discovery process, thereby implementing U2U multi-hop relay discovery.

[0031] In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the information of the second relay device is empty or not empty.

[0032] In the second aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a relay discovery method, which is executed by a first terminal and includes: obtaining a first parameter set, wherein the first parameter set includes at least one of information of the second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device.

[0033] In the above embodiment, the first terminal obtains the first parameter set to obtain information about the terminal and the relay device in the relay discovery process, thereby implementing U2U multi-hop relay discovery.

[0034] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, obtaining the first parameter set includes: receiving the first parameter set sent by the first relay device.

[0035] In the above embodiment, the first terminal may receive the first parameter set sent by the first relay device to obtain information about the terminal and the relay device in the relay discovery process, thereby implementing U2U multi-hop relay discovery.

[0036] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, receiving a first parameter set sent by a first relay device includes: receiving a first message sent by the first relay device, wherein the first message is used to assist the first terminal in selecting a terminal-to-terminal U2U relay device, and the first message carries the first parameter set.

[0037] In the above embodiment, the first terminal obtains the first parameter set by receiving the first message sent by the first relay device, thereby reducing signaling interaction between the first relay device and the first terminal and saving communication resources.

[0038] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes: determining a terminal-to-terminal U2U relay device based on the first parameter set.

[0039] In the above embodiment, the first terminal determines the terminal-to-terminal U2U relay device based on the first parameter set, thereby determining the relay device in the shortest communication path, thereby saving communication resources.

[0040] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, determining the terminal-to-terminal U2U relay device includes: determining the U2U relay device from multiple first relay devices when receiving first parameter sets respectively sent by multiple first relay devices.

[0041] In the above embodiment, the first terminal determines the U2U relay device from multiple first relay devices by receiving first parameter sets respectively sent by multiple first relay devices, thereby expanding the applicable scope of the U2U multi-hop relay discovery.

[0042] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, determining a U2U relay device from multiple first relay devices includes: determining a first relay device in which the information of the second relay device in the first parameter set is empty, or determining a first relay device in which the information of the second relay device is not included in the first parameter set, as a U2U relay device.

[0043] In the above embodiment, the first terminal determines the first relay device whose information of the second relay device in the first parameter set is empty, or the first relay device whose first parameter set does not include the information of the second relay device, as a U2U relay device, so that the relay device in the shortest communication path can be determined, saving communication resources.

[0044] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, determining a U2U relay device from multiple first relay devices includes: determining first information corresponding to multiple first relay devices based on first parameter sets respectively sent by multiple first relay devices, wherein the first information is used to indicate the number of relay devices through which communication between the first terminal and the second terminal passes; and determining the first relay device corresponding to the minimum first information as the U2U relay device.

[0045] In the above embodiment, the first terminal obtains the first information and determines the first relay device corresponding to the minimum first information as the U2U relay device, thereby determining the relay device in the shortest communication path and saving communication resources.

[0046] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a first relay device, which includes a transceiver module for sending a first parameter set to a first terminal, wherein the first parameter set includes at least one of information of a second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device.

[0047] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a first terminal, which includes a transceiver module for obtaining a first parameter set, wherein the first parameter set includes at least one of information of the second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device.

[0048] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a communication device, which includes: one or more processors; one or more memories for storing instructions; wherein the processor is used to call the instructions so that the communication device executes the method described in the optional implementation methods of the first, second and third aspects.

[0049] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a computer storage medium, wherein the computer storage medium stores computer-executable instructions; after the computer-executable instructions are executed by a processor, the method of any one of the first and second aspects can be implemented.

[0050] In the seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a communication system, which includes: a first relay device, a first terminal, and a second terminal, wherein the first relay device is used to execute the method described in the first aspect, and the first terminal is used to execute the method described in the second aspect.

[0051] In combination with some embodiments of the seventh aspect, in some embodiments, the communication system further includes a second relay device and a second terminal.

[0052] In combination with some embodiments of the seventh aspect, in some embodiments, the number of second relay devices is greater than or equal to zero.

[0053] It is understandable that the above-mentioned relay discovery method, first terminal, first relay device, communication device, communication system, storage medium, program product, and computer program are all used to perform the method proposed in the embodiment of the present disclosure. Therefore, the beneficial effects that can be achieved can refer to the beneficial effects of the corresponding method and will not be repeated here.

[0054] The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a relay discovery method, apparatus, communication device, storage medium, and communication system. In some embodiments, the terms relay discovery method, information processing method, communication method, etc. can be used interchangeably, and the terms information processing system, communication system, etc. can be used interchangeably.

[0055] The embodiments of the present disclosure are not exhaustive and are merely illustrative of some embodiments, and are not intended to be a specific limitation on the scope of protection of the present disclosure. In the absence of contradiction, each step in a particular embodiment can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the steps can be arbitrarily combined. For example, a solution after removing some steps in a particular embodiment can also be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the order of the steps in a particular embodiment can be arbitrarily exchanged. In addition, they can be arbitrarily combined in a particular embodiment; in addition, the embodiments can be arbitrarily combined. For example, some or all steps of different embodiments can be arbitrarily combined, and a particular embodiment can be arbitrarily combined with other embodiments.

[0056] In each embodiment of the present disclosure, unless otherwise specified or provided for by logic, the terms and / or descriptions between the embodiments are consistent and can be referenced by each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form a new embodiment based on their inherent logical relationships.

[0057] The terms used in the embodiments of the present disclosure are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present disclosure.

[0058] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, unless otherwise specified, elements expressed in the singular, such as "a", "an", "the", "above", "said", "the", "the", etc., may mean "one and only one", or "one or more", "at least one", etc. For example, when using articles such as "a", "an", "the" in English in translation, the noun following the article may be understood as a singular expression or a plural expression.

[0059] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, “plurality” refers to two or more.

[0060] In some embodiments, the terms "at least one of", "at least one of", "at least one of", "one or more", "a plurality of", "multiple", etc. can be used interchangeably.

[0061] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, descriptions such as “at least one of A, B, C…”, “A and / or B and / or C…”, etc. include the situation where any one of A, B, C… exists alone, and also include any combination of any multiple of A, B, C…, and each situation can exist alone; for example, “at least one of A, B, C” includes the situation where A exists alone, B exists alone, C exists alone, the combination of A and B, the combination of A and C, the combination of B and C, and the combination of A, B, and C; for example, A and / or B includes the situation where A exists alone, B exists alone, and the combination of A and B.

[0062] In some embodiments, descriptions such as "in one case A, in another case B," or "in response to one case A, in response to another case B," may include the following technical solutions depending on the situation: executing A independently of B (in some embodiments, A); executing B independently of A (in some embodiments, B); selectively executing A and B (in some embodiments, selecting between A and B); and executing both A and B (in some embodiments, A and B). The same applies when there are more branches, such as A, B, and C.

