Communication method and apparatus

Abstract

Disclosed in the embodiments of the present application are a communication method and apparatus. The method comprises: a terminal device receiving, in a connected state, a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) measurement gap configured from a network device, wherein the GNSS measurement gap is used for executing GNSS measurement; and if the GNSS measurement fails to be executed within the GNSS measurement gap, the terminal device extending the GNSS measurement gap, and continuing to execute the GNSS measurement within a first time period after the GNSS measurement gap, wherein the first time period is a period of time after an end time point of the GNSS measurement gap. By means of the embodiments of the present application, in the case that an IoT terminal device is in a satellite communication scenario and is in a connected state for a long time to perform communication, behaviors of the terminal device in different cases are specified, such that it is ensured that the communication is not affected when GNSS measurement is executed, thereby improving the efficiency and quality of the communication.

Description

Communication method and device

[0001] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application with application number 202310914048.2 filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of China on July 24, 2023, and priority to the Chinese patent application with the invention name “A Communication Method and Device”, all contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

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

[0003] Satellite communications have been introduced in the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standards as a communication scenario for 5th-generation mobile networks (5G). They support not only 5G devices but also those related to the Internet of Things (IoT). Compared to terrestrial communications, satellite communications offer unique advantages, such as wider coverage and reduced vulnerability of satellite base stations to natural disasters and external forces. Satellite communications can provide services in areas beyond the reach of terrestrial networks, such as oceans and forests. They also enhance the reliability of 5G communications, ensuring better service for airplanes, trains, and other transportation users. Furthermore, they provide more data transmission resources for 5G communications, increasing network speeds. Therefore, supporting both terrestrial and satellite communications is an inevitable trend in future 5G communications, offering significant benefits in terms of wide coverage, reliability, multiple connections, and high throughput.

[0004] Satellite communications are characterized by high mobility and high latency. Unlike terrestrial communications, terminals require synchronization based on global navigation satellite system (GNSS) information, ephemeris, or other auxiliary information, in addition to existing uplink synchronization. For IoT-type terminal devices, given that most IoT services are short packets and transmitted periodically, the 3GPP standard only enhances communication methods for short-term connections. Long-term communication methods remain unstandardized, making them incapable of supporting such scenarios.

[0005] Summary of the Invention

[0006] The embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and apparatus for improving the efficiency and quality of communication by specifying the behavior of terminal devices in different situations.

[0007] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, including:

[0008] The terminal device receives a global navigation satellite system GNSS measurement interval configured from a network device in a connected state, and the GNSS measurement interval is used to perform GNSS measurement; if the GNSS measurement fails to be performed within the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device extends the GNSS measurement interval and continues to perform GNSS measurement within a first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, wherein the first time period is a period of time after the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval.

[0009] When IoT devices are connected to satellite communications for extended periods, their GNSS information may become outdated. Therefore, the device performs GNSS measurements within the GNSS measurement interval configured for the network device. If a GNSS measurement fails within the interval, the device extends the GNSS measurement interval to continue the measurement. This allows for timely acquisition of GNSS information, ensuring that GNSS measurements are performed without impacting communications and improving communication efficiency and quality.

[0010] In one possible design, if GNSS measurement fails within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device switches from the connected state to the idle state. That is, if GNSS information is still not obtained during the extended first time period, switching to the idle state saves power.

[0011] In another possible design, if the GNSS measurement is successfully performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device sends a first GNSS validity period to the network device, where the first GNSS validity period is the time interval between the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval and the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or the time point from the terminal device sending the GNSS validity period to the network device to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period. This is intended to reschedule the GNSS measurement interval for GNSS measurement before the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period.

[0012] In another possible design, the terminal device monitors the physical downlink control channel PDCCH within a second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, where the second time period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to a time point before the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; if the PDCCH is not monitored within the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device continues to perform GNSS measurement within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval. In the event that the PDCCH is not monitored, the GNSS information is ensured to be obtained in a timely manner by continuing to perform GNSS measurement within the first time period after the self-extension.

[0013] In another possible design, the terminal device monitors a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) within a second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, where the second time period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to a time point before the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period. If the PDCCH is monitored within the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device sends feedback information to the network device based on the scheduling information carried by the PDCCH. When the PDCCH is monitored, feedback is provided based on the scheduling information to ensure that GNSS measurement and communication do not affect each other.

[0014] In another possible design, the terminal device determines a second GNSS validity period, wherein the second GNSS validity period is the time from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or the time point when the GNSS measurement fails to be performed to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; when the second GNSS validity period is greater than a first preset threshold, the terminal device monitors the physical downlink control channel PDCCH in the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval. By monitoring the PDCCH when the second GNSS validity period is greater than the first preset threshold, the validity of the scheduling information carried by the PDCCH is guaranteed. When the second GNSS validity period is less than or equal to the first preset value, if the network device schedules the terminal device to perform GNSS measurement in the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the time point when the terminal device sends feedback information to the network device may have exceeded the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period. Therefore, when the second GNSS validity period is less than or equal to the first preset value, the terminal device can automatically extend the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, and perform GNSS measurement in the first time period after the extension. The network device does not schedule feedback during this period.

[0015] In another possible design, the scheduling information is used to schedule time-frequency resources for the feedback information. If a feedback time point of the feedback information on the time-frequency resources exceeds an expiration time point of a GNSS validity period, the terminal device performs one or more of the following steps:

[0016] Switching from the connected state to the idle state;

[0017] Starting to perform GNSS measurement after receiving a first signaling, and switching from the connected state to an idle state if the GNSS measurement fails, wherein the first signaling is used to instruct the execution of the GNSS measurement;

[0018] performing GNSS measurement after receiving the PDCCH, and switching from the connected state to an idle state if the GNSS measurement fails;

[0019] When the GNSS validity period expires, the connected state is switched to the idle state.

[0020] In another possible design, the terminal device determines a second GNSS validity period, wherein the second GNSS validity period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or from the time point of the failure of the GNSS measurement to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; when the second GNSS validity period is greater than the first preset threshold, the terminal device sends feedback information to the network device based on the scheduling information carried by the PDCCH. When the second GNSS validity period is less than or equal to the first preset threshold, since the terminal device will not provide feedback when performing GNSS measurement, the network device can send scheduling information to the terminal device after the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, and the scheduling information is used to schedule the terminal device to provide feedback on the GNSS measurement. The terminal device can receive the scheduling information of the network device after the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period to provide GNSS measurement feedback. Feedback information is sent when the second GNSS validity period is greater than the first preset threshold to ensure that the rescheduled GNSS measurement resources do not exceed the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, thereby ensuring the validity of the rescheduled GNSS measurement resources.

