Secondary cell activation method and communication apparatus

Abstract

Provided in the present application are a secondary cell activation method and a communication apparatus. The method comprises: a terminal device receiving first information from a network device, wherein the first information indicates a starting position of a first reference signal burst of a secondary cell in a frame where the first reference signal burst is located, and an interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts; the terminal device receiving a reference signal burst #i of the secondary cell, and determining, on the basis of a reception time of the reference signal burst #i and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts, an index value of the reference signal burst #i; and performing cell search on the basis of the index value of the reference signal burst #i, the starting position of the first reference signal burst in the frame where the first reference signal burst is located, and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts. By means of the method, on the basis of an interval between reference signal bursts that is indicated by first information, the period of the reference signal bursts is determined, which is conducive to improving the flexibility of the period of the reference signal bursts, and thus shortening a time delay of activating a secondary cell by means of a terminal device.

Description

A secondary cell activation method and communication device

[0001] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of China on August 26, 2023, with application number 202311086713.X and application name “A secondary cell activation method and communication device”, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

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

[0003] After a secondary cell (SCell) is configured, the terminal device must first activate the SCell according to the instructions of the network device before it can transmit signals through the resources of the secondary cell. The process of activating the SCell includes determining the transmit and receive beam pair for communication between the terminal device and the SCell. This process is based on the synchronization signal and physical broadcast channel block (SSB). During this process, the terminal device needs to perform two automatic gain control settling (AGC settling), one cell search, and one layer 1 reference signal received power measurement (L1-RSRP measurement) in each receive beam direction.

[0004] Typically, during the activation process, the SSB transmission period is 20ms, and within each SSB transmission period, the terminal device can perform two AGC settling operations, one cell search, or one L1-RSRP measurement for one receive beam. In other words, if the terminal device has eight receive beams, during the SCell activation process, the terminal device needs to go through 32 SSB periods (i.e., four times the number of receive beams), or 640ms, to perform two AGC settling operations, one cell search, and one L1-RSRP measurement. This results in significant latency during SCell activation.

[0005] Summary of the Invention

[0006] The embodiments of the present application provide a secondary cell activation method and a communication device, which are conducive to improving the flexibility of the reference signal burst period, thereby facilitating reducing the delay of terminal equipment in activating the secondary cell.

[0007] In the first aspect, the present application provides a secondary cell activation method. Taking the execution of the method by a terminal device as an example, the method includes: the terminal device receives first information from a network device, and the first information indicates the starting position of the first reference signal burst of the secondary cell in the frame and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts; the terminal device receives the reference signal burst #i of the secondary cell, and the reference signal burst #i is one of the reference signal bursts indicated by the first information, or it is understood that the reference signal burst #i is one of the reference signal bursts determined according to the first information; further, the terminal device determines the index value of the reference signal burst #i based on the reception time of the reference signal burst #i and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts; and performs a cell search based on the index value of the reference signal burst #i, the starting position of the first reference signal burst in the frame, and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts.

[0008] In the method described in the first aspect, the first information affects the period of the reference signal burst by indicating the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts, thereby improving the flexibility of the period of the reference signal burst. The method of activating the secondary cell based on a flexible periodic reception of the reference signal burst (including the steps of setting the automatic gain control or performing a cell search or performing a layer 1 reference signal receiving power measurement) is beneficial to reducing the delay of the terminal device in activating the secondary cell compared to the method of activating the secondary cell based on the reception of the SSB at a fixed period. In addition, in the solution provided in the present application, the terminal device determines the index value of the reference signal burst based on the reception time of the reference signal burst, and there is no need to carry the frame indication information and the index value of the reference signal burst in the reference signal burst. Compared with the structure of the SSB including the synchronization signal and the channel for carrying the frame indication information and the SSB index, it is also beneficial to save overhead.

[0009] In one possible implementation, the terminal device determines multiple time ranges based on the subcarrier spacing of the secondary cell, the reception time difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell, and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts, and different time ranges in the multiple time ranges correspond to different index values; further, the terminal device determines the index value corresponding to the time range #i as the index value of the reference signal burst #i, and the time range #i is the time range in which the reception time of the reference signal burst #i is located in the multiple time ranges.

[0010] In one possible implementation, the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts is greater than or equal to Wherein, μ is an integer greater than or equal to -1, and the relationship between μ and the subcarrier spacing SCS of the secondary cell satisfies SCS=15kHz·2 μ , where ΔT is the reception time difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell.