[0063] The prefixes such as "first" and "second" in the embodiments of the present disclosure are only used to distinguish different description objects and do not constitute any restriction on the position, order, priority, quantity or content of the description objects. For the statement of the description object, please refer to the description in the context of the claims or embodiments, and no unnecessary restriction should be constituted due to the use of prefixes. For example, if the description object is a "field", the ordinal number before the "field" in the "first field" and the "second field" does not limit the position or order between the "fields". "First" and "second" do not limit whether the "fields" they modify are in the same message, nor do they limit the order of the "first field" and the "second field". For another example, if the description object is a "level", the ordinal number before the "level" in the "first level" and the "second level" does not limit the priority between the "levels". For another example, the number of description objects is not limited by the ordinal number and can be one or more. Taking "first device" as an example, the number of "devices" can be one or more. In addition, the objects modified by different prefixes can be the same or different. For example, if the description object is "device", then the "first device" and the "second device" can be the same device or different devices, and their types can be the same or different; for another example, if the description object is "information", then the "first information" and the "second information" can be the same information or different information, and their contents can be the same or different.

[0064] In some embodiments, “including A,” “comprising A,” “used to indicate A,” and “carrying A” can be interpreted as directly carrying A or indirectly indicating A.

[0065] In some embodiments, terms such as "in response to...", "in response to determining...", "in the case of...", "at the time of...", "when...", "if...", "if...", etc. can be used interchangeably.

[0066] In some embodiments, terms such as "greater than", "greater than or equal to", "not less than", "more than", "more than or equal to", "not less than", "higher than", "higher than or equal to", "not less than", and "above" can be replaced with each other, and terms such as "less than", "less than or equal to", "not greater than", "less than", "less than or equal to", "not more than", "lower than", "lower than or equal to", "not higher than", and "below" can be replaced with each other.

[0067] In some embodiments, devices, etc. can be interpreted as physical or virtual, and their names are not limited to the names recorded in the embodiments. Terms such as "device", "equipment", "device", "circuit", "network functional entity", "node", "function", "unit", "section", "system", "network", "chip", "chip system", "entity", and "subject" can be used interchangeably.

[0068] In some embodiments, the terms "terminal", "terminal device", "user equipment (UE)", "user terminal", "mobile station (MS)", "mobile terminal (MT)", subscriber station, mobile unit, subscriber unit, wireless unit, remote unit, mobile device, wireless device, wireless communication device, remote device, mobile subscriber station, access terminal, mobile terminal, wireless terminal, remote terminal, handset, user agent, mobile client, client and the like can be used interchangeably.

[0069] In some embodiments, the access network device, the core network device, or the network device can be replaced by a terminal. For example, the various embodiments of the present disclosure can also be applied to a structure in which the communication between the access network device, the core network device, or the network device and the terminal is replaced by communication between multiple terminals (for example, it can also be called device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X), etc.). In this case, it can also be set as a structure in which the terminal has all or part of the functions of the access network device. In addition, language such as "uplink" and "downlink" can also be replaced by language corresponding to communication between terminals (for example, "side"). For example, uplink channels, downlink channels, etc. can be replaced by side channels, and uplinks, downlinks, etc. can be replaced by side links.

[0070] In some embodiments, the terminal may be replaced by an access network device, a core network device, or a network device. In this case, the access network device, the core network device, or the network device may have a structure that has all or part of the functions of the terminal.

[0071] In some embodiments, "network" can be interpreted as devices included in the network (eg, access network equipment, core network equipment, etc.).

[0072] In some embodiments, obtaining data, information, etc. may comply with the laws and regulations of the country where the data is obtained.

[0073] In some embodiments, data, information, etc. may be obtained with the user's consent.

[0074] FIG1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG1 , a communication system 100 may include at least one of a terminal 101 and a terminal 102 .

[0075] In some embodiments, terminal 101 and terminal 102 include, for example, a mobile phone, a wearable device, an Internet of Things device, a car with communication function, a smart car, a tablet computer, a computer with wireless transceiver function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal device in industrial control, a wireless terminal device in self-driving, a wireless terminal device in remote medical surgery, a wireless terminal device in a smart grid, a wireless terminal device in transportation safety, a wireless terminal device in a smart city, and at least one of a wireless terminal device in a smart home, but are not limited thereto.

[0076] It can be understood that the communication system described in the embodiment of the present disclosure is for the purpose of more clearly illustrating the technical solution of the embodiment of the present disclosure, and does not constitute a limitation on the technical solution proposed in the embodiment of the present disclosure. Ordinary technicians in this field can know that with the evolution of the system architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solution proposed in the embodiment of the present disclosure is also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0077] The following embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to the communication system 100 shown in Figure 1, or a portion thereof, but are not limited thereto. The entities shown in Figure 1 are illustrative only. The communication system may include all or part of the entities shown in Figure 1, or may include other entities outside of Figure 1. The number and form of the entities may be arbitrary. The connection relationship between the entities is illustrative only. The entities may be connected or disconnected, and the connection may be in any manner, including direct or indirect, wired or wireless.

[0078] FIG2a is an interactive diagram of a relay discovery method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG2a, the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a relay discovery method for a communication system 100, the method comprising:

[0079] Step 2101: The first relay device 101 obtains a first parameter set.

[0080] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 obtains a first parameter set to indicate a next hop parameter of the relay discovery service, thereby implementing a relay discovery service that supports multiple hops.

[0081] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 may receive a first parameter set sent by a core network, but is not limited thereto and may also receive a first parameter set sent by other entities.

[0082] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 may obtain the first parameter set through pre-configuration.

[0083] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 may obtain the first parameter set from an upper layer(s).

[0084] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 performs processing to obtain the first parameter set.

[0085] In some embodiments, the name of the first parameter set is not limited, and it can be, for example, a "service parameter set", a "relay service parameter set", etc.

[0086] In some embodiments, the first parameter set includes at least one of information of the second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device.

[0087] In some embodiments, the information of the second terminal includes at least one of identification information of the second terminal and indication information, where the indication information is used to indicate that the first relay device can send the identification information of the second terminal.

[0088] In other words, the first relay device 101 can send the information of the second terminal based on the indication information of the second terminal.

[0089] In some embodiments, the identification information is, for example, a unique device identifier (UDID), an international mobile equipment identity (IMEI), a user information ID (User Info ID), and the like.

[0090] In some embodiments, the information of the second relay device is empty or non-empty. In other words, when the second relay device information obtained by the first relay device is empty, it indicates that the first relay device no longer sends the first parameter set to the second relay device; when the second relay device information obtained by the first relay device is non-empty, it indicates that the first relay device can send the first parameter set to the second relay device.

[0091] In some embodiments, the first terminal may refer to an originating terminal in a relay service. The present disclosure does not limit the name of the first terminal, which may be, for example, an "originating terminal," a "source terminal," or the like.