[0021] In another possible design, the feedback information includes the second GNSS validity period. By feeding back the second GNSS validity period, the network device is expected to reschedule the GNSS measurement based on the second GNSS validity period.

[0022] In another possible design, if the terminal device receives the GNSS measurement resources scheduled by the network device within the second GNSS validity period, the terminal device continues to perform GNSS measurement on the GNSS measurement resources. By continuing to perform GNSS measurement on the GNSS measurement resources scheduled by the network device, timely acquisition of GNSS information is ensured.

[0023] In another possible design, if the GNSS measurement resources scheduled by the network device are not received within the second GNSS validity period, the terminal device switches from the connected state to the idle state at the expiration time of the GNSS validity period, or starts to perform a GNSS measurement. By switching to the idle state when the network device does not schedule GNSS measurement resources, power is saved, or the GNSS measurement room interval is automatically extended to perform GNSS measurement, thereby ensuring timely acquisition of GNSS information.

[0024] In another possible design, the terminal device determines a second GNSS validity period, wherein the second GNSS validity period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or from the time point when the GNSS measurement fails to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; when the second GNSS validity period is less than or equal to the first preset threshold, the terminal device automatically extends the GNSS measurement interval. Furthermore, the GNSS measurement continues to be performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval. If the GNSS measurement fails to be performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device switches from the connected state to the idle state. In the case where the second GNSS validity period is less than or equal to the first preset threshold, the GNSS measurement interval is automatically extended to ensure that GNSS information can be obtained in a timely manner within the extended GNSS measurement interval.

[0025] In another possible design, if the GNSS measurement fails to be performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device sends a first indication message to the network device, where the first indication message is used to indicate the second GNSS effective duration and / or the GNSS measurement failure. Different from sending an uplink signal when the GNSS measurement is successfully performed, by sending the first indication message when the GNSS measurement fails, the network device can reschedule the GNSS measurement of the terminal device.

[0026] It should be noted that whether the terminal device monitors PDCCH and the duration of monitoring PDCCH, or whether the terminal device autonomously performs GNSS measurement and the duration of performing GNSS measurement, these terminal device behaviors and the duration related to the terminal device behaviors can all be configured by the network device.

[0027] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, including:

[0028] a receiving module, configured to receive a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) measurement interval configured from a network device in a connected state, wherein the GNSS measurement interval is used to perform GNSS measurement;

[0029] A processing module is used to extend the GNSS measurement interval if the GNSS measurement fails to be performed within the GNSS measurement interval, and continue to perform the GNSS measurement within a first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, wherein the first time period is a period of time after the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval.

[0030] In one possible design, the processing module is further used to switch from the connected state to the idle state if the GNSS measurement fails to be performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval.

[0031] In another possible design, the device further includes:

[0032] A sending module is used to send a first GNSS validity period to the network device if the GNSS measurement is successfully performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval. The first GNSS validity period is the time interval between the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval and the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or the time point from the terminal device sending the GNSS validity period to the network device to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period.

[0033] In another possible design, the processing module is also used to monitor the physical downlink control channel PDCCH within a second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, and the second time period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to a time point before the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; if the PDCCH is not monitored within the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the GNSS measurement continues to be performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval.

[0034] In another possible design, the processing module is also used to monitor the physical downlink control channel PDCCH within a second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, and the second time period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to a time point before the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; if the PDCCH is monitored within the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, feedback information is sent to the network device based on the scheduling information carried by the PDCCH.

[0035] In another possible design, the processing module is also used to determine a second GNSS valid time, wherein the second GNSS valid time is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or the time point of the failure to perform GNSS measurement to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; when the second GNSS valid time is greater than the first preset threshold, the physical downlink control channel PDCCH is monitored in the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval. If the terminal device fails to monitor the PDCCH when the GNSS validity period expires, the terminal device switches from the connected state to the idle state.

[0036] In another possible design, the scheduling information is used to schedule time-frequency resources for the feedback information.

[0037] The processing module is further configured to, if a feedback time point of the feedback information on the time-frequency resource exceeds an expiration time point of a GNSS validity period, perform one or more of the following steps:

[0038] Switching from the connected state to the idle state;

[0039] Starting to perform GNSS measurement after receiving a first signaling, and switching from the connected state to an idle state if the GNSS measurement fails, wherein the first signaling is used to instruct the execution of the GNSS measurement;

[0040] performing GNSS measurement after receiving the PDCCH, and switching from the connected state to an idle state if the GNSS measurement fails;

[0041] When the GNSS validity period expires, the connected state is switched to the idle state.

[0042] In another possible design, the processing module is also used to determine a second GNSS valid period, wherein the second GNSS valid period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS valid period, or the time point of the failure to perform GNSS measurement to the expiration time point of the GNSS valid period; when the second GNSS valid period is greater than a first preset threshold, feedback information is sent to the network device based on the scheduling information carried by the PDCCH, and when the second GNSS valid period is less than or equal to the first preset threshold, the terminal device receives the scheduling information of the network device after the expiration time point of the GNSS valid period to perform GNSS measurement feedback.

[0043] In another possible design, the feedback information includes the effective duration of the second GNSS.

[0044] In another possible design, the processing module is further used to continue performing GNSS measurement on the GNSS measurement resources if the GNSS measurement resources scheduled by the network device are received within the second GNSS validity period.

[0045] In another possible design, the processing module is also used to switch from the connected state to the idle state or start a GNSS measurement at the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period if the GNSS measurement resources scheduled by the network device are not received within the second GNSS validity period.

[0046] In another possible design, the processing module is also used to determine a second GNSS validity period, wherein the second GNSS validity period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or the time point when the GNSS measurement fails to be performed to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; when the second GNSS validity period is less than or equal to a first preset threshold, the GNSS measurement interval is automatically extended, or the GNSS measurement is continued within a first time period after the GNSS measurement interval. If the GNSS measurement fails within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device switches from the connected state to the idle state.

[0047] In another possible design, the device further includes:

[0048] A sending module is used to send first indication information to the network device if the GNSS measurement fails within a first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, where the first indication information is used to indicate the second GNSS effective duration and / or GNSS measurement failure.

[0049] The operations and beneficial effects performed by the communication device can refer to the method and beneficial effects described in the first aspect above, and the repeated parts will be omitted.

[0050] In a third aspect, the present application provides a communication device, comprising a processor and a memory, wherein the memory is used to store a computer program; the processor is used to execute the computer program stored in the memory, so that the communication device performs a method as described in any one of the first aspects.