[0011] In one possible implementation, when the time-frequency resources of the physical downlink control channel PDCCH overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst #j in the first symbol, the terminal device does not expect to receive the reference signal burst #j in the first symbol, and the reference signal burst #j is one of the reference signal bursts indicated by the first information; or, when the time-frequency resources of the physical downlink shared channel PDSCH overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst #j in the second symbol, the terminal device receives the reference signal burst #j in the second symbol; or, when the time-frequency resources of the first reference signal overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst #j in the third symbol, the terminal device receives the reference signal burst #j in the third symbol, and the first reference signal is the channel state information reference signal CSI-RS or the demodulation reference signal DMRS.

[0012] In the second aspect, the present application provides a secondary cell activation method, taking the network device executing the method as an example, the method includes: the network device sends first information to the terminal device, the first information indicating the starting position of the first reference signal burst of the secondary cell in the frame and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts; wherein the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts is greater than or equal to Wherein, μ is an integer greater than or equal to -1, and the relationship between μ and the subcarrier spacing SCS of the secondary cell satisfies SCS=15kHz·2 μ , ΔT is the reception time difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell; the network device sends a reference signal burst of the secondary cell to the terminal device based on the starting position of the first reference signal burst in the frame and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts, where the reference signal burst of the secondary cell includes the first reference signal burst.

[0013] In the method described in the second aspect, the network device flexibly determines the interval of the reference signal burst through the subcarrier spacing of the secondary cell and the reception time difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell, thereby improving the flexibility of the reference signal burst set. The method of activating the secondary cell (including the steps of setting the automatic gain control or performing a cell search or performing a layer 1 reference signal reception power measurement) according to the flexible periodic reception of the reference signal burst is beneficial to reducing the delay of the terminal device in activating the secondary cell, compared with the method of activating the secondary cell according to the fixed periodic reception of the SSB. Moreover, in the scheme provided in the present application, the index value of the reference signal burst can be determined based on the reception time of the reference signal burst, and there is no need to carry the frame indication information and the index value of the reference signal burst in the reference signal burst. Compared with the structure of the SSB including the synchronization signal and the channel for carrying the frame indication information and the SSB index, it is also beneficial to save overhead.

[0014] In one possible implementation, when the time-frequency resources of the physical downlink control channel PDCCH overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst #j in the first symbol, the network device sends the PDCCH in the first symbol and does not send the reference signal burst #j in the first symbol, and the reference signal burst #j is one of the reference signal bursts indicated by the first information; or, when the time-frequency resources of the physical downlink shared channel PDSCH overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst #j in the second symbol, the network device sends the reference signal burst #j in the second symbol and does not send the PDSCH in the second symbol; or, when the time-frequency resources of the first reference signal overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst #j in the third symbol, the network device sends the reference signal burst #j in the third symbol, and does not send the first reference signal in the third symbol, and the first reference signal is the channel state information reference signal CSI-RS or the demodulation reference signal DMRS.

[0015] In a third 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 units or modules corresponding to the above functions. The units or modules may be software and / or hardware. The operations and beneficial effects performed by the communication device may refer to the method and beneficial effects described in the first aspect above.

[0016] In a fourth aspect, the present application provides a communication device, which may be a network device, a device in a network device, or a device that can be used in conjunction with a network device. The communication device may also be a chip system. The communication device may execute the method described in the second 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 units or modules corresponding to the above functions. The units or modules may be software and / or hardware. The operations and beneficial effects performed by the communication device may refer to the method and beneficial effects described in the second aspect above.

[0017] In a fifth aspect, the present application provides a communication device, which includes a processor and an interface circuit, wherein the interface circuit is used to receive signals from other communication devices outside the communication device and transmit them to the processor or send signals from the processor to other communication devices outside the communication device, and the processor is used to implement the method as described in the first aspect through a logic circuit or executing code instructions, or the processor is used to implement the method as described in the second aspect through a logic circuit or executing code instructions.

[0018] In a sixth aspect, the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, in which a computer program or instruction is stored. When the computer program or instruction is executed by a communication device, the method described in the first aspect or the method described in the second aspect is implemented.

[0019] In a seventh aspect, the present application provides a computer program product comprising instructions, which, when a communication device reads and executes the instructions, causes the communication device to execute the method as described in the first aspect, or causes the communication device to execute the method as described in the second aspect.