[0092] In some embodiments, the second terminal may refer to a receiving terminal in the relay service. The present disclosure does not limit the name of the second terminal, which may be, for example, a "receiving terminal", a "target terminal", etc.

[0093] For example, in some embodiments, the first relay device obtains the first parameter set through a relay communication program between terminals, that is, the first relay device obtains information about the second terminal, other relay devices, and itself through the relay communication program between terminals.

[0094] Step 2102 : The first relay device 101 sends a first message to the first terminal 102 .

[0095] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 sends a first message to the first terminal 102 so that the first terminal obtains a first parameter set.

[0096] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 may receive a first message sent by the first relay device 101 .

[0097] In some embodiments, multiple first relay devices 101 send first messages to the same terminal 102. That is, the first terminal 102 can receive first messages sent by multiple first relay devices 101.

[0098] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 may send the first message to the first terminal 102 by broadcasting, but is not limited thereto, and the first message may also be sent by other means.

[0099] In some embodiments, the first message is used to assist the first terminal in selecting a terminal-to-terminal U2U relay device, and the first message carries a first parameter set.

[0100] In some embodiments, the name of the first message is not limited, and it can be, for example, a "relay discovery request message", a "relay request message", etc.

[0101] In some embodiments, the first parameter set includes at least one of information of the second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device.

[0102] In some embodiments, the information of the second relay device is empty or not empty.

[0103] For example, in some embodiments, the first relay device sends a first message to the first terminal to send a first parameter set to the first terminal, where the first parameter set includes information of the second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device.

[0104] In step 2103 , the first terminal 102 determines a first relay device whose information about the second relay device in the first parameter set is empty, or a first relay device whose information about the second relay device is not included in the first parameter set, as a U2U relay device.

[0105] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 may determine a first relay device whose information about the second relay device in the first parameter set is empty, or a first relay device whose first parameter set does not include information about the second relay device, as a U2U relay device.

[0106] In other words, in some embodiments, the first terminal 102 may determine that the first relay device 101 that no longer sends the first parameter set to the second relay device is a U2U relay device.

[0107] In some embodiments, the first parameter set includes at least one of information about the second relay device, information about the second terminal, and information about the first relay device. That is, the first parameter set may include information about the second relay device, or may not include information about the second relay device.

[0108] In some embodiments, the information of the second relay device in the first parameter set of the first relay device received by the first terminal 102 is empty, or the first parameter set does not include information about the second intermediate device, which may indicate that the relay discovery service performed through the path only passes through one relay device. At this time, the first terminal 102 can determine the first relay device as a U2U relay device.

[0109] In some embodiments, the first parameter set sent by the first relay device 101 to the first terminal 102 does not include the second relay device information, or the second relay device information in the first parameter set is empty, indicating that the first relay device 101 no longer sends the first parameter set to the second relay device, that is, the relay discovery path passes through the least relay devices, then the first terminal 102 can determine the first relay device as a U2U relay device.

[0110] For example, in some embodiments, the first parameter set received by the first terminal only includes information about the second terminal and information about the first relay device, and the first terminal determines the relay device that sends the first parameter set as a U2U relay device.

[0111] The relay discovery method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps 2101 to 2103. For example, step 2101 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 2103 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, steps 2101+2102 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and steps 2102+2103 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, but are not limited thereto.

[0112] In some embodiments, step 2101 and step 2103 are optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0113] In this embodiment or example, unless there is any contradiction, each step can be independent, arbitrarily combined or exchanged in order, the optional methods or optional examples can be arbitrarily combined, and can be arbitrarily combined with any steps of other embodiments or other examples.

[0114] FIG2b is an interactive diagram of a relay discovery method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG2b , the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a relay discovery method for a communication system 100, the method comprising:

[0115] Step 2201: The first relay device 101 obtains a first parameter set.

[0116] For step 2201, reference may be made to step 2101 in FIG. 2a and other related parts in the embodiment involved in FIG. 2a, which will not be described in detail here.

[0117] Step 2202 : The first relay device 101 sends a first message to the first terminal 102 .

[0118] For step 2202, reference may be made to step 2102 in FIG. 2a and other related parts in the embodiment involved in FIG. 2a, which will not be described in detail here.

[0119] In step 2203 , the first terminal 102 determines first information corresponding to the plurality of first relay devices according to the first parameter sets respectively sent by the plurality of first relay devices.

[0120] In some embodiments, the second terminal may send a relay discovery service through multiple paths, that is, the first terminal 102 may receive first parameter sets respectively sent by multiple first relay devices.

[0121] In some embodiments, the first information is used to indicate the number of relay devices through which communication between the first terminal and the second terminal passes.

[0122] In some embodiments, the first parameter set includes first information.

[0123] In some embodiments, the name of the first information is not limited, and it can be, for example, "relay device quantity information", "path information", etc.

[0124] For example, in some embodiments, the first terminal receives a first information set sent by three first relay devices. The terminal can determine, based on the first information in the first information set, that the number of relay devices passed through by the three paths corresponding to the above three first relay devices when the first terminal communicates with the second terminal is 1, 2, and 3 respectively.

[0125] In step 2204 , the first terminal 102 determines the first relay device corresponding to the minimum first information as a U2U relay device.

[0126] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 may determine the first relay device corresponding to the minimum first information as a U2U relay device to ensure that the number of relay devices passed through when the first terminal communicates with the second terminal is minimal, thereby avoiding waste of communication resources.

[0127] For example, if the first information received by the first terminal 102 is 1, 2, and 3 respectively, the first terminal 102 may determine the first relay device with the first information being 1 as a U2U relay device.

[0128] The relay discovery method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps 2201 to 2204. For example, step 2201 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 2202 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, steps 2201+2202 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and steps 2203+2204 may be implemented as independent embodiments, but are not limited thereto.

[0129] In some embodiments, the steps of FIG. 2 a and FIG. 2 b may be implemented across embodiments. For example, steps 2103 + 2203 + 2204 may be implemented as independent embodiments, but are not limited thereto.

[0130] In some embodiments, steps 2202 to 2204 are optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0131] In this embodiment or example, unless there is any contradiction, each step can be independent, arbitrarily combined or exchanged in order, the optional methods or optional examples can be arbitrarily combined, and can be arbitrarily combined with any steps of other embodiments or other examples.

[0132] In some embodiments, the names of information, etc. are not limited to the names described in the embodiments, and terms such as "information", "message", "signal", "signaling", "report", "configuration", "indication", "instruction", "command", "channel", "parameter", "domain", "field", "symbol", "symbol", "codeword", "codebook", "codeword", "codepoint", "bit", "data", "program", and "chip" can be used interchangeably.

[0133] In some embodiments, "obtain", "get", "get", "receive", "transmit", "bidirectional transmission", "send and / or receive" can be interchangeable, and can be interpreted as receiving from other entities, obtaining from protocols, obtaining from higher layers, obtaining by self-processing, autonomous implementation, etc.

