Method executed by user equipment, and user equipment

Abstract

The present invention provides a method executed by a user equipment (UE) and the user equipment. The method comprises: a UE receives a measurement configuration sent by a network, the measurement configuration comprising an object to be measured; the UE determines whether at least one of a first condition is satisfied, and when determining that at least one of the first condition is satisfied, and the corresponding object to be measured is associated with an L2 U2N Relay UE, the UE performs a corresponding measurement associated with a candidate Relay UE on frequency indicated by the object to be measured.

Description

Method executed by user equipment and user equipment Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of wireless communication technology, and more particularly, to a method for measurement and measurement reporting performed by a user equipment and corresponding user equipment. Background Art

[0002] In March 2020, at the RAN#91 plenary meeting, a work item for NR sidelink relaying for Release 17 was proposed and approved (see non-patent document: RP-210904 New Study Item on NR Sidelink Relaying). The latest version of this work item can be found in non-patent document: RP-212601 reivised WID NR sidelink relay. One of the goals of this work item is to standardize sidelink control plane procedures, such as RRC connection management, reception of system messages, and reception of paging. The work item also aims to standardize the selection and reselection procedures for sidelink relay UEs.

[0003] In December 2021, at the RAN#94 plenary meeting, a work item for NR sidelink relay enhancements for version 18 was proposed (see non-patent document: RP-213585 New WID on NR sidelink relay enhancements) and was approved. The latest version of this work item can be found in the non-patent document: RP-221262 Revised WID on NR sidelink relay enhancements. The goals of this work item include standardizing the indirect path to indirect path path switching of the U2N (UE-to-Network) Relay architecture, thereby enhancing the service continuity of the UE. The goals of this work item also include standardizing multiple paths under the U2N Relay architecture, thereby enhancing service reliability and throughput.

[0004] The present invention discusses under what circumstances the remote UE performs measurements on candidate relay UEs, and under what circumstances the measurement reporting process is initiated.

[0005] Summary of the Invention

[0006] The present invention is made to solve the above problem, and its purpose is to provide a method executed by a user equipment and a user equipment capable of performing measurement of a candidate relay UE under appropriate conditions and reliably initiating a measurement reporting process.

[0007] According to one aspect of the present invention, a method performed by a user equipment is provided, comprising:

[0008] The user equipment UE receives a measurement configuration sent by the network, where the measurement configuration includes a measurement object; and

[0009] The UE determines whether at least one of the first conditions is met. If it is determined that at least one of the first conditions is met, if the corresponding measurement object is associated with a UE-to-network relay UE in an L2 architecture, i.e., an L2 U2N Relay UE, the UE performs corresponding measurements associated with the candidate Relay UE on the frequency indicated by the measurement object.

[0010] The first condition includes at least one of the following:

[0011] The UE is acting as a remote UE to the network in an L2 architecture, namely, L2 U2N Remote UE;

[0012] UE has the ability to support multipath communication;

[0013] The UE is acting as a multipath remote UE, i.e., an MP Remote UE;

[0014] The UE is configured with multipath;

[0015] The UE has the capability to support multi-path communication and currently communicates with the network only through a direct path.

[0016] In the above method performed by the user equipment, preferably,

[0017] If it is determined that any one of the first conditions is not met, the UE further determines whether the S measurement condition is met, and

[0018] If it is determined that the S measurement condition is met, the UE performs corresponding measurement associated with the candidate Relay UE on the frequency indicated by the measurement object.

[0019] In the above method performed by the user equipment, preferably,

[0020] The measurement configuration further includes a first sideline communication measurement configuration, and the first sideline communication measurement configuration includes a sideline communication reference signal received power RSRP threshold value, which is used to control whether the L2 U2NRemote UE performs measurement of the candidate Relay UE.

[0021] In the above method performed by the user equipment, preferably,

[0022] When it is determined that at least one of the first conditions is met, the UE further determines whether a first sideline communication measurement condition is met, and

[0023] When it is determined that the first sidelink communication measurement condition is met, if the corresponding measurement object is associated with the L2 U2N Relay UE, the UE performs corresponding measurement associated with the candidate Relay UE at the frequency indicated by the measurement object.

[0024] In the above method performed by the user equipment, preferably,

[0025] If at least one of the following conditions is met, the UE considers that the first sidelink communication measurement condition is met:

[0026] The first sideline communication measurement configuration is not configured;

[0027] The sideline communication RSRP of the served L2 U2N Relay UE is lower than the sideline communication RSRP threshold in the first sideline communication measurement configuration.

[0028] In the above method performed by the user equipment, preferably,

[0029] The measurement configuration also includes the report type and number of reports, and

[0030] If the report type is set to periodic report and a measurement result is available, the number of reports is determined.