[0020] In an eighth aspect, the present application provides a communication system, comprising a communication device for executing the method described in the first aspect above, and a communication device for executing the method executed by the network device described in the second aspect above. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of a communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0022] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of carrier aggregation provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0023] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of a beam management process provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0024] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of a flow chart of a method for activating a secondary cell according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0025] FIG5 is a schematic diagram of a reference signal burst pattern provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0026] FIG6 is a schematic diagram of another reference signal burst pattern provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0027] FIG7 is a schematic diagram of another reference signal burst pattern provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0028] FIG8 is a schematic diagram of another reference signal burst pattern provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0029] FIG9 is a schematic diagram of a correspondence between a time range and an index value provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0030] FIG10 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0031] FIG11 is a schematic structural diagram of another communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0032] In order to facilitate a detailed understanding of the embodiments of the present application, the system architecture involved in the embodiments of the present application is first introduced below.

[0033] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system 1000 used in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG1 , the communication system includes a radio access network (RAN) 100 and a core network 200. Optionally, the communication system 1000 may also include the Internet 300. The RAN 100 includes at least one RAN node (e.g., 110a and 110b in FIG1 , collectively referred to as 110), and may also include at least one terminal (e.g., 120a-120j in FIG1 , collectively referred to as 120). The RAN 100 may also include other RAN nodes, such as wireless relay devices and / or wireless backhaul devices (not shown in FIG1 ). The terminal 120 is wirelessly connected to the RAN node 110, and the RAN node 110 is wirelessly or wiredly connected to the core network 200. The core network devices in the core network 200 and the RAN node 110 in the RAN 100 may be independent and different physical devices, or they may be the same physical device that integrates the logical functions of the core network devices and the logical functions of the RAN nodes. Terminals and RAN nodes may be connected to each other via wired or wireless means. It should be noted that the RAN node 110 may also be referred to as a network device 110 in the following text.

[0034] RAN100 may be an evolved universal terrestrial radio access (E-UTRA) system, a new radio (NR) system, or a future radio access system defined in the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). RAN100 may also include two or more of the aforementioned different radio access systems. RAN100 may also be an open RAN (O-RAN).

[0035] A RAN node, also known as a radio access network device, RAN entity, or access node, facilitates wireless access to a communication system by a terminal. In one application scenario, a RAN node can be a base station, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), a transmission reception point (TRP), a next-generation NodeB (gNB) in a fifth-generation (5G) mobile communication system, a next-generation base station in a sixth-generation (6G) mobile communication system, or a base station in a future mobile communication system. A RAN node can be a macro base station (such as 110a in Figure 1), a micro base station, an indoor station (such as 110b in Figure 1), a relay node, or a donor node.

[0036] In another application scenario, multiple RAN nodes can collaborate to help terminals achieve wireless access, with different RAN nodes implementing portions of the base station's functions. For example, a RAN node can be a centralized unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), or a radio unit (RU). The CU implements the base station's radio resource control protocol and packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) functions, as well as the service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) functions. The DU implements the base station's radio link control layer and medium access control (MAC) layer functions, as well as some or all of the physical layer functions. For detailed descriptions of each of the above protocol layers, please refer to the relevant 3GPP technical specifications. The RU can be used to implement the transmission and reception of radio frequency signals. The CU and DU can be two independent RAN nodes, or they can be integrated into the same RAN node, such as in a baseband unit (BBU). The RU can be included in radio frequency equipment, such as a remote radio unit (RRU) or an active antenna unit (AAU). The CU can be further divided into two types of RAN nodes: CU-control plane and CU-user plane.

[0037] In different systems, RAN nodes may have different names. For example, in an O-RAN system, a CU may be called an open CU (O-CU), a DU may be called an open DU (O-DU), and a RU may be called an open RU (O-RU). The RAN node in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented by a software module, a hardware module, or a combination of a software module and a hardware module. For example, the RAN node may be a server loaded with the corresponding software module. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific technology and specific device form adopted by the RAN node. For ease of description, the following description takes a base station as an example of a RAN node.

[0038] A terminal is a device with wireless transceiver capabilities that can send signals to a base station or receive signals from a base station. A terminal may also be referred to as a terminal device, user equipment (UE), mobile station, mobile terminal, etc. Terminals can be widely used in various scenarios, such as device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, machine-type communication (MTC), Internet of Things (IoT), virtual reality, augmented reality, industrial control, autonomous driving, telemedicine, smart grid, smart furniture, smart office, smart wearable, smart transportation, smart city, etc. A terminal can be a mobile phone, tablet computer, computer with wireless transceiver capabilities, wearable device, vehicle, airplane, ship, robot, robotic arm, smart home device, etc. The embodiments of this application do not limit the specific technology and specific device form adopted by the terminal.

[0039] Base stations and terminals can be fixed or mobile. They can be deployed on land, indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; on water; or on aircraft, balloons, and satellites. The embodiments of this application do not limit the application scenarios of base stations and terminals.