[0134] In some embodiments, terms such as "send", "transmit", "report", "download", "transmit", "bidirectional transmission", "send and / or receive" can be used interchangeably.

[0135] In some embodiments, terms such as "certain", "preset", "preset", "setting", "indicated", "a certain", "any", and "first" can be interchangeable. "Specific A", "preset A", "preset A", "setting A", "indicated A", "a certain A", "any A", and "first A" can be interpreted as A pre-specified in a protocol, etc., or as A obtained through setting, configuration, or indication, etc., or as specific A, a certain A, any A, or first A, etc., but not limited to this.

[0136] FIG3a is a flow chart of a relay discovery method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG3a, the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a relay discovery method for a first relay device 102, the method comprising:

[0137] Step 3101: Obtain a first parameter set.

[0138] For step 3101, reference may be made to step 2101 in FIG. 2a, step 2201 in FIG. 2b, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG. 2a and FIG. 2b, which will not be described in detail here.

[0139] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 obtains a first parameter set to indicate a next hop parameter of the relay discovery service, thereby implementing a relay discovery service that supports multiple hops.

[0140] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 may receive a first parameter set sent by a core network, but is not limited thereto and may also receive a first parameter set sent by other entities.

[0141] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 may obtain the first parameter set through pre-configuration.

[0142] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 may obtain the first parameter set from an upper layer(s).

[0143] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 performs processing to obtain the first parameter set.

[0144] In some embodiments, step 3101 is omitted and the above functions are default or by default.

[0145] Step 3102, sending the first message.

[0146] For step 3102, reference may be made to step 2102 in FIG. 2a, step 2202 in FIG. 2b, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG. 2a and FIG. 2b, which will not be described in detail here.

[0147] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 sends a first message to the first terminal 102 so that the first terminal obtains a first parameter set.

[0148] In some embodiments, the first message is used to assist the first terminal in selecting a terminal-to-terminal U2U relay device, and the first message carries a first parameter set.

[0149] In some embodiments, step 3102 is omitted and the above functions are default or by default.

[0150] For a detailed description of steps 3101 - 3102 , please refer to the embodiments shown in FIG. 2 a and FIG. 2 b .

[0151] The relay discovery method involved in the embodiment of the present disclosure may include at least one of step 3101 and step 3107. For example, step 3101 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and step 3102 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, but is not limited thereto.

[0152] In this embodiment or example, unless there is any contradiction, each step can be independent, arbitrarily combined or exchanged in order, the optional methods or optional examples can be arbitrarily combined, and can be arbitrarily combined with any steps of other embodiments or other examples.

[0153] FIG3 b is a flow chart of a relay discovery method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG3 b , the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a relay discovery method for a first relay device 102, the method comprising:

[0154] Step 3201: Obtain a first parameter set.

[0155] For step 3201, reference may be made to step 2101 in FIG. 2a, step 2201 in FIG. 2b, step 3101 in FIG. 3a, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG. 2a, FIG. 2b and FIG. 3a, which will not be repeated here.

[0156] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 may receive a first parameter set sent by a core network, but is not limited thereto and may also receive a first parameter set sent by other entities.

[0157] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 may obtain the first parameter set through pre-configuration.

[0158] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 may obtain the first parameter set from an upper layer(s).

[0159] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 performs processing to obtain the first parameter set.

[0160] In some embodiments, step 3201 is omitted and the above functions are default or by default.

[0161] Step 3202: Send a first parameter set.

[0162] For step 3202, reference may be made to step 2102 in FIG. 2a, step 2202 in FIG. 2b, step 3102 in FIG. 3a, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG. 2a, FIG. 2b and FIG. 3a, which will not be repeated here.

[0163] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 sends a first message to the first terminal 102 so that the first terminal obtains a first parameter set.

[0164] In some embodiments, step 3102 is omitted and the above functions are default or by default.

[0165] For a detailed description of steps 3201 - 3202 , please refer to the embodiments shown in FIG. 2 a and FIG. 2 b .

[0166] The relay discovery method involved in the embodiment of the present disclosure may include at least one of step 3201 and step 3202. For example, step 3201 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and step 3202 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, but is not limited thereto.

[0167] In some embodiments, the steps of FIG. 3 a and FIG. 2 b may be implemented across embodiments. For example, steps 2103 + 2203 + 2204 may be implemented as independent embodiments, but are not limited thereto.

[0168] In this embodiment or example, unless there is any contradiction, each step can be independent, arbitrarily combined or exchanged in order, and the optional methods or optional examples can be arbitrarily combined and can be arbitrarily combined with other embodiments or examples.

[0169] FIG3c is a flow chart of a relay discovery method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG3c, the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a relay discovery method for a first relay device 102, the method comprising:

[0170] Step 3201: Obtain a first parameter set.

[0171] For step 3201, reference may be made to step 2101 in FIG. 2a , step 2201 in FIG. 2b , step 3101 in FIG. 3a , step 3201 in FIG. 3b , and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG. 2a , FIG. 2b , FIG. 3a and FIG. 3b , which will not be repeated here.

[0172] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 may receive a first parameter set sent by a core network, but is not limited thereto and may also receive a first parameter set sent by other entities.

[0173] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 may obtain the first parameter set through pre-configuration.

[0174] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 may obtain the first parameter set from an upper layer(s).

[0175] In some embodiments, the first relay device 101 performs processing to obtain the first parameter set.

[0176] Optionally, in some embodiments, the first relay device 101 sends a first parameter set to the first terminal, where the first parameter set includes at least one of information of the second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device.

[0177] Optionally, in some embodiments, the information of the second terminal includes at least one of identification information and indication information of the second terminal, and the indication information is used to indicate that the first relay device can send the identification information of the second terminal.

[0178] Optionally, in some embodiments, the first relay device 101 sending the first parameter set to the first terminal includes: sending a first message to the first terminal, wherein the first message is used to assist the first terminal in selecting a terminal-to-terminal U2U relay device, and the first message carries the first parameter set.

[0179] Optionally, in some embodiments, the method further includes: acquiring a first parameter set.

[0180] Optionally, in some embodiments, the information of the second relay device is empty or not empty.

[0181] For a detailed description of step 3301 , please refer to the embodiments shown in FIG. 2 a and FIG. 2 b .

[0182] FIG4a is a flow chart of a relay discovery method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG4a , the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a relay discovery method for a first terminal 101, and the method includes:

[0183] Step 4101: Obtain a first parameter set.

[0184] For step 4101, reference may be made to step 2102 in FIG. 2a, step 2202 in FIG. 2b, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG. 2a and FIG. 2b, which will not be described in detail here.

[0185] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 may receive the first parameter set sent by the first relay device 101, but is not limited thereto and may also obtain the first parameter set from other entities.

[0186] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 may obtain the first parameter set through pre-configuration.