[0031] In the above method performed by the user equipment, preferably,

[0032] If the number of reports is greater than 1, if the quality required to be reported by the serving L2 U2N Relay UE becomes available, and the quality required to be reported by the L2 U2N Relay UE with the strongest quality among the applicable L2 U2N Relay UEs, i.e., the candidate Relay UEs, becomes available, the L2 U2N Remote UE immediately initiates the measurement reporting procedure.

[0033] In the above method performed by the user equipment, preferably,

[0034] If the number of reports is equal to 1, the MP Remote UE immediately initiates the measurement report procedure if at least one of the following conditions is met:

[0035] The quality that needs to be reported by the primary cell (NR PCell) for the next generation wireless technology becomes available, and the quality that needs to be reported by the strongest cell among the applicable cells becomes available;

[0036] The quality that the serving L2 U2N Relay UE needs to report becomes available, and the quality that the L2 U2N Relay UE with the strongest quality among applicable L2 U2N Relay UEs, ie, candidate Relay UEs, needs to report becomes available.

[0037] According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a user equipment, including:

[0038] processor; and

[0039] Memory, which stores instructions,

[0040] When the instructions are executed by the processor, the user equipment executes the method described above.

[0041] According to the above solution, not only can the measurement of the candidate relay UE be performed under appropriate conditions, but the measurement reporting process can also be reliably initiated. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0042] FIG1(a), FIG1(b), and FIG1(c) are schematic diagrams of UE-to-Network relay, respectively.

[0043] FIG2 is a schematic diagram illustrating a path switching.

[0044] FIG3 is a flowchart illustrating a method executed by a user equipment according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0045] FIG4 is a simplified structural block diagram of a user equipment UE according to the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0046] The present invention is described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments described below. In addition, for the sake of simplicity, detailed descriptions of known technologies that are not directly related to the present invention are omitted to prevent confusion in understanding the present invention.

[0047] The following describes some of the terms involved in this invention. The specific meanings of the terms can be found in the latest 3GPP standards.

[0048] UE: User Equipment

[0049] NR: New Radio, a new generation of wireless technology

[0050] PHY: physical layer, physical layer

[0051] MAC: Medium Access Control, multimedia access control

[0052] RLC: Radio Link Control

[0053] SDAP: Service Data Adaptation Protocol

[0054] PDCP: Packet Data Convergence Protocol, Packet Data Convergence Protocol

[0055] SRAP: Sidelink Relay Adaptation Protocol, Sidelink Relay Adaptation Protocol

[0056] RRC: Radio Resource Control

[0057] RRC_CONNECTED: RRC connected state

[0058] RRC_INACTIVE: RRC inactive state

[0059] RRC_IDLE: RRC idle state

[0060] RAN: Radio Access Network

[0061] NG-RAN: Next-generation radio access network

[0062] gNB: the next Generation Node B

[0063] Sidelink: Sidelink communication, sidelink

[0064] SL: Sidelink

[0065] SCI: Sidelink Control Information, sidelink communication control information

[0066] AS: Access Stratum, access layer

[0067] IE: Information Element

[0068] CE: Control Element

[0069] MIB: Master Information Block

[0070] SIB: System Information Block

[0071] DCI: Downlink Control Information, downlink control information

[0072] RB: radio bearer

[0073] DRB: Data Radio Bearer

[0074] SRB: Signaling Radio Bearer

[0075] Uu: air interface

[0076] ProSe:Proximity based Services:Proximity services

[0077] V2X: Vehicle-to-Everything

[0078] NAS: Non-Access-Stratum

[0079] PC5-S: PC5 signalling, PC5 signaling

[0080] SL-SRB: Sidelink Signalling Radio Bearer

[0081] SL-DRB: Sidelink Data Radio Bearer, sidelink communication data radio bearer

[0082] U2U: UE-to-UE, UE to UE

[0083] U2N: UE-to-Network

[0084] L2: Layer 2, layer 2 architecture

[0085] RSRP: Reference Signal Received Power

[0086] SL-RSRP: Sidelink RSRP, sidelink communication reference signal received power

[0087] SD-RSRP: sidelink discovery RSRP, sidelink communication discovery message reference signal received power

[0088] SpCell: Special Cell, including PCell and PSCell

[0089] PCell: Primary Cell

[0090] PSCell: Primary SCG Cell, SCG main cell

[0091] L2-ID: Layer-2 ID (identity), layer 2 identification

[0092] In the present invention, network (network or NW), base station (base station or gNB or eNB) and RAN are used interchangeably. The network may be a Long Term Evolution LTE network, a New Radio Access Technology (New RAT, NR) network, an enhanced Long Term Evolution eLTE network, or other networks defined in subsequent evolution versions of 3GPP. The base station in the present invention may be any type of base station, including Node B, enhanced base station eNB, 5G communication system base station gNB; or micro base station, pico base station, macro base station, home base station, etc.; the network generally refers to a base station or a cell. The cell may also be a cell under any of the above-mentioned types of base stations. Unless otherwise specified, the cell, beam, and transmission point (TRP) may be interchangeable, and the base station may also be a central unit (gNB-Central Unit, gNB-CU) or a distributed unit (gNB-Distributed Unit, gNB-DU) constituting the base station.