[0051] In a fourth aspect, the present application provides a communication device, which may be a terminal device, a device in a terminal device, or a device that can be used in conjunction with a terminal device. The communication device may also be a chip system. The communication device may execute the method described in the first aspect. The functions of the communication device may be implemented by hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software implementations. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions. The module may be software and / or hardware. The operations and beneficial effects performed by the communication device may refer to the methods and beneficial effects described in the first aspect above, and any repetitions will not be repeated.

[0052] In a fifth aspect, the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium for storing a computer program, which, when executed, enables the method described in any one of the first aspects to be implemented.

[0053] In a sixth aspect, the present application provides a computer program product comprising a computer program, which, when executed, enables the method described in any one of the first aspects to be implemented.

[0054] In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, which includes at least one terminal device and at least one network device, and the terminal device is used to execute the steps in the above-mentioned first aspect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0055] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application or the background technology, the drawings required for use in the embodiments of the present application or the background technology will be described below.

[0056] FIG1( a ) is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a satellite-ground fusion network provided by the present application;

[0057] FIG1( b ) is a schematic diagram of the architecture of another satellite-ground fusion network provided by the present application;

[0058] FIG1( c ) is a schematic diagram of the architecture of another satellite-ground fusion network provided by the present application;

[0059] FIG2 is a flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0060] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of a working sequence provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0061] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of another working sequence provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0062] FIG5 is a schematic diagram of another working sequence provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0063] FIG6 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0064] FIG7 is a schematic structural diagram of a terminal device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0065] For long-term connections, for terminal devices with faster movement speeds, the connection time can be several minutes or tens of minutes; for terminal devices with slower movement speeds, the connection time can be several hours or tens of hours.

[0066] Figures 1(a), 1(b) and 1(c) are schematic diagrams of the architecture of the satellite-ground fusion network provided in this application. The satellite-ground fusion network combines ground communication and satellite communication, and terminal devices can access the network through air interfaces (such as 5G air interfaces). As shown in Figure 1(a), the access network equipment can be deployed on the ground and connected to a ground station that communicates with the satellite. As shown in Figure 1(b), the access network equipment can also be deployed on a satellite. The satellite is connected to the ground station via a wireless link, and the ground station or ground base station is connected to the core network via a wired or wireless method. As shown in Figure 1(c), there can be a wireless link between satellites. If the satellite only has a transparent forwarding function (that is, the base station is deployed on the ground), only transparent forwarding is performed between satellites. If the base station or part of the base station function is deployed on the satellite, the signaling interaction and user data transmission between base stations can be completed between satellites. Descriptions of other network elements and interfaces are as follows:

[0067] Terminal equipment, also known as user equipment (UE), mobile station (MS), mobile terminal (MT), etc., refers to equipment that provides voice and / or data connectivity to users. For example, handheld devices and vehicle-mounted devices with wireless connection capabilities. Currently, some examples of terminals include: mobile phones, tablets, laptops, PDAs, mobile internet devices (MIDs), wearable devices, virtual reality (VR) devices, and augmented reality (AR) devices.

[0068] Equipment, wireless terminals in industrial control, wireless terminals in self-driving, wireless terminals in remote medical surgery, wireless terminals in smart grids, wireless terminals in transportation safety, wireless terminals in smart cities, wireless terminals in smart homes, etc. In the embodiments of the present application, the terminal device can be an IoT type terminal device.

[0069] Access network equipment refers to the radio access network (RAN) node (or device) that connects terminal devices to the wireless network. It can also be called a base station. Examples of RAN nodes include the evolved Node B (gNB), radio network controller (RNC), Node B (NB), base station controller (BSC), base transceiver station (BTS), home evolved Node B (HNB), base band unit (BBU), and wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) access point (AP).

[0070] The access network equipment and terminals can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; they can also be deployed on water; they can also be deployed in the air on aircraft, balloons, and satellites. The embodiments of this application do not limit the application scenarios of the access network equipment and terminal devices.

[0071] Core network equipment refers to equipment in the core network (CN) that provides service support for terminals. At present, some examples of core network equipment are: access and mobility management function (AMF) entity, session management function (SMF) entity, user plane function (UPF) entity, etc., which are not listed here one by one. Among them, the AMF entity can be responsible for terminal access management and mobility management; the SMF entity can be responsible for session management, such as user session establishment, etc.; the UPF entity can be a functional entity of the user plane, mainly responsible for connecting to the external network. It should be noted that the entity in this application can also be referred to as a network element or a functional entity. For example, the AMF entity can also be referred to as an AMF network element or an AMF functional entity. For another example, the SMF entity can also be referred to as an SMF network element or an SMF functional entity, etc.

[0072] Ground station: responsible for forwarding signaling and business data between satellite base stations and core network.

[0073] Air interface: The wireless link between the terminal and the base station.

[0074] Xn interface: The interface between base stations, mainly used for signaling interaction such as switching.

[0075] NG interface: The interface between the base station and the core network, which mainly exchanges NAS and other signaling of the core network, as well as user business data.

[0076] This application is applied to communication systems such as 5G, involving terminal equipment and access network equipment, ground stations and other wireless access network elements, and performing uplink and downlink data communications based on wireless communication protocols.

[0077] For communication scenarios with short-term connections, it is assumed that the terminal device initiates random access, sends uplink data, and then exits the connected state. During this process, the terminal device can obtain GNSS information before random access, and the GNSS information is valid until the terminal device exits the connected state. Even if the terminal device moves and the GNSS deviates, the synchronization requirements can be met. However, the existing technical solutions do not take into account communication scenarios with long-term connections. In such communication scenarios, the terminal device is in the connected state for a long time. The length of time the terminal device is in the connected state can be determined by the movement speed of the terminal device. The connection duration can be several minutes, several hours, or dozens of hours.

[0078] When a terminal device is in a connected state for a long time, the GNSS information may expire, and the terminal device needs to re-measure the GNSS to obtain the GNSS information. In addition, for IoT-type terminal devices, re-acquiring GNSS information in a connected state may have a certain impact on normal communication. Therefore, IoT-type terminal devices cannot perform communication and GNSS measurement at the same time. In an embodiment of the present application, how to implement the behavior of IoT-type terminal devices in different GNSS scheduling situations in a satellite communication scenario and in a long-term connected communication situation.

[0079] As shown in FIG2 , FIG2 is a flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application. The method mainly includes the following steps:

[0080] S201: A terminal device receives a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) measurement interval configured from a network device in a connected state, where the GNSS measurement interval is used to perform GNSS measurement.

[0081] Specifically, the network device can receive the GNSS validity period reported by the terminal device. Then, the GNSS measurement interval is configured according to the reported GNSS validity period, the duration required for GNSS measurement, and the data scheduling method. And the GNSS measurement interval is sent to the terminal device. For IoT-type terminal devices, since it is impossible to communicate and perform GNSS measurements at the same time, the terminal device can complete the interaction with the network device during the communication period (non-GNSS measurement period) and obtain the GNSS measurement interval configured by the network device. Among them, the GNSS validity period represents a period of time during which GNSS information is valid.