[0187] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 may obtain the first parameter set from an upper layer(s).

[0188] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 performs processing to obtain the first parameter set.

[0189] In some embodiments, step 4101 is omitted and the above functions are default or by default.

[0190] Step 4102: Determine a first relay device whose second relay device information in the first parameter set is empty, or a first relay device whose first parameter set does not include the second relay device information, as a U2U relay device.

[0191] For step 4102, reference may be made to step 2103 in FIG. 2a and other related parts of the embodiment involved in FIG. 2a, which will not be described in detail here.

[0192] In some embodiments, the terminal 102 may determine a first relay device whose information about the second relay device in the first parameter set is empty, or a first relay device whose first parameter set does not include information about the second relay device, as a U2U relay device.

[0193] In some embodiments, step 4102 is omitted and the above functions are default or by default.

[0194] The relay discovery method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps 4101 and 4102. For example, step 4101 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 4102 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and steps 4101+4102 may be implemented as independent embodiments, but are not limited thereto.

[0195] In some embodiments, step 4102 is optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0196] In this embodiment or example, unless there is any contradiction, each step can be independent, arbitrarily combined or exchanged in order, the optional methods or optional examples can be arbitrarily combined, and can be arbitrarily combined with any steps of other embodiments or other examples.

[0197] FIG4 b is a flow chart of a relay discovery method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG4 b , the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a relay discovery method for a first terminal 101, the method comprising:

[0198] Step 4201, obtain a first parameter set.

[0199] For step 4201, reference may be made to step 2102 in FIG. 2a, step 2202 in FIG. 2b, step 4101 in FIG. 4a, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG. 2a, FIG. 2b and FIG. 4a, which will not be repeated here.

[0200] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 may receive the first parameter set sent by the first relay device 101, but is not limited thereto and may also obtain the first parameter set from other entities.

[0201] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 may obtain the first parameter set through pre-configuration.

[0202] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 may obtain the first parameter set from an upper layer(s).

[0203] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 performs processing to obtain the first parameter set.

[0204] In some embodiments, step 4201 is omitted and the above functions are default or by default.

[0205] Step 4202: Determine first information corresponding to the multiple first relay devices based on the first parameter sets respectively sent by the multiple first relay devices.

[0206] For step 4202, reference may be made to step 2203 in FIG. 2b and other related parts of the embodiment involved in FIG. 2b, which will not be described in detail here.

[0207] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 determines the first information corresponding to multiple first relay devices based on the first parameter sets respectively sent by the multiple first relay devices, but is not limited thereto. The first information corresponding to multiple first relay devices can also be determined based on other information.

[0208] In some embodiments, step 4202 is omitted and the above functions are default or by default.

[0209] Step 4203: Determine the first relay device corresponding to the minimum first information as a U2U relay device.

[0210] For step 4203, reference may be made to step 2204 in FIG. 2b and other related parts of the embodiment involved in FIG. 2b, which will not be described in detail here.

[0211] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 determines the first relay device corresponding to the minimum first information as a U2U relay device, but is not limited thereto. The U2U relay device may also be determined based on other information.

[0212] In some embodiments, step 4203 is omitted and the above functions are default or by default.

[0213] The relay discovery method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps 4201 to 4203. For example, step 4201 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 4202 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and steps 4200+4203 may be implemented as independent embodiments, but are not limited thereto.

[0214] In some embodiments, steps 4202 to 4203 are optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0215] In some embodiments, the steps of FIG. 4 a and FIG. 4 b may be implemented across embodiments. For example, steps 4102 + 4202 + 4203 may be implemented as independent embodiments, but are not limited thereto.

[0216] In this embodiment or example, unless there is any contradiction, each step can be independent, arbitrarily combined or exchanged in order, the optional methods or optional examples can be arbitrarily combined, and can be arbitrarily combined with any steps of other embodiments or other examples.

[0217] FIG4c is a flow chart of a relay discovery method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG4c, the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a relay discovery method, which is used for the first terminal 102. The method includes:

[0218] Step 4301: Obtain a first parameter set.

[0219] For step 4301, reference can be made to step 2102 of Figure 2a, step 2202 of Figure 2b, step 3101 of Figure 3a, step 3201 of Figure 3b, step 3301 of Figure 3c, step 4101 of Figure 4a, step 4201 of Figure 4b, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in Figures 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b, 3c, 4a and 4b, which will not be repeated here.

[0220] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 may receive the first parameter set sent by the first relay device 101, but is not limited thereto and may also obtain the first parameter set from other entities.

[0221] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 may obtain the first parameter set through pre-configuration.

[0222] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 may obtain the first parameter set from an upper layer(s).

[0223] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 performs processing to obtain the first parameter set.

[0224] In some embodiments, step 4301 is omitted and the above functions are default or by default.

[0225] Step 4302: Determine a U2U relay device from multiple first relay devices.

[0226] For step 4302, reference can be made to step 2103 of Figure 2a, step 2203 of Figure 2b, step 2204 of Figure 2b, step 4102 of Figure 4a, step 4203 of Figure 4b, step 4204 of 4b, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in Figures 2a, 2b, 4a and 4b, which will not be repeated here.

[0227] In some embodiments, step 4302 is omitted and the above functions are default or by default.

[0228] The relay discovery method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps 4301 and 4302. For example, step 4301 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 4302 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and steps 4301+4302 may be implemented as independent embodiments, but are not limited thereto.

[0229] In some embodiments, step 4302 is optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0230] In this embodiment or example, unless there is any contradiction, each step can be independent, arbitrarily combined or exchanged in order, the optional methods or optional examples can be arbitrarily combined, and can be arbitrarily combined with any steps of other embodiments or other examples.

[0231] FIG4 d is a flow chart of a relay discovery method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG4 d , the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a relay discovery method, and the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a relay discovery method for a first terminal 102, the method comprising:

[0232] Step 4401, obtain a first parameter set.

[0233] For step 4401, reference can be made to step 2102 in FIG. 2a , step 2202 in FIG. 2b , step 4101 in FIG. 4a , step 4201 in FIG. 4b , and step 4301 in FIG. 4c . Other related parts of the embodiments involved in FIG. 2a , FIG. 2b , FIG. 4a , FIG. 4b , and FIG. 4c will not be repeated here.

[0234] In some embodiments, the first terminal 102 may receive the first parameter set sent by the first relay device 101, but is not limited thereto and may also obtain the first parameter set from other entities.

[0235] Optionally, in some embodiments, the first terminal 102 obtains a first parameter set, where the first parameter set includes at least one of information of the second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device.

[0236] Optionally, in some embodiments, the first terminal 102 acquiring the first parameter set includes: the first terminal 102 receiving the first parameter set sent by the first relay device.