[0093] In the present invention, the user equipment UE may refer to the NR device supporting the NR Sidelink relay function described in the background technology, or to the NR device supporting the multipath communication function, or may refer to other types of NR devices or LTE devices.

[0094] In the present invention, sidelink, SL and PC5 can be used interchangeably.

[0095] In the present invention, the terms "feedback," "submit," "report," "send," "transmit," "inform," "indicate," and "provide" may be used interchangeably. The terms "use," "make available," "apply," "implement," "enable," "activate," "perform," and "do" may be used interchangeably.

[0096] In the present invention, "associate", "correspond" and "map" can be used interchangeably.

[0097] In the present invention, configure and reconfigure can be used interchangeably, and receive, detect, monitor, and decode can be used interchangeably.

[0098] In the present invention, unless otherwise specified, "Relay UE", "U2N Relay UE" and "L2 U2N Relay UE" can be used interchangeably. Unless otherwise specified, "Remote UE", "U2N Remote UE" and "L2 U2N Remote UE" can be used interchangeably.

[0099] In the present invention, "switch", "path switch", and "handover" can be used interchangeably. "Change" and "update" can be used interchangeably.

[0100] In the present invention, "path", "data path" and "connection" can be used interchangeably.

[0101] In the present invention, direct connection and direct path are interchangeable; indirect connection, indirect connection, relay path, and indirect path are interchangeable. In the present invention, "operating in multipath mode" is interchangeable with "configured with multipath." In the present invention, multipath communication and multi-connection (multiple connections) communication are interchangeable.

[0102] It should be noted that in this specification, two things connected by "and", "or", or "and / or" may represent different ways of expressing the same meaning in different application scenarios. There may be a relationship of inclusion and being included between the two, and they do not necessarily refer to completely different content.

[0103] Hereinafter, a description is given of related technologies of the present invention.

[0104] PC5 interface

[0105] The PC5 interface is used for control and user plane sidelink communication between UEs. For sidelink unicast, a PC5-RRC connection is a logical connection at the AS layer between a source Layer 2 ID and a target Layer 2 ID. The upper layer establishes a PC5 unicast link for sidelink unicast communication. Each established PC5 unicast link corresponds to a corresponding PC5-RRC connection.

[0106] Uu interface

[0107] The Uu interface is the wireless communication interface between the UE and the base station. The UE can communicate with the gNB using NR over the Uu interface.

[0108] L2 Architecture

[0109] The L2 architecture is relative to the L3 architecture. In the L2 architecture, the access layer controls or participates in the selection and reselection of relays, as well as the communication between a UE and the network or another UE through relays. In the L3 architecture, the access layer is largely unaware of the existence of relays, or in other words, relays are transparent to the access layer.

[0110] U2N (UE-to-Network) relay

[0111] UE-to-Network relay is shown in Figures 1(a), 1(b), and 1(c). In scenarios 1 and 2 of Figures 1(a) and 1(b), the left side is the remote UE, the middle side is the relay UE, and the right side is the network. In scenario 3 of Figure 1(c), the two sides are networks (for example, networks A and B), and the middle side is the remote UE and relay UE from left to right. The remote UE and relay UE are connected via the PC5 interface, and the relay UE and the network are connected via the Uu port. Because the remote UE is far away from the network or the communication environment is poor, the relay UE is required to relay and forward the signaling and data between the two.

[0112] UE-to-Network relay scenarios include:

[0113] 1) The Remote UE is out of coverage, while the Relay UE is within coverage (as shown in Figure 1(a)).

[0114] 2) Both the Remote UE and the Relay UE are within the coverage area and in the same cell (as shown in Figure 1(b));

[0115] 3) Both the Remote UE and the Relay UE are within the coverage area, but in different cells (eg, cells A' and B' shown in FIG1(c)).

[0116] In the U2U relay architecture, a U2N Remote UE refers to a UE that communicates with the network through a U2N Relay UE. An L2 U2N Remote UE refers to a U2N Remote UE in the L2 architecture. A U2N Relay UE refers to a UE that provides functionality to enable a U2U Remote UE to connect to the network. An L2 U2N Relay UE refers to a U2N Relay UE in the L2 architecture.