[0082] S202, if the GNSS measurement fails to be performed within the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device extends the GNSS measurement interval and continues to perform GNSS measurement within a first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, wherein the first time period is a period of time after the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval.

[0083] Due to an insufficient measurement interval or channel changes, the terminal device did not complete the GNSS measurement within the GNSS measurement interval or failed to perform the GNSS measurement, i.e., no GNSS information was obtained. The end time of the GNSS measurement interval is still some time away from the expiration time of the GNSS validity period. Therefore, the terminal device can extend the GNSS measurement interval within this period and continue to perform GNSS measurement within the first time period after the end time of the GNSS measurement interval to obtain GNSS information. The GNSS information can be the location information of the terminal device, such as latitude and longitude information, altitude information, coordinate position, etc.

[0084] The first time period may be any period between the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval and the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period. For example, the first time period may be from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to a time point before the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or the first time period may be from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or the first time period may be from a time point after the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period.

[0085] It should be noted that the first time period can be extended by the terminal device itself, can be scheduled by the network device, or can be agreed upon by the protocol, and the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto.

[0086] Optionally, the network device can configure the maximum duration of the extended GNSS measurement interval. If the terminal device fails to perform GNSS within the GNSS measurement interval, it is determined whether the time from the end point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period is less than the maximum duration. If it is less, the time from the end point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period is used as the first time period.

[0087] As shown in Figure 3, Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of a working sequence provided by an embodiment of the present application. First, the terminal device reports the GNSS validity period during the communication period (not the GNSS measurement period), and after the network device configures the GNSS measurement interval for the terminal device, it starts to perform GNSS measurement after reaching the start time point of the GNSS measurement interval. If the GNSS measurement fails to be performed within the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device extends the first time period between the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval and the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, and performs GNSS measurement within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval.

[0088] Optionally, if the GNSS measurement fails within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, that is, if no GNSS information is obtained within the extended first time period, the terminal device switches from the connected state to the idle state. Alternatively, the terminal device may perform the GNSS measurement on its own after the expiration time of the GNSS validity period. Alternatively, the terminal device may also send feedback information to the network device, which is used to indicate that the GNSS measurement has failed or that the network device has rescheduled GNSS measurement resources (e.g., the GNSS measurement interval).

[0089] If the GNSS measurement is successfully performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device sends feedback information to the network device, where the feedback information is used to indicate a first GNSS validity period or a successful GNSS measurement, where the first GNSS validity period is the time interval between the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval and the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or the time point from when the terminal device sends the GNSS validity period to the network device to when the GNSS validity period expires. This enables the network device to reconfigure the GNSS measurement interval for the terminal device before the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period.

[0090] The above feedback information may be sent via a random access sequence, or via uplink resources scheduled by a network device, or via pre-configured uplink resources.

[0091] Optionally, if the terminal device fails to perform GNSS measurement within the GNSS measurement interval, it may only receive downlink data after the expiration time of the GNSS validity period. Alternatively, if the terminal device fails to perform GNSS measurement within the GNSS measurement interval, it may continue to perform GNSS measurement within a first time period after the GNSS measurement interval and only receive downlink data before the expiration time of the GNSS validity period.

[0092] Optionally, the terminal device monitors the PDCCH within a second time period after the GNSS measurement interval; if the PDCCH is not monitored within the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device continues to perform GNSS measurement within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval. The failure to monitor the PDCCH indicates that the PDCCH scheduled by the network device to the terminal device is not monitored. If the PDCCH is monitored within the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device sends feedback information to the network device based on the scheduling information carried by the PDCCH.

[0093] The second time period may be from the end time of the GNSS measurement interval to a time point before the expiration time of the GNSS validity period. The second time period may completely overlap or partially overlap with the first time period, or may be located before the first time period.

[0094] It should be noted that the second time period can be extended by the terminal device itself, configured by the network device, or agreed upon by the protocol. The terminal device can simultaneously monitor the PDCCH and perform GNSS measurement after a GNSS failure within the GNSS measurement interval, or only monitor the PDCCH, or only perform GNSS measurement, or first monitor the PDCCH and then perform GNSS measurement. This application document is not limited.

[0095] As shown in Figure 4, Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of another working sequence provided by an embodiment of the present application. First, the terminal device reports the GNSS validity period during the communication period (not during the GNSS measurement period). After the network device configures the GNSS measurement interval for the terminal device, it starts to perform GNSS measurement after reaching the start time point of the GNSS measurement interval. If the GNSS measurement fails to be performed within the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device monitors the PDCCH within the second time period. If the PDCCH is not monitored within the second time period, the terminal device continues to perform GNSS measurement within the first time period of self-expansion.

[0096] It should be understood that after the network device fails to perform GNSS within the GNSS measurement interval, it can send a PDCCH to the terminal device within a second time period. The PDCCH can be used to carry scheduling information, which can be used to reschedule a GNSS measurement interval (for example, the first time period), or to schedule the time-frequency resources of the media access control control element (MAC-CE) signaling, or to schedule the time-frequency resources of the acknowledgment (ACK) / negative acknowledgment (NACK) feedback corresponding to the MAC-CE signaling. The terminal device can monitor the PDCCH within the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval. If the PDCCH is monitored within the second time period, the PDCCH is de-scrambled to obtain the scheduling information carried on the PDCCH, and the MAC CE signaling sent by the network device is received based on the scheduling information. The MAC CE signaling can be used to instruct the terminal device to continue performing GNSS measurements. If the hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) function of the terminal device is not disabled, the terminal device may feed back ACK or NACK to the network device based on the scheduling information regarding whether to continue the GNSS measurement or whether the GNSS measurement is successful.

[0097] Furthermore, the terminal device monitors PDCCH in the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval. If PDCCH is monitored, the scheduling information carried on the PDCCH can be obtained. If the scheduling information reschedules a GNSS measurement interval (for example, the first time period), the terminal device can continue to perform GNSS measurement in the rescheduled GNSS measurement interval. If the GNSS measurement is successfully continued in the rescheduled GNSS measurement interval, the first GNSS valid duration or the GNSS measurement success can be fed back to the network device based on the scheduling information carried by the PDCCH. The first GNSS valid duration is the time interval between the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval and the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or the time point from the terminal device sending the GNSS validity period to the network device to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period. If the GNSS measurement fails to be continued in the rescheduled GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device switches from the connected state to the idle state.