[0237] Optionally, in some embodiments, the first terminal 102 receiving the first parameter set sent by the first relay device includes: receiving a first message sent by the first relay device, wherein the first message is used to assist the first terminal in selecting a terminal-to-terminal U2U relay device, and the first message carries the first parameter set.

[0238] Optionally, in some embodiments, the method further includes: the first terminal 102 determining a terminal-to-terminal U2U relay device based on the first parameter set.

[0239] Optionally, in some embodiments, the first terminal 102 determining the terminal-to-terminal U2U relay device includes: the first terminal 102 determining the U2U relay device from multiple first relay devices when receiving first parameter sets respectively sent by multiple first relay devices.

[0240] Optionally, in some embodiments, the first terminal 102 determines a U2U relay device from a plurality of first relay devices, including: the first terminal 102 determines a first relay device whose information on the second relay device in the first parameter set is empty, or determines a first relay device whose first parameter set does not include information on the second relay device, as a U2U relay device.

[0241] Optionally, in some embodiments, the first terminal 102 determines a U2U relay device from multiple first relay devices, including: the first terminal 102 determines first information corresponding to multiple first relay devices based on first parameter sets respectively sent by the multiple first relay devices, wherein the first information is used to indicate the number of relay devices through which communication between the first terminal and the second terminal passes; the first terminal 102 determines the first relay device corresponding to the minimum first information as the U2U relay device.

[0242] For a detailed description of step 4401, please refer to the embodiments shown in FIG. 2a and FIG. 2b .

[0243] Figure 5 is an interactive diagram of a relay discovery method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 5, the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a relay discovery method, which includes:

[0244] Step 5101 : The first relay device 101 sends a first parameter set to the second terminal 103 .

[0245] For optional implementations of step 5101, please refer to step 2102 of Figure 2a, step 2202 of Figure 2b, step 3102 of Figure 3a, step 3202 of Figure 3b, step 3301 of Figure 3c, step 4101 of Figure 4a, step 4201 of Figure 4b, step 4301 of Figure 4c, step 4401 of Figure 4d, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in Figures 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b, 3c, 4a, 4b, 4c and 4d, which will not be repeated here.

[0246] In some embodiments, the above method may include the method described in the above embodiments of the communication system side, the first terminal side, the first relay device side, and the second terminal side, which will not be repeated here.

[0247] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned communication system further includes a second relay device, wherein the number of the second relay devices is greater than or equal to zero.

[0248] Figure 6 is an interactive diagram of a relay discovery method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 6, the relay discovery method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes:

[0249] Step 6101: Perform service authorization / parameter configuration on UE1, U2U relay device 1, U2U relay device 2, U2U relay device 3 and UE2.

[0250] Optionally, in some embodiments, a policy control function (PCF) network element may perform service authorization / parameter configuration for UE1, U2U relay device 1, U2U relay device 2, U2U relay device 3 and UE2, and the performed service authorization / parameter configuration includes a multi-hop index, where the multi-hop index may be the maximum number of multi-hops supported by the relay service.

[0251] Step 6102: U2U relay device 1 obtains a target UE list and optional next hop information.

[0252] Optionally, in some embodiments, the U2U relay device 1 obtains the target UE list and optional next hop information, for example, obtaining information about the UE 2 and the U2U relay device 2 .

[0253] Optionally, in some embodiments, the U2U relay device 1 may obtain user information IDs of other UEs or relay devices that are close to its own RSC.

[0254] Optionally, in some embodiments, the optional next hop information obtained by the U2U relay device 1 may contain empty information about other relay devices or contain no information about other relay devices.

[0255] Step 6103: U2U relay device 2 obtains a target UE list and optional next hop information.

[0256] Optionally, in some embodiments, the U2U relay device 2 obtains the target UE list and optional next hop information, for example, obtaining information about the UE 2 and the U2U relay device 3 .

[0257] Optionally, in some embodiments, the U2U relay device 2 may obtain user information IDs of other UEs or relay devices that are close to its own RSC.

[0258] Optionally, in some embodiments, the optional next hop information obtained by the U2U relay device 2 may contain empty information about other relay devices or contain no information about other relay devices.

[0259] Step 6104: U2U relay device 3 obtains a target UE list and optional next hop information.

[0260] Optionally, in some embodiments, the U2U relay device 3 obtains the target UE list and optional next hop information, for example, obtaining UE2 information.

[0261] Optionally, in some embodiments, the U2U relay device 3 may obtain user information IDs of other UEs or relay devices that are close to its own RSC.

[0262] Optionally, in some embodiments, the optional next hop information acquired by the U2U relay device 3 may contain empty information about other relay devices or contain no information about other relay devices.

[0263] Step 6105 : U2U relay device 1 sends relay discovery announcement information to UE1 .

[0264] Optionally, in some embodiments, the U2U relay device 1 sends relay discovery announcement information to the UE 1 .

[0265] Optionally, in some embodiments, the relay discovery announcement message includes the type of discovery message, the user information ID of terminal 2, the user information ID of U2U relay device 1, the RSC of U2U relay device 1 and the next hop information of U2U relay device 1.

[0266] Optionally, in some embodiments, the U2U relay device 2 may send relay discovery announcement information to the UE 2 via the source layer 2 ID and the target layer 2 ID.

[0267] Step 6106 : U2U relay device 2 sends relay discovery announcement information to UE1 .

[0268] Optionally, in some embodiments, the U2U relay device 2 sends relay discovery announcement information to UE1.

[0269] Optionally, in some embodiments, the relay discovery announcement message includes the type of discovery message, the user information ID of terminal 2, the user information ID of U2U relay device 1, the user information ID of U2U relay device 2, the RSC of U2U relay device 1 and the next hop information of U2U relay device 2.

[0270] Optionally, in some embodiments, the U2U relay device 2 may send relay discovery request information to the UE 2 via the source layer 2 ID and the target layer 2 ID.

[0271] Optionally, in some embodiments, if the received relay discovery announcement message does not announce the next hop information, or the next hop information is empty, UE1 may determine the U2U relay device that sends the message as the relay device for relay service between UE1 and UE2.

[0272] Optionally, in some embodiments, UE2 may send relay discovery request information to UE2 via the source layer 2 ID and the target layer 2 ID.

[0273] Step 6107 : U2U relay device 3 sends relay discovery announcement information to UE1 .

[0274] Optionally, in some embodiments, the U2U relay device 3 sends relay discovery announcement information to UE1.

[0275] Optionally, in some embodiments, the relay discovery announcement message includes the type of discovery message, the user information ID of terminal 2, the user information ID of U2U relay device 1, the user information ID of U2U relay device 2, the user information ID of U2U relay device 3, the RSC of U2U relay device 1 and the next hop information of U2U relay device 3.

[0276] Optionally, in some embodiments, if the received relay discovery announcement message does not announce the next hop information, or the next hop information is empty, UE1 may determine the U2U relay device that sends the message as the relay device for relay service between UE1 and UE2.