[0117] NR measurement

[0118] The network performs measurement configuration on the RRC connected UE through RRC dedicated signaling. The measurement configuration includes the configuration of the measurement object,

[0119] Measurement Object: This refers to the object that the UE needs to measure. The network can configure a measurement object list containing multiple measurement objects. The measurement object configuration mainly includes: the time-frequency resource location and subcarrier spacing of the reference signal used for measurement, and the measurement frequency information. The measurement object is identified by a measurement object identifier, and each measurement object corresponds to a measurement object identifier.

[0120] Measurement Report Configuration: Each measurement object can correspond to one or more report configurations. The network can configure a report configuration list to contain multiple measurement report configurations. A measurement report configuration primarily includes reporting criteria, measurement events, reference signal type, and report format. A measurement report is identified by a measurement report identifier, and each measurement report corresponds to a measurement report identifier.

[0121] Measurement ID: Used to associate measurement object IDs (IDs) with measurement report IDs (IDs). Each measurement ID is associated with one measurement object ID and one measurement report ID. The network can configure the measurement ID list to contain multiple measurement IDs.

[0122] Measurement quantity configuration: mainly includes the measurement filter parameter configuration.

[0123] Measurement gap: The time period that a UE may use for measurement.

[0124] In the measurement report configuration, you can configure the type of triggered measurement report, including periodic triggered measurement report and event triggered measurement report. For event triggered measurement report, the network configures the triggering conditions of the measurement report, namely RSRP / RSRQ and time thresholds. When the conditions are met, the UE sends a measurement report to the network. After sending an event-triggered measurement report, the UE will periodically report the measurement report of the event to the base station multiple times. That is, after sending a measurement report triggered by an event, the UE starts a periodic report timer for the measurement ID associated with the event. After the periodic report timer expires, the UE reports the measurement report corresponding to the measurement ID associated with the event again.

[0125] If the measurement report type is set to event triggered eventTriggered, and if the triggering condition (entering condition) is applicable to a certain measurement event (event), that is, one or more cells in all cell measurement results after layer 3 filtering meet the entering condition of the event, the UE will trigger the cell (one or more), or the concerned cell, in the triggered cell list (cellsTriggeredList) and initiate the measurement report process. If the triggered measurement event is related to a neighbor cell, such as Event A3 (the quality of the neighbor cell is better than the SpCell and exceeds a threshold), Event A4 (the quality of the neighbor cell exceeds a threshold), Event A5 (the SpCell is lower than threshold 1 and the neighbor cell is higher than threshold 2), etc., the cells in cellsTriggeredList include the neighbor cells.

[0126] Path switch

[0127] The connection established between the UE and the network for data transmission can be considered as a data path or a data connection.

[0128] Direct path: A transmission path from the UE to the network. On this path, data is transmitted between the UE and the network without passing through a sideline communication relay. A direct path is the path that the UE connects to the network through the Uu port.

[0129] Indirect path: A transmission path from a UE to the network. On this path, data is transferred between a U2N Remote UE and the network via a U2N Relay UE. A U2N Remote UE communicates with a base station via a U2N Relay UE. The U2N Relay UE and the base station can communicate using the Uu interface, while the U2N Remote UE and U2N Relay UE can communicate using other connection methods, such as PC5 or Wi-Fi.

[0130] The UE's connections to the network through different Relay UEs can be considered to have different paths. A path change is called a path switch. A UE in the RRC_CONNECTED state can perform a path switch, which is initiated by the network. Path switches include intra-base station handovers and inter-base station handovers. Each type can be further categorized as a direct-to-indirect path switch, an indirect-to-direct path switch, and an indirect-to-indirect path switch.

[0131] A possible implementation process of path switch is shown in Figure 2.

[0132] Taking a direct-to-indirect path switch as an example, the possible implementation process includes the following steps:

[0133] Step 1. The network (base station) configures measurement parameters for a directly connected Remote UE in the RRC_CONNECTED state, which may include relay measurement objects. The Remote UE reports a measurement report (which may include measurement results of neighboring cells and / or measurement results of one or more candidate L2 U2N relay UEs) to the network.

[0134] Step 2. The network refers to the measurement report to decide whether to switch the Remote UE to connect to the network through a Relay UE, that is, switch from a direct path to an indirect path.

[0135] Step 3. After the network determines a target Relay UE, it prepares to initiate a path switch. The network configures Remote UE-related parameters for the target Relay UE through an RRCReconfiguration message, which includes the Remote UE's L2-ID and the Remote UE's local ID (local ID, assigned by the network). This information can be used to establish a PC5 connection between the Remote UE and the target Relay UE. The Relay UE forwards the RRCReconfigurationComplete message to the base station.