[0098] It should be noted that whether the terminal device monitors the PDCCH after the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval can be determined based on the second GNSS validity period or by the terminal device itself. The duration for which the terminal device monitors the PDCCH (i.e., the second time period) can be agreed upon by the protocol, configured by the network device, or implemented by the terminal device itself. If it is implemented by the terminal device itself, the network device can continue to send the PDCCH or send downlink data.

[0099] Furthermore, the terminal device monitors the PDCCH within a second time period after the GNSS measurement interval. If the PDCCH is monitored within the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, and the scheduling information carried by the PDCCH is used to indicate the time-frequency resources of the feedback information, the terminal device can send the feedback information to the network device based on the scheduling information carried by the PDCCH. However, if the feedback time point of the feedback information on the time-frequency resources exceeds the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, the terminal device performs one or more of the following steps:

[0100] Switching from the connected state to the idle state;

[0101] Starting to perform GNSS measurement after receiving a first signaling, and switching from the connected state to an idle state if the GNSS measurement fails, wherein the first signaling is used to instruct the execution of the GNSS measurement;

[0102] performing GNSS measurement after receiving the PDCCH, and switching from the connected state to an idle state if the GNSS measurement fails;

[0103] When the GNSS validity period expires, the connected state is switched to the idle state.

[0104] In addition, if the terminal device successfully performs GNSS measurement after receiving the first signaling, or successfully performs GNSS measurement after receiving the PDCCH, a first GNSS valid duration can be sent to the network device, where the first GNSS valid duration is the time interval between the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval and the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or the time point from when the terminal device sends the GNSS validity period to the network device to when the GNSS validity period expires. This allows the network device to reconfigure the GNSS measurement interval for the terminal device before the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period.

[0105] As shown in Figure 5, Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of another working sequence provided by an embodiment of the present application. First, the terminal device reports the GNSS validity period during the communication period (non-GNSS measurement period), and after the network device configures the GNSS measurement interval for the terminal device, it starts to perform GNSS measurement after reaching the start time point of the GNSS measurement interval. If the GNSS measurement fails to be performed within the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device monitors the PDCCH within the second time period. If the terminal device monitors the PDCCH, the scheduling information carried on the PDCCH is obtained, and the scheduling information is used to reschedule a GNSS measurement interval and the time-frequency resources of the ACK / NACK feedback information corresponding to the MAC CE. However, the time point of the time-frequency resources of the ACK / NACK feedback information has exceeded the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period. Therefore, the terminal device can switch from the connected state to the idle state when the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period is reached.

[0106] Optionally, if the terminal device monitors PDCCH within the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device can send feedback information to the network device based on the scheduling information carried by the PDCCH. The feedback information includes the second GNSS valid duration (the time point when the GNSS measurement fails to be performed to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period). It is expected that the network device will reschedule the GNSS measurement resources (for example, the GNSS measurement interval) within the second GNSS valid duration. If the terminal device receives the GNSS measurement resources scheduled by the network device within the second GNSS valid duration (for example, the first time period of the schedule), the terminal device continues to perform GNSS measurements on the GNSS measurement resources. If the GNSS measurement resources scheduled by the network device are not received within the second GNSS valid duration, the terminal device switches from the connected state to the idle state at the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or performs a GNSS measurement on its own.

[0107] Optionally, the network device may schedule the terminal device to perform GNSS measurement feedback after the GNSS validity period expires, for example, by re-feeding back the GNSS validity period, and the network device may configure a GNSS measurement interval for the terminal device based on the re-feedback GNSS validity period. Alternatively, the network device may pre-configure uplink resources, and the terminal device may send feedback information on the pre-configured uplink resources after the GNSS measurement interval. In this way, the terminal device does not need to monitor the PDCCH first and can directly provide feedback on the pre-configured uplink resources.

[0108] Optionally, after a GNSS failure occurs within a GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device may determine a second GNSS validity period, wherein the second GNSS validity period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or from the time point of the GNSS measurement failure to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period. When the second GNSS validity period is greater than the first preset threshold, the terminal device may monitor the PDCCH within a second time period after the GNSS measurement interval. If the terminal device fails to monitor the PDCCH before reaching the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, the terminal device switches from the connected state to the idle state. Alternatively, when the second GNSS validity period is greater than the first preset threshold, after the terminal device monitors the PDCCH within the second time period, it sends feedback information to the network device based on the scheduling information carried by the PDCCH.

[0109] Alternatively, when the second GNSS valid duration is greater than the first preset threshold, after the terminal device fails to perform GNSS measurement within the GNSS measurement interval, it can send feedback information to the network device, where the feedback information is used to indicate the second GNSS valid duration, thereby expecting the network device to reschedule GNSS measurement resources (e.g., the first time period) within the second GNSS valid duration. The terminal device waits for rescheduling by the network device within the second GNSS valid duration. If the scheduling information of the network device is still not received before the expiration time point of the GNSS valid period, the terminal device can directly enter the idle state, or it can also extend the GNSS measurement interval by itself and perform GNSS measurement within the extended first time period.

[0110] When the second GNSS valid duration is less than or equal to the first preset value, if the network device schedules the terminal device to perform GNSS measurement within the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the time point when the terminal device sends feedback information to the network device may have exceeded the expiration time point of the GNSS valid period. Therefore, when the second GNSS valid duration is less than or equal to the first preset value, the terminal device can only perform GNSS measurement without monitoring PDCCH. Alternatively, when the second GNSS valid duration is less than or equal to the first preset value, the network device can send scheduling information to the terminal device after the expiration time point of the GNSS valid period, and the scheduling information is used to schedule the terminal device to provide feedback on the GNSS measurement. The terminal device can receive the scheduling information of the network device after the expiration time point of the GNSS valid period to provide GNSS measurement feedback.

[0111] Alternatively, when the second GNSS valid duration is less than or equal to the first preset threshold, the terminal device directly extends the GNSS measurement interval by itself and continues to perform GNSS measurement within the first time after the extension. For example, the terminal device can extend the GNSS measurement interval by itself to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, and perform GNSS measurement within this time period. The network device does not schedule the terminal device to perform GNSS measurement feedback during this period. If the GNSS measurement fails to be continued within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device switches from the connected state to the idle state. Alternatively, when the second GNSS valid duration is less than or equal to the first preset threshold, the terminal device waits until the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period to perform GNSS measurement by itself. The first preset threshold can be configured by the network device or agreed upon by the protocol.