[0277] Optionally, in some embodiments, the U2U relay device 2 may send relay discovery request information to the UE 2 via the source layer 2 ID and the target layer 2 ID.

[0278] Optionally, in some embodiments, if the received relay discovery announcement message does not announce the next hop information, or the next hop information is empty, UE1 may determine the U2U relay device that sends the message as the relay device for relay service between UE1 and UE2.

[0279] The relay discovery method involved in the embodiment of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps 6101 to 6107. For example, step 6101 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 6102 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and steps 6102+6105 may be implemented as independent embodiments, but are not limited thereto.

[0280] In this embodiment or example, unless there is any contradiction, each step can be independent, arbitrarily combined or exchanged in order, the optional methods or optional examples can be arbitrarily combined, and can be arbitrarily combined with any steps of other embodiments or other examples.

[0281] The embodiments of the present disclosure further provide an apparatus for implementing any of the above methods. For example, an apparatus is provided that includes units or modules for implementing each step performed by a terminal in any of the above methods. For another example, another apparatus is provided that includes units or modules for implementing each step performed by a relay device in any of the above methods.

[0282] It should be understood that the division of the various units or modules in the above device is merely a division of logical functions. In actual implementation, they may be fully or partially integrated into a physical entity, or they may be physically separated. In addition, the units or modules in the device may be implemented in the form of a processor calling software: for example, the device includes a processor, the processor is connected to a memory, and the memory stores instructions. The processor calls the instructions stored in the memory to implement any of the above methods or implement the functions of the various units or modules of the above device, wherein the processor is, for example, a general-purpose processor, such as a central processing unit (CPU) or a microprocessor, and the memory is a memory within the device or a memory outside the device. Alternatively, the units or modules in the device can be implemented in the form of hardware circuits, and the functions of some or all of the units or modules can be realized by designing the hardware circuits. The above-mentioned hardware circuits can be understood as one or more processors; for example, in one implementation, the above-mentioned hardware circuit is an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), which realizes the functions of some or all of the above units or modules by designing the logical relationship of the components in the circuit; for example, in another implementation, the above-mentioned hardware circuit can be realized by a programmable logic device (PLD). Taking a field programmable gate array (FPGA) as an example, it can include a large number of logic gate circuits, and the connection relationship between the logic gate circuits is configured by configuring the configuration file, thereby realizing the functions of some or all of the above units or modules. All units or modules of the above devices can be realized in the form of software called by the processor, or in the form of hardware circuits, or in part by the form of software called by the processor, and the rest by hardware circuits.

[0283] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor is a circuit with signal processing capabilities. In one implementation, the processor can be a circuit with instruction reading and execution capabilities, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a graphics processing unit (GPU) (which can be understood as a microprocessor), or a digital signal processor (DSP); in another implementation, the processor can implement certain functions through the logical relationship of a hardware circuit, and the logical relationship of the above-mentioned hardware circuit is fixed or reconfigurable, such as a hardware circuit implemented by a processor as an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or a programmable logic device (PLD), such as an FPGA. In a reconfigurable hardware circuit, the process of the processor loading a configuration document to implement the hardware circuit configuration can be understood as the process of the processor loading instructions to implement the functions of some or all of the above units or modules. In addition, it can also be a hardware circuit designed for artificial intelligence, which can be understood as ASIC, such as a neural network processing unit (NPU), a tensor processing unit (TPU), a deep learning processing unit (DPU), etc.

[0284] Figure 7a is a structural diagram of the first relay device 7100 proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 7a, the first relay device includes: a transceiver module 7101. In some embodiments, the transceiver module is used to send a first parameter set to the first terminal, wherein the first parameter set includes at least one of information of the second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device. Optionally, the transceiver module is used to execute at least one of the communication steps such as sending and / or receiving (for example, step 2102, step 2202, but not limited thereto) performed by the first relay device 101 in any of the above methods, which are not repeated here. Optionally, in some embodiments, the first relay device further includes a processing module 7102, and the processing module is used to execute other steps (for example, step 2101, step 2201, but not limited thereto) performed by the first relay device 101 in any of the above methods, which are not repeated here.

[0285] Figure 7b is a schematic diagram of the structure of the first terminal 7200 proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 7b, the first terminal includes: a transceiver module 7201. In some embodiments, the transceiver module is used to obtain a first parameter set, wherein the first parameter set includes at least one of information about the second relay device, information about the second terminal, and information about the first relay device. Optionally, the transceiver module is used to perform at least one of the communication steps such as sending and / or receiving performed by the first terminal 102 in any of the above methods (for example, step 2102, step 2202, but not limited thereto), which are not described in detail here. Optionally, in some embodiments, the first terminal further includes a processing module 7202, which is used to perform at least one of the other steps (for example, step 2103, step 2203, step 2204, but not limited thereto) performed by the first terminal 102 in any of the above methods, which are not described in detail here.

[0286] As shown in Figure 8a, the communication device 8100 includes one or more processors 8101. The processor 8101 can be a general-purpose processor or a dedicated processor, for example, a baseband processor or a central processing unit. The baseband processor can be used to process communication protocols and communication data, and the central processing unit can be used to control the communication device (such as a base station, baseband chip, terminal device, terminal device chip, DU or CU, etc.), execute programs, and process program data. The processor 8101 is used to call instructions to enable the communication device 8100 to perform any of the above methods.

[0287] In some embodiments, the communication device 8100 further includes one or more memories 8102 for storing instructions. Optionally, all or part of the memories 8102 may be located outside the communication device 8100.

[0288] In some embodiments, the communication device 8100 further includes one or more transceivers 8103. When the communication device 8100 includes one or more transceivers 8103, the communication steps such as sending and receiving in the above method are performed by the transceiver 8103, and the other steps are performed by the processor 8101.

[0289] In some embodiments, a transceiver may include a receiver and a transmitter, which may be separate or integrated. Optionally, the terms transceiver, transceiver unit, transceiver, and transceiver circuit may be used interchangeably; the terms transmitter, transmitting unit, transmitter, and transmitting circuit may be used interchangeably; and the terms receiver, receiving unit, receiver, and receiving circuit may be used interchangeably.

[0290] Optionally, the communication device 8100 further includes one or more interface circuits 8104, which are connected to the memory 8102. The interface circuits 8104 can be used to receive signals from the memory 8102 or other devices, and can be used to send signals to the memory 8102 or other devices. For example, the interface circuits 8104 can read instructions stored in the memory 8102 and send the instructions to the processor 8101.