[0136] Step 4. The network sends an RRCReconfiguration message to the Remote UE to initiate a path switch, which includes the L2-ID of the target Relay UE.

[0137] Step 5. The Remote UE initiates PC5 connection establishment to the target Relay UE.

[0138] Step 6. After the PC5 connection is established, the Remote UE sends an RRCReconfigurationComplete message to the network. The message is forwarded to the network through the Relay UE, and the path switch process is completed.

[0139] In Step 1, if the network configures the measurement object of the Relay, the UE also needs to determine the s-measurement configuration (s-measureConfig) before determining whether to perform the measurement of the Relay measurement object. The specific method may be: if s-measureConfig is not configured, or s-measureConfig is configured and the RSRP value of the SpCell is less than the threshold configured in s-measureConfig, the UE performs the measurement of the measurement object of the L2 Relay UE.

[0140] Taking an indirect-to-indirect path switch as an example, Step 1 becomes: The network configures measurement parameters for a Remote UE in the RRC_CONNECTED state connected to it via a Relay UE. This configuration may include measurement objects for the L2 Relay UE. The Remote UE then reports a measurement report (which may include measurement results of neighboring cells and / or measurement results of one or more candidate L2 Relay UEs) to the network. Step 2 becomes: The network, based on the measurement report, decides whether to switch the Remote UE to a connection to the network via another Relay UE, i.e., switching from one indirect path to another.

[0141] The above process may further include the step of transmitting uplink / downlink data (Step 0 and Step 7 shown in FIG. 2 ).

[0142] Multipath

[0143] When a UE communicates with the network via a direct path or an indirect path, it is said that the UE and the network communicate via a single path, or in a single-path communication mode. When there is only an indirect path between the UE and the network, the PCell of the relay UE can serve as the PCell of the remote UE it serves. When there is only a direct path between the UE and the network, since there is no relay UE, such a UE cannot be called a remote UE. The PCell of this UE is the serving cell for the UE to establish an RRC connection.

[0144] To improve the UE's uplink and downlink transmission rates and throughput, the UE can simultaneously transmit data to the network via two paths, such as a direct path and an indirect path. This operating mode, because the UE and the network communicate via different paths, is also referred to as a multipath (MP) communication mode. A UE communicating with the network via multiple paths is referred to as an MP Remote UE. An MP Remote UE communicates with the network both directly and via an MP Relay UE.

[0145] In the case of multi-path, the serving cells corresponding to the indirect path and the direct path may be the same or different, and the serving cell corresponding to the direct path is the primary cell (PCell).

[0146] Remote UE is relative to Relay UE. It exists only in single-path or multi-path scenarios with Relay UE. In single-path scenarios without Relay UE, for example, when there is only a direct path between the UE and the network, the UE cannot function as a Remote UE.

[0147] To implement communication from a single path to multiple paths (i.e., path addition), and to modify paths in multipath communication (modifying a direct path, for example, changing the cell to which the direct path connects; modifying an indirect path, for example, changing the current serving relay UE of the indirect path to another relay UE), the network may configure the UE with L2 U2N Relay UE measurement objects to obtain measurement results of one or more candidate L2 U2N Relay UEs.

[0148] This invention discusses when a UE performs measurements on candidate relay UEs and initiates measurement reports to support indirect-to-indirect path switching and multipath communication for L2 U2N relays. This invention allows measurements of candidate relay UEs to be performed under appropriate conditions, allowing the network to obtain the candidate relay UE measurement results in a timely manner, thereby triggering path switching or the addition or modification of multipaths.

[0149] Hereinafter, several embodiments of the present invention for solving the above problems are described in detail.

[0150] Example 1

[0151] As shown in FIG3 , this embodiment provides a flow chart of a method executed by a user equipment.

[0152] Optionally, in step S301, the UE receives an RRC-specific message (eg, an RRC reconfiguration message) sent by the network, where the message includes measurement configuration.

[0153] Optionally, the measurement configuration includes but is not limited to: a measurement object, a report configuration (optionally including a report type and a measurement event), and the number of reports.

[0154] The measurement configuration may further include an s-measurement configuration s-measureConfig (optionally including an RSRP threshold corresponding to SSB measurement and / or an RSRP threshold corresponding to CSI-RS measurement).

[0155] Optionally, the measurement object may include at least one of the following:

[0156] -Relay measurement object;

[0157] -NR measurement object.

[0158] Optionally, the Relay measurement object is configured with frequency information of a sidelink to be measured. Optionally, the NR measurement object is configured with frequency information of a neighboring cell to be measured.

[0159] Optionally, in step S302, the UE determines whether to perform measurement according to the measurement configuration of the network.