[0112] Optionally, since the terminal device sends an uplink signal, it implicitly indicates that the terminal device has successfully performed the GNSS measurement. The network device receives the uplink signal sent by the terminal device before the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, and regardless of whether the terminal device successfully performs the GNSS measurement, it will be considered that the terminal device has successfully completed the GNSS measurement. Therefore, if the GNSS measurement fails to be performed within the GNSS measurement interval, or the GNSS measurement fails to be performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device sends a first indication message to the network device, and the first indication message is used to indicate the second GNSS validity period and / or the GNSS measurement failure. The second GNSS validity period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or from the time point when the GNSS measurement fails to be performed to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period.

[0113] In addition to sending the first indication information, the terminal device may also perform GNSS measurement after the expiration time of the GNSS validity period; or, start performing GNSS measurement after sending the first indication information; or, if no scheduling information from the network device is received within a period of time, switch from the connected state to the idle state; or, wait for the scheduling information from the network device until the expiration time of the GNSS validity period, if no scheduling information from the network device is received, switch from the connected state to the idle state; or, if no scheduling information from the network device is received within a period of time, start performing GNSS measurement on its own. Alternatively, determine whether to monitor PDCCH based on the second GNSS validity period, and monitor PDCCH only when the second GNSS validity period is greater than the first preset threshold.

[0114] It should be noted that whether the terminal device monitors PDCCH and the duration of monitoring PDCCH, or whether the terminal device autonomously performs GNSS measurement and the duration of performing GNSS measurement, these terminal device behaviors and the duration related to the terminal device behaviors can be configured by the network device or agreed upon by the protocol.

[0115] In an embodiment of the present application, for IoT terminal devices in satellite communication scenarios and in long-term connected communication situations, the behavior of the terminal devices in different GNSS scheduling situations is specified. For example, after a GNSS measurement fails to be performed within the GNSS measurement interval, the GNSS measurement interval is extended. Based on the time interval from the time point of the GNSS measurement failure within the GNSS measurement interval to the time point of the expiration of the GNSS validity period, it is determined whether to monitor the PDCCH, thereby ensuring that the communication will not be affected when performing the GNSS measurement, thereby improving the efficiency and quality of communication.

[0116] It can be understood that, in the above-mentioned various method embodiments, the methods and operations implemented by the terminal device can also be implemented by components (such as chips or circuits) of the available terminal device.

[0117] In the embodiment of the present application, the functional modules of the terminal device can be divided according to the above method example. For example, each functional module can be divided according to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The above integrated modules can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional modules. It should be noted that the division of modules in the embodiment of the present application is schematic and is only a logical functional division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation. The following is an example of dividing each functional module according to each function.

[0118] The method provided in the embodiment of the present application is described in detail above in conjunction with FIG2 . Below, the communication device provided in the embodiment of the present application is described in detail in conjunction with FIG6 . It should be understood that the description of the device embodiment corresponds to the description of the method embodiment. Therefore, for matters not described in detail, reference can be made to the method embodiment above. For the sake of brevity, these details will not be repeated here.

[0119] Please refer to Figure 6, which is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. The communication device may include a receiving module 601, a processing module 602, and a sending module 603. The receiving module 601 and the sending module 603 can communicate with the outside world, and the processing module 602 is used to perform processing, such as performing GNSS measurements. The receiving module 601 and the sending module 603 may also be referred to as a communication interface, a transceiver unit, or a transceiver module.

[0120] In one possible design, the communication device can implement steps or processes corresponding to those performed by the terminal device in the above method embodiments. For example, it can be a terminal device, or a chip or circuit configured in the terminal device. The receiving module 601 and the sending module 603 are used to perform the receiving and sending related operations of the terminal device in the above method embodiments, and the processing module 602 is used to perform the processing related operations of the terminal device in the above method embodiments.

[0121] A receiving module 601 is configured to receive a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) measurement interval configured from a network device in a connected state, where the GNSS measurement interval is used to perform GNSS measurement;

[0122] The processing module 602 is used to extend the GNSS measurement interval if the GNSS measurement fails to be performed within the GNSS measurement interval, and continue to perform the GNSS measurement within a first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, wherein the first time period is a period of time after the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval.

[0123] Optionally, the processing module 602 is further configured to switch from the connected state to the idle state if the GNSS measurement fails to be performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval.

[0124] Optionally, the sending module 603 is used to send a first GNSS valid duration to the network device if the GNSS measurement is successfully performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, and the first GNSS valid duration is the time interval between the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval and the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period.

[0125] Optionally, the processing module 602 is also used to monitor the physical downlink control channel PDCCH within a second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, where the second time period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to a time point before the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; if the PDCCH is not monitored within the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the GNSS measurement continues to be performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval.

[0126] Optionally, the processing module 602 is also used to monitor the physical downlink control channel PDCCH within a second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, where the second time period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to a time point before the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; if the PDCCH is monitored within the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, feedback information is sent to the network device based on the scheduling information carried by the PDCCH.

[0127] Optionally, the processing module 602 is also used to determine a second GNSS valid time, wherein the second GNSS valid time is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or the time point when the GNSS measurement fails to be performed to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; when the second GNSS valid time is greater than the first preset threshold, the physical downlink control channel PDCCH is monitored within the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval. If the terminal device fails to monitor the PDCCH when the GNSS validity period expires, the terminal device switches from the connected state to the idle state.

[0128] Optionally, the scheduling information is used to schedule the time-frequency resources of the feedback information. The processing module 602 is further configured to, if a feedback time point of the feedback information on the time-frequency resources exceeds an expiration time point of a GNSS validity period, perform one or more of the following steps:

[0129] Switching from the connected state to the idle state;

[0130] After receiving a first signaling, starting to perform GNSS measurement, and if the GNSS measurement fails, switching from the connected state to the idle state, wherein the first signaling is used to instruct to perform the GNSS measurement;

[0131] performing GNSS measurement after receiving the PDCCH, and switching from the connected state to an idle state if the GNSS measurement fails;

[0132] When the GNSS validity period expires, the connected state is switched to the idle state.

[0133] Optionally, the processing module 602 is also used to determine a second GNSS validity period, wherein the second GNSS validity period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or the time point when the GNSS measurement fails to be performed to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; when the second GNSS validity period is greater than a first preset threshold, feedback information is sent to the network device based on the scheduling information carried by the PDCCH, and when the second GNSS validity period is less than or equal to the first preset threshold, the terminal device receives the scheduling information of the network device after the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period to perform GNSS measurement feedback.

[0134] The feedback information includes the effective duration of the second GNSS.

[0135] Optionally, the processing module 602 is further configured to continue performing GNSS measurement on the GNSS measurement resources if the GNSS measurement resources scheduled by the network device are received within the second GNSS valid duration.

[0136] Optionally, the processing module 602 is further configured to switch from the connected state to the idle state, or start a GNSS measurement, at the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period if the GNSS measurement resources scheduled by the network device are not received within the second GNSS validity period.