[0291] The communication device 8100 described in the above embodiment may be a network device or a terminal, but the scope of the communication device 8100 described in the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and the structure of the communication device 8100 may not be limited by FIG. 8a. The communication device may be an independent device or may be part of a larger device. For example, the communication device may be: 1) an independent integrated circuit IC, or a chip, or a chip system or subsystem; (2) a collection of one or more ICs, optionally, the above IC collection may also include a storage component for storing data or programs; (3) an ASIC, such as a modem; (4) a module that can be embedded in other devices; (5) a receiver, a terminal device, an intelligent terminal device, a cellular phone, a wireless device, a handheld device, a mobile unit, an in-vehicle device, a network device, a cloud device, an artificial intelligence device, etc.; (6) others, etc.

[0292] FIG8b is a schematic diagram of the structure of a chip 8200 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. If the communication device 8100 can be a chip or a chip system, reference can be made to the schematic diagram of the structure of the chip 8200 shown in FIG8b, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0293] The chip 8200 includes one or more processors 8201, and the processor 8201 is used to call instructions so that the chip 8200 executes any of the above methods.

[0294] In some embodiments, chip 8200 further includes one or more interface circuits 8202, which are connected to memory 8203. Interface circuit 8202 can be used to receive signals from memory 8203 or other devices, and can be used to send signals to memory 8203 or other devices. For example, interface circuit 8202 can read instructions stored in memory 8203 and send the instructions to processor 8201. Optionally, the terms interface circuit, interface, transceiver pin, and transceiver are interchangeable.

[0295] In some embodiments, the chip 8200 further includes one or more memories 8203 for storing instructions. Alternatively, all or part of the memories 8203 may be outside the chip 8200.

[0296] The present disclosure also proposes a storage medium having instructions stored thereon, which, when executed on the communication device 8100, causes the communication device 8100 to execute any of the above methods. Optionally, the storage medium is an electronic storage medium. Optionally, the storage medium is a computer-readable storage medium, but is not limited thereto, and may also be a storage medium readable by other devices. Optionally, the storage medium may be a non-transitory storage medium, but is not limited thereto, and may also be a temporary storage medium.

[0297] The present disclosure also provides a program product, which, when executed by the communication device 8100, enables the communication device 8100 to perform any of the above methods. Optionally, the program product is a computer program product.

[0298] The present disclosure also proposes a computer program, which, when executed on a computer, causes the computer to perform any one of the above methods.

[0299] In the above embodiments, all or part of the embodiments can be implemented by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, all or part of the embodiments can be implemented in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer programs. When the computer program is loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present disclosure are generated. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer program 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 program can be transmitted from one website, computer, server or data center to another website, computer, server or data center via a wired (e.g., coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., 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 includes one or more available media integrated therein. The available medium may be a magnetic medium (eg, a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (eg, a high-density digital video disc (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (eg, a solid state disk (SSD)).

[0300] The correspondences shown in the tables of the present disclosure can be configured or predefined. The values ​​of the information in each table are merely examples and can be configured to other values, which are not limited by the present disclosure. When configuring the correspondences between information and parameters, it is not necessarily required to configure all the correspondences shown in each table. For example, in the tables of the present disclosure, the correspondences shown in certain rows may not be configured. For another example, appropriate deformation adjustments can be made based on the above tables, such as splitting, merging, etc. The names of the parameters shown in the titles of the above tables may also adopt other names that can be understood by the communication device, and the values ​​or representations of the parameters may also adopt other values ​​or representations that can be understood by the communication device. When implementing the above tables, other data structures may also be used, such as arrays, queues, containers, stacks, linear lists, pointers, linked lists, trees, graphs, structures, classes, heaps, hash tables or hash tables, etc.

[0301] The predefined in the present disclosure may be understood as defined, predefined, stored, pre-stored, pre-negotiated, pre-configured, solidified, or pre-burned.

[0302] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the units and algorithm steps of each example described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are performed in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professionals and technicians 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 disclosure.

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

[0304] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of the present disclosure, but the scope of protection of the present disclosure 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 disclosure should be included in the scope of protection of the present disclosure. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present disclosure should be based on the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A relay discovery method, characterized in that: The method is performed by a first relay device, and the method includes: sending a first parameter set to a first terminal, The first parameter set includes at least one of information of the second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The information of the second terminal includes at least one of identification information and indication information of the second terminal, and the indication information is used to indicate that the first relay device can send the identification information of the second terminal.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The sending the first parameter set to the first terminal includes: sending a first message to the first terminal, The first message is used to assist the first terminal in selecting a terminal-to-terminal U2U relay device, and the first message carries the first parameter set.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that The method further comprises: Obtain the first parameter set.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that The information of the second relay device is empty or not empty.

6. A relay discovery method, characterized in that: The method is performed by a first terminal, and includes: Get the first parameter set, The first parameter set includes at least one of information of the second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that The obtaining of the first parameter set comprises: Receive the first parameter set sent by the first relay device.

8. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that The receiving the first parameter set sent by the first relay device includes: receiving a first message sent by the first relay device, The first message is used to assist the first terminal in selecting a terminal-to-terminal U2U relay device, and the first message carries the first parameter set.

9. The method according to any one of claims 6 to 8, characterized in that The method further comprises: Based on the first parameter set, a terminal-to-terminal U2U relay device is determined.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that The determining of the terminal-to-terminal U2U relay device comprises: In a case where first parameter sets respectively sent by a plurality of first relay devices are received, the U2U relay device is determined from the plurality of first relay devices.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that The determining the U2U relay device from the plurality of first relay devices comprises: A first relay device for which the information of the second relay device in the first parameter set is empty, or a first relay device for which the first parameter set does not include the information of the second relay device, is determined as the U2U relay device.

12. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that The determining the U2U relay device from the plurality of first relay devices comprises: Determine, according to the first parameter sets respectively sent by the multiple first relay devices, first information corresponding to the multiple first relay devices, wherein the first information is used to indicate the number of relay devices through which the first terminal and the second terminal communicate; The first relay device corresponding to the minimum first information is determined as the U2U relay device.

13. A first relay device, characterized in that: include: a transceiver module, configured to send a first parameter set to a first terminal, The first parameter set includes at least one of information of the second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device.

14. A first terminal, characterized in that: include: A transceiver module, used to obtain a first parameter set, The first parameter set includes at least one of information of the second relay device, information of the second terminal, and information of the first relay device.

15. A communication device, wherein: include: Transceiver; Memory; A processor is connected to the transceiver and the memory respectively, and is configured to control the wireless signal reception and transmission of the transceiver by executing computer executable instructions on the memory, and can implement any one of the methods of claims 1-12.

16. A computer storage medium, wherein: The computer storage medium stores computer executable instructions; after the computer executable instructions are executed by the processor, the method described in any one of claims 1 to 12 can be implemented.

17. A communication system, characterized in that: The system comprises a first relay device and a first terminal, wherein: The first relay device is configured to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 5; The first terminal is configured to execute the method according to any one of claims 6 to 12.

18. The communication system according to claim 17, characterized in that: The communication system also includes a second relay device and a second terminal.

19. The communication system according to claim 18, characterized in that: The number of the second relay devices is greater than or equal to zero.

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