[0160] Optionally, (for each measurement ID configured by the network) the UE determines a first condition, where the first condition includes at least one of the following:

[0161] -UE is acting as a L2 U2N Remote UE;

[0162] -UE has the capability to support multipath communication;

[0163] -UE is acting as an MP Remote UE;

[0164] -UE is configured with multipath;

[0165] - The UE has the capability to support multi-path communication and currently communicates with the network only via a direct path.

[0166] Optionally, when at least one of the first conditions is met, if the corresponding measurement object is associated with the L2 U2N Relay UE, the UE performs corresponding measurements associated with the candidate Relay UE(s) on the (sidelink) frequency indicated by the measurement object.

[0167] Optionally, otherwise (i.e., when any one of the first conditions is not met), it is determined whether the S measurement condition is met. When the S measurement condition is met, if the corresponding measurement object is associated with the L2 U2N Relay UE, the UE performs corresponding measurements associated with the candidate Relay UE(s) on the (sidelink) frequency indicated by the measurement object; otherwise (i.e., when the S measurement condition is not met), the UE does not perform corresponding measurements on the candidate Relay UE(s).

[0168] Optionally, it may be first determined whether the corresponding measurement object is associated with the L2 U2N Relay UE. If the corresponding measurement object is associated with the L2 U2N Relay UE, the first condition is determined, and when at least one of the first conditions is met, the UE performs corresponding measurements associated with the candidate Relay UE(s) on the (sidelink) frequency indicated by the measurement object.

[0169] Optionally, if the UE satisfies at least one of the following conditions, the S measurement condition is considered to be met:

[0170] -s-MeasureConfig is not configured (i.e., the measurement configuration does not include s-MeasureConfig);

[0171] - If s-MeasureConfig is set to ssb-RSRP (ssb-RSRP is the RSRP threshold based on SSB measurement), and the NR SpCell RSRP measured based on SSB is lower than ssb-RSRP after layer 3 filtering;

[0172] -If s-MeasureConfig is set to csi-RSRP (csi-RSRP is the RSRP threshold based on CSI-RS measurement), and the NR SpCell RSRP measured based on CSI-RS is lower than csi-RSRP after layer 3 filtering.

[0173] If any of the above conditions is not met, it is considered that the s measurement condition is not met.

[0174] Example 2

[0175] This embodiment is based on embodiment 1.

[0176] Optionally, in step 1, the UE receives an RRC-specific message (eg, an RRC reconfiguration message) sent by the network, where the message includes measurement configuration. Step 1 is the same as step S301 in embodiment 1.

[0177] Optionally, in step 2, the UE determines whether to perform measurement according to the measurement configuration of the network.

[0178] Step 2 differs from step S302 in embodiment 1 in that: step S302 in embodiment 1 first determines the first condition, while this embodiment first determines the S measurement condition. That is, optionally, if the UE satisfies the S measurement condition (and if the measurement object is associated with an L2 U2N Relay UE), the UE performs corresponding measurements associated with the candidate Relay UE(s) on the (sidelink) frequency indicated by the measurement object. Optionally, if the UE does not satisfy the S measurement condition, the UE performs the following operations: if the measurement object is associated with an L2 U2N Relay UE, the UE performs corresponding measurements associated with the candidate Relay UE(s) on the (sidelink) frequency indicated by the measurement object if at least one of the first conditions is satisfied; otherwise (i.e., if none of the first conditions is satisfied), the UE does not perform measurements on the candidate Relay UE(s). The first condition is the first condition described in step S301 in embodiment 1, and the S measurement condition is the S measurement condition described in step S302 in embodiment 1. The other operations in step 2 are the same as step S302 in embodiment 1.

[0179] Example 3

[0180] This embodiment is based on embodiment 1.

[0181] Optionally, in step 1, the UE receives an RRC message (eg, an RRC reconfiguration message) sent by the network, where the message includes measurement configuration.

[0182] Optionally, the measurement configuration includes but is not limited to: a measurement object, a report configuration (optionally including a report type and a measurement event), and the number of reports.

[0183] The measurement configuration may further include an s-measurement configuration s-measureConfig (optionally including an RSRP threshold corresponding to SSB measurement and / or an RSRP threshold corresponding to CSI-RS measurement).

[0184] The measurement configuration may also include a first sidelink measurement configuration (or include a first sidelink measurement configuration and the first sidelink measurement configuration is set to establish), then the first sidelink measurement configuration is considered to be configured. Optionally, if the measurement configuration does not include a first sidelink measurement configuration (or includes a first sidelink measurement configuration and the first sidelink measurement configuration is set to release), then the first sidelink measurement configuration is considered to be unconfigured. Optionally, the first sidelink measurement configuration includes a sidelink communication RSRP threshold value (e.g., a SL-RSRP threshold value) for controlling whether the L2 U2N Remote UE performs measurements on candidate Relay UEs. Other operations in step one are the same as step S301 in embodiment 1.