[0137] Optionally, the processing module 602 is also used to determine a second GNSS validity period, wherein the second GNSS validity period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or the time point when the GNSS measurement fails to be performed to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; when the second GNSS validity period is less than or equal to a first preset threshold, the GNSS measurement continues to be performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval. If the GNSS measurement fails to be continued within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device switches from the connected state to the idle state.

[0138] Optionally, the sending module 603 is configured to send first indication information to the network device if the GNSS measurement fails within a first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, wherein the first indication information is used to indicate the second GNSS effective duration and / or GNSS measurement failure.

[0139] It should be noted that the implementation of each module may also correspond to the corresponding description of the method embodiment shown in FIG2 , and execute the method and functions executed by the terminal device in the above embodiment.

[0140] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a terminal device provided in an embodiment of the present application. The terminal device can be used in the systems shown in Figures 1(a), 1(b), and 1(c) to perform the functions of the terminal device in the above method embodiments, or to implement the steps or processes performed by the terminal device in the above method embodiments.

[0141] As shown in Figure 7, the terminal device includes a processor 701 and a transceiver 702. Optionally, the terminal device also includes a memory 703. The processor 701, transceiver 702, and memory 703 can communicate with each other via internal connection paths to transmit control and / or data signals. The memory 703 is used to store computer programs, and the processor 701 is used to call and execute the computer programs from the memory 703 to control the transceiver 702 to transmit and receive signals. Optionally, the terminal device may also include an antenna for transmitting uplink data or uplink control signaling output by the transceiver 702 via wireless signals.

[0142] The processor 701 may correspond to the processing module in FIG6 . The processor 701 and the memory 703 may be combined into a processing device, and the processor 701 is configured to execute program codes stored in the memory 703 to implement the aforementioned functions. In a specific implementation, the memory 703 may also be integrated into the processor 701 or independent of the processor 701.

[0143] The transceiver 702 may correspond to the receiving module and transmitting module in FIG6 , and may also be referred to as a transceiver unit or transceiver module. The transceiver 702 may include a receiver (or receiver, receiving circuit) and a transmitter (or transmitter, transmitting circuit). The receiver is used to receive signals, and the transmitter is used to transmit signals.

[0144] It should be understood that the terminal device shown in FIG7 is capable of implementing the various processes involved in the terminal device in the method embodiment shown in FIG2 . The operations and / or functions of the various modules in the terminal device are respectively for implementing the corresponding processes in the above method embodiment. For details, please refer to the description of the above method embodiment. To avoid repetition, detailed description is omitted here.

[0145] The processor 701 can be used to execute the actions implemented within the terminal device described in the previous method embodiments, while the transceiver 702 can be used to execute the actions of the terminal device sending to or receiving from the access network device described in the previous method embodiments. For details, please refer to the description of the previous method embodiments and will not be repeated here.

[0146] The processor 701 may be a central processing unit (CPU), a general-purpose processor (GPOR), a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic device (PLD), a transistor logic device (TLD), a hardware component, or any combination thereof. It may implement or execute the various exemplary logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the disclosure of this application. The processor 701 may also be a combination that implements computing functions, such as a combination of one or more microprocessors, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, and so on. The communication bus 704 may be a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus or an Extended Industrial Standard Architecture (EISA) bus. These buses may be categorized as address buses, data buses, control buses, and so on. For ease of illustration, FIG7 shows only one bold line, but this does not imply that there is only one bus or type of bus. The communication bus 704 is used to enable communication between these components. In the embodiment of this application, the transceiver 702 is used to communicate signaling or data with other node devices. The memory 703 may include volatile memory, such as nonvolatile dynamic random access memory (NVRAM), phase change random access memory (PRAM), magnetoresistive random access memory (MRAM), etc. It may also include non-volatile memory, such as at least one disk storage device, electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory devices, such as NOR flash memory or NAND flash memory, semiconductor devices, such as solid state disks (SSDs), etc. The memory 703 may optionally be at least one storage device located away from the aforementioned processor 701. The memory 703 may optionally also store a set of computer program codes or configuration information. Optionally, the processor 701 may also execute the program stored in the memory 703. The processor may cooperate with the memory and the transceiver to execute any one of the methods and functions of the terminal device in the above-mentioned application embodiments.

[0147] An embodiment of the present application also provides a chip system, which includes a processor for supporting a terminal device to implement the functions involved in any of the above embodiments, such as generating or processing the GNSS information involved in the above method.

[0148] In one possible design, the chip system may also include a memory for storing computer programs and data necessary for the terminal device. The chip system may consist solely of a chip or may include a chip and other discrete components. The inputs and outputs of the chip system correspond to the receive and transmit operations of the terminal device in the method embodiment, respectively.

[0149] According to the method provided in the embodiments of the present application, the present application also provides a computer program product, which includes: a computer program, which, when running on a computer, enables the computer to execute the method of any one of the embodiments shown in Figure 2.

[0150] According to the method provided in the embodiments of the present application, the present application also provides a computer-readable medium, which stores a computer program. When the computer program runs on a computer, the computer executes the method of any one of the embodiments shown in Figure 2.

[0151] According to the method provided in the embodiment of the present application, the present application also provides a communication system, which includes one or more terminal devices and one or more network devices as mentioned above.

[0152] In the above embodiments, all or part of the embodiments may be implemented by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, all or part of the embodiments may be implemented in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present application are generated. The computer may be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions may 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 may 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 may be any available medium that a computer can access 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 disc (SSD)).

[0153] 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 is applied to a terminal device or a chip in the terminal device, and the method includes: receiving a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) measurement interval configured by a network device in a connected state, wherein the GNSS measurement interval is used to perform GNSS measurement; If the GNSS measurement fails within the GNSS measurement interval, the GNSS measurement interval is extended, and the GNSS measurement is continued within a first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, wherein the first time period is a period of time after the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method further comprises: If the GNSS measurement fails within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the connected state is switched to the idle state.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method further comprises: If the GNSS measurement is successfully performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, a first GNSS validity period is sent to the network device, where the first GNSS validity period is the time interval between the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval and the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period.

4. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method further comprises: monitoring a physical downlink control channel PDCCH within a second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, where the second time period is from an end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to a time point before an expiration time point of a GNSS validity period; If the PDCCH is not monitored within the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the GNSS measurement continues to be performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval.

5. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method further comprises: monitoring the PDCCH within a second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, where the second time period is from an end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to a time point before an expiration time point of a GNSS validity period; If the PDCCH is monitored within the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, feedback information is sent to the network device based on the scheduling information carried by the PDCCH.