[0185] Optionally, in step 2, the UE determines whether to perform measurement according to the measurement configuration of the network.

[0186] Optionally, when at least one of the first conditions is met, the UE determines whether the first sidelink measurement condition is met. Optionally, when the first sidelink measurement condition is met, (if the measurement object is associated with an L2 U2N Relay UE), the UE performs corresponding measurements associated with the candidate Relay UE(s) on the (sidelink) frequency indicated by the measurement object; otherwise (i.e., the first sidelink measurement condition is not met), the UE does not perform measurements on the candidate Relay UE(s). Optionally, when any one of the first conditions is not met, the UE determines whether the S measurement condition is met. If the UE meets the S measurement condition, (and if the measurement object is associated with an L2 U2N Relay UE), the UE performs corresponding measurements associated with the candidate Relay UE(s) on the (sidelink) frequency indicated by the measurement object; otherwise, the UE does not perform measurements on the candidate Relay UE(s).

[0187] The first condition is the first condition described in step S301 in embodiment 1, and the S measurement condition is the S measurement condition described in step S302 in embodiment 1.

[0188] Optionally, if the UE satisfies at least one of the following conditions, it is considered that the first sidelink measurement condition is met:

[0189] -The first sidelink measurement configuration is not configured;

[0190] - The sidelink communication RSRP (eg, SL-RSRP) of the serving L2 U2N Relay UE (after layer 3 filtering) is lower than the sidelink communication RSRP threshold in the first sidelink measurement configuration.

[0191] If any of the above conditions is not met, it is considered that the first sidelink measurement condition is not met.

[0192] Example 4

[0193] Optionally, in step 1, the UE receives an RRC-specific message (eg, an RRC reconfiguration message) sent by the network, where the message includes measurement configuration. Step 1 is the same as step S301 in embodiment 1.

[0194] Optionally, in step 2, the UE determines whether to perform measurement according to the measurement configuration of the network. Optionally, step 2 is the same as step S302 in embodiment 1, or the same as step 2 in embodiment 2 or embodiment 3.

[0195] Optionally, in step three, after performing layer three filtering on the measurement result, the UE determines whether a measurement report needs to be triggered.

[0196] Optionally, for each measurement ID configured by the network, if the corresponding measurement object is about an L2 U2N Relay UE, and if the report type contained in the corresponding reporting configuration is set to periodic reporting, the UE considers that any L2 U2N Relay UE detected on the associated frequency that meets the upper layer criteria is applicable to this measurement ID.

[0197] Optionally, (for each measurement ID configured in the network) if the reporting type is set to periodic reporting (periodical) and if there is a (first) measurement result available (available), the number of reports is determined.

[0198] Optionally, if the number of reports is greater than 1, for L2 U2N Remote UE, the UE immediately initiates the measurement report procedure when the following conditions are met:

[0199] -The quality (such as SL-RSRP) that the serving L2 U2N Relay UE needs to report becomes available, and the quality (such as SD-RSRP) that the strongest (or best) L2 U2N Relay UE(s) needs to report among the applicable L2 U2N Relay UE(s) (i.e., candidate Relay UEs) becomes available.

[0200] Optionally, if the number of reports is equal to 1, for an MP Remote UE, the UE immediately initiates the measurement reporting procedure after at least one of the following conditions is met:

[0201] - The quality (such as RSRP / RSRQ) required to be reported for the NR Pcell (or NR SpCell) becomes available, and the quality (such as RSRP / RSRQ) required to be reported for the strongest (or best) Cell among the applicable Cell(s) becomes available;

[0202] -The quality (such as SL-RSRP) that the serving L2 U2N Relay UE needs to report becomes available, and the quality (such as SD-RSRP) that the strongest (or best) L2 U2N Relay UE(s) needs to report among the applicable L2 U2N Relay UE(s) (i.e., candidate Relay UEs) becomes available.

[0203] Among them, optionally, the applicable Cell(s) can be determined according to the type of measurement event. For example, if the type of measurement event is event A3, all neighboring cells measured on the frequency indicated by the NR object that needs to be measured in the network configuration are applicable Cell(s).

[0204] FIG4 is a simplified block diagram of the structure of a user equipment (UE) according to the present invention. As shown in FIG4 , the user equipment (UE) 400 includes a processor 401 and a memory 402. Processor 401 may include, for example, a microprocessor, a microcontroller, an embedded processor, etc. Memory 402 may include, for example, a volatile memory (such as a random access memory (RAM), a hard disk drive (HDD), a non-volatile memory (such as a flash memory), or other memory. Memory 402 stores program instructions. When executed by processor 401, these instructions may execute the above-described method performed by the user equipment, as described in detail in the present invention.

[0205] The program running on the device according to the present invention can be a program that controls the central processing unit (CPU) to enable the computer to implement the functions of the embodiments of the present invention. The program or the information processed by the program can be temporarily stored in a volatile memory (such as a random access memory RAM), a hard disk drive (HDD), a non-volatile memory (such as a flash memory), or other memory systems.

[0206] The program for realizing each embodiment of the present invention function can be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium. Can realize corresponding function by making a computer system read the program recorded on the recording medium and executing these programs. So-called "computer system" herein can be the computer system embedded in the device, can include operating system or hardware (such as peripheral device). "Computer-readable recording medium" can be a semiconductor recording medium, an optical recording medium, a magnetic recording medium, a short-term dynamic storage program recording medium or any other recording medium that is computer-readable.

[0207] The various features or functional modules of the devices used in the above embodiments can be implemented or executed by circuits (e.g., single-chip or multi-chip integrated circuits). The circuits designed to perform the functions described in this specification may include a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination of the above devices. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, or any existing processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The above circuits may be digital circuits or analog circuits. In the event that new integrated circuit technologies have emerged to replace existing integrated circuits due to advances in semiconductor technology, one or more embodiments of the present invention may also be implemented using these new integrated circuit technologies.

[0208] Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments. Although various examples of the embodiments have been described, the present invention is not limited thereto. Fixed or non-mobile electronic devices installed indoors or outdoors can be used as terminal devices or communication devices, such as AV equipment, kitchen equipment, cleaning equipment, air conditioners, office equipment, vending machines, and other household appliances.

[0209] As described above, embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the specific structure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and the present invention also includes any design changes that do not deviate from the main purpose of the present invention. In addition, various modifications can be made to the present invention within the scope of the claims, and embodiments obtained by appropriately combining the technical means disclosed in different embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. In addition, components with the same effect described in the above embodiments can be replaced with each other.

Claims

1. A method performed by a user equipment, comprising: The user equipment UE receives a measurement configuration sent by the network, wherein the measurement configuration includes a report type and a number of reports, and If the report type is set to periodic report and a measurement result is available, determining the number of reports, and If the number of reports is equal to 1, and if the UE is a remote UE from the UE to the network in the L2 architecture, i.e., L2 U2N Remote UE, the measurement report process is initiated immediately after the following conditions are met: The quality that needs to be reported by the relay UE from the UE to the network in the serving L2 architecture, ie, the L2 U2N Relay UE, becomes available, and the quality that needs to be reported by the L2 U2N Relay UE with the strongest quality among the applicable L2 U2N Relay UEs, ie, the candidate Relay UEs, becomes available.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The measurement configuration also includes a measurement object; and The UE determines whether at least one of the first conditions is met. If it is determined that at least one of the first conditions is met, if the corresponding measurement object is associated with the L2 U2N Relay UE, the UE performs corresponding measurement associated with the candidate Relay UE at the frequency indicated by the measurement object. The first condition includes at least one of the following: The UE is acting as a L2 U2N Remote UE; UE has the capability to support multi-path communication; The UE is acting as a multipath remote UE, i.e., MP Remote UE; The UE is configured with multipath; The UE has the capability to support multi-path communications and currently communicates with the network only through a direct path.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein: In the case where it is determined that any one of the first conditions is not met, the UE further determines whether the S measurement condition is met, and If it is determined that the S measurement condition is met, the UE performs corresponding measurement associated with the candidate Relay UE at the frequency indicated by the measurement object.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein: The measurement configuration further includes a first sideline communication measurement configuration, and the first sideline communication measurement configuration includes a sideline communication reference signal received power RSRP threshold value, which is used to control whether the L2 U2N Remote UE performs measurement of the candidate Relay UE.

5. The method performed by a user equipment according to claim 2 or 4, wherein: In the case where it is determined that at least one of the first conditions is met, the UE further determines whether a first sideline communication measurement condition is met, and When it is determined that the first sidelink communication measurement condition is met, if the corresponding measurement object is associated with the L2 U2N Relay UE, the UE performs corresponding measurement associated with the candidate Relay UE at the frequency indicated by the measurement object.

6. The method performed by the user equipment according to claim 5, wherein: If at least one of the following conditions is met, the UE considers that the first sideline communication measurement condition is met: The first sideline communication measurement configuration is not configured; The sideline communication RSRP of the serving L2 U2N Relay UE is lower than the sideline communication RSRP threshold value in the first sideline communication measurement configuration.

7. A user equipment, comprising: processor; as well as Memory, which stores instructions, When the instructions are executed by the processor, the user equipment executes the method according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

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