6. The method according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that The terminal device monitors the PDCCH within a first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, including: Determine a second GNSS validity period, wherein the second GNSS validity period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or from the time point of the GNSS measurement failure to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; When the second GNSS validity period is greater than a first preset threshold, the PDCCH is monitored in the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval. If the terminal device fails to monitor the PDCCH when the GNSS validity period expires, the terminal device switches from the connected state to the idle state.

7. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that The scheduling information is used to schedule the time-frequency resources of the feedback information, and the method further includes: If the feedback time point of the feedback information on the time-frequency resource exceeds the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, one or more of the following steps are performed: Switching from the connected state to an idle state; After receiving the first signaling, start to perform GNSS measurement, and if the GNSS measurement fails, switch from the connected state to the idle state, wherein the first signaling is used to instruct to perform the GNSS measurement; After receiving the PDCCH, perform GNSS measurement, and if the GNSS measurement fails, switch from the connected state to an idle state; When the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period is reached, the connected state is switched to the idle state.

8. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that The method further comprises: Determine a second GNSS validity period, wherein the second GNSS validity period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or from the time point of the GNSS measurement failure to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; When the valid duration of the second GNSS is greater than the first preset threshold, feedback information is sent to the network device based on the scheduling information carried by the PDCCH; when the valid duration of the second GNSS is less than or equal to the first preset threshold, the scheduling information of the network device is received after the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period to perform GNSS measurement feedback.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that The feedback information includes the effective duration of the second GNSS.

10. The method according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that The method further comprises: If the GNSS measurement resources scheduled by the network device are received within the second GNSS effective duration, the GNSS measurement is continued to be performed on the GNSS measurement resources.

11. The method according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that: The method further comprises: If the GNSS measurement resources scheduled by the network device are not received within the second GNSS validity period, the connected state is switched to the idle state at the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or a GNSS measurement is started.

12. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method further comprises: Determine a second GNSS validity period, wherein the second GNSS validity period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or from the time point of the GNSS measurement failure to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; When the second GNSS valid time length is less than or equal to the first preset threshold, continue to perform GNSS measurement in a first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, and if the GNSS measurement fails in the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, switch from the connected state to the idle state.

13. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that The method further comprises: If the GNSS measurement fails within a first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, first indication information is sent to the network device, where the first indication information is used to indicate the second GNSS effective time and / or GNSS measurement failure.

14. A communication device, characterized in that: The device comprises: A receiving module, configured to receive a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) measurement interval configured from a network device in a connected state, wherein the GNSS measurement interval is used to perform GNSS measurement; A processing module is used to extend the GNSS measurement interval if the GNSS measurement fails to be performed within the GNSS measurement interval, and continue to perform the GNSS measurement within a first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, wherein the first time period is a period of time after the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval.

15. The device according to claim 14, characterized in that The processing module is further configured to switch from the connected state to the idle state if the GNSS measurement fails to be performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval.

16. The device according to claim 14, characterized in that The device also includes: A sending module is used to send a first GNSS validity period to the network device if the GNSS measurement is successfully performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, and the first GNSS validity period is the time interval between the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval and the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period.

17. The device according to claim 14, characterized in that The processing module is also used to monitor the physical downlink control channel PDCCH within a second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, and the second time period is a time point from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to before the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; if the PDCCH is not monitored within the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the GNSS measurement continues to be performed within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval.

18. The device according to claim 14, characterized in that The processing module is further configured to monitor the PDCCH within a second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, where the second time period is from an end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to a time point before an expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; If the PDCCH is monitored within the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval, feedback information is sent to the network device based on the scheduling information carried by the PDCCH.

19. The device according to claim 17 or 18, characterized in that The processing module is also used to determine a second GNSS validity period, wherein the second GNSS validity period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or from the time point of the failure of the GNSS measurement to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; when the second GNSS validity period is greater than the first preset threshold, the physical downlink control channel PDCCH is monitored in the second time period after the GNSS measurement interval. If the terminal device fails to monitor the PDCCH when the GNSS validity period expires, the terminal device switches from the connected state to the idle state.

20. The device according to claim 18, characterized in that The scheduling information is used to schedule the time-frequency resources of the feedback information, The processing module is further configured to execute one or more of the following steps if a feedback time point of the feedback information on the time-frequency resource exceeds an expiration time point of the GNSS validity period: Switching from the connected state to an idle state; After receiving the first signaling, start to perform GNSS measurement, and if the GNSS measurement fails, switch from the connected state to the idle state, wherein the first signaling is used to instruct to perform the GNSS measurement; After receiving the PDCCH, perform GNSS measurement, and if the GNSS measurement fails, switch from the connected state to an idle state; When the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period is reached, the connected state is switched to the idle state.

21. The device according to claim 18, characterized in that The processing module is also used to determine a second GNSS validity period, wherein the second GNSS validity period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or from the time point of failure to perform GNSS measurement to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; when the second GNSS validity period is greater than a first preset threshold, feedback information is sent to the network device based on the scheduling information carried by the PDCCH, and when the second GNSS validity period is less than or equal to the first preset threshold, the terminal device receives the scheduling information of the network device after the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period to perform GNSS measurement feedback.

22. The device according to claim 21, characterized in that The feedback information includes the effective duration of the second GNSS.

23. The device according to claim 21 or 22, characterized in that The processing module is further configured to continue to perform GNSS measurement on the GNSS measurement resources if the GNSS measurement resources scheduled by the network device are received within the second GNSS effective duration.

24. The device according to claim 21 or 22, characterized in that The processing module is further configured to switch from the connected state to the idle state at the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or start a GNSS measurement if the GNSS measurement resources scheduled by the network device are not received within the second GNSS validity period.

25. The device according to claim 14, characterized in that The processing module is also used to determine a second GNSS validity period, wherein the second GNSS validity period is from the end time point of the GNSS measurement interval to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period, or from the time point when the GNSS measurement fails to the expiration time point of the GNSS validity period; when the second GNSS validity period is less than or equal to a first preset threshold, the GNSS measurement continues to be performed within a first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, and if the GNSS measurement fails within the first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, the terminal device switches from the connected state to the idle state.

26. The device according to claim 25, characterized in that The device also includes: A sending module is used to send first indication information to the network device if the GNSS measurement fails within a first time period after the GNSS measurement interval, wherein the first indication information is used to indicate the second GNSS effective time and / or GNSS measurement failure.

27. A communication device, characterized in that: The communication device comprises a memory and a processor, wherein the memory is used to store a computer program, and the processor runs the computer program to enable the communication device to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 13.

28. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The computer-readable storage medium comprises a computer program, and when the computer program is executed by a processor, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 13 is implemented.

29. A computer program product comprising a computer program, characterized in that When the computer program is executed, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 13 is implemented.

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