[0040] The roles of base stations and terminals can be relative. For example, the helicopter or drone 120i in Figure 1 can be configured as a mobile base station. To terminals 120j accessing the wireless access network 100 via 120i, terminal 120i is a base station. However, to base station 110a, 120i is a terminal, meaning that communication between 110a and 120i occurs via a wireless air interface protocol. Of course, communication between 110a and 120i can also occur via a base station-to-base station interface protocol. In this case, 120i is also a base station relative to 110a. Therefore, base stations and terminals can be collectively referred to as communication devices. 110a and 110b in Figure 1 can be referred to as communication devices with base station functionality, while 120a-120j in Figure 1 can be referred to as communication devices with terminal functionality.

[0041] Communication between base stations and terminals, between base stations, and between terminals can be carried out through authorized spectrum, unauthorized spectrum, or both; communication can be carried out through spectrum below 6 gigahertz (GHz), spectrum above 6 GHz, or spectrum below 6 GHz and spectrum above 6 GHz. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the spectrum resources used for wireless communication.

[0042] In the embodiments of the present application, the functions of the base station may also be performed by a module (such as a chip) in the base station, or by a control subsystem that includes the base station functions. The control subsystem that includes the base station functions here may be a control center in the above-mentioned application scenarios such as smart grid, industrial control, smart transportation, and smart city. The functions of the terminal may also be performed by a module (such as a chip or modem) in the terminal, or by a device that includes the terminal functions.

[0043] In this application, a base station sends downlink signals or downlink information to a terminal, and the downlink information is carried on a downlink channel; the terminal sends uplink signals or uplink information to the base station, and the uplink information is carried on an uplink channel. In order to communicate with the base station, the terminal needs to establish a wireless connection with the cell controlled by the base station. The cell with which the terminal has established a wireless connection is called the serving cell of the terminal. When the terminal communicates with the serving cell, it will also be subject to interference from signals in neighboring cells.

[0044] In the embodiments of the present application, the time domain symbols may be orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols or discrete Fourier transform spread OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM) symbols. Unless otherwise specified, the symbols in the embodiments of the present application refer to time domain symbols.

[0045] It can be understood that in the embodiments of the present application, PDSCH, PDCCH and PUSCH are merely examples of downlink data channels, downlink control channels and uplink data channels, respectively. In different systems and different scenarios, data channels and control channels may have different names, and the embodiments of the present application do not limit this.

[0046] In order to facilitate understanding of the relevant contents of the embodiments of the present application, some of the terms involved in the embodiments of the present application are explained below. This part is only for ease of understanding and cannot be regarded as a disclosure or specific limitation of the technical solution of the present application.

[0047] 1. Beam

[0048] The NR protocol uses a beam as a spatial filter or spatial parameters. The beam used to transmit signals is called a transmission beam (Tx beam), or a spatial transmit filter or spatial transmit parameters. The beam used to receive signals is called a reception beam (Rx beam), or a spatial receive filter or spatial receive parameters.

[0049] The transmit beam may refer to the distribution of signal strength in different directions in space after the signal is transmitted by the antenna, and the receive beam may refer to the distribution of signal strength in different directions in space of the wireless signal received from the antenna.

[0050] It should be understood that the embodiment of beamforming in the NR protocol listed above is only an example and should not constitute any limitation to this application. This application does not exclude the possibility of defining other terms in other protocols to express the same or similar meanings.

[0051] Furthermore, the beam can be a wide beam, a narrow beam, or other types of beams. The beamforming technology can be beamforming or other technologies. Specifically, the beamforming technology can be digital beamforming, analog beamforming, or hybrid digital / analog beamforming. Different beams can be considered to correspond to different resources. Different beams can transmit the same information or different information.

[0052] Optionally, multiple beams with the same or similar communication characteristics may be considered a single beam. A beam may include one or more antenna ports for transmitting data, control signaling, or sounding signals. The one or more antenna ports forming a beam may also be considered an antenna port set.

[0053] 2. Cell

[0054] A cell is a set of resources managed by a base station, including frequency domain resources and spatial domain resources. The frequency domain resources of a cell include uplink frequency domain resources and / or downlink frequency domain resources; the spatial domain resources of a cell can be the spatial domain resources corresponding to a beam or a group of beams, and can also be understood as a cell corresponding to a specific physical coverage area. In an embodiment of the present application, different cells can be managed by different base stations. For example, cell #1 and cell #2 can be managed by different base stations. In this case, it can be said that cell #1 and cell #2 do not share the same site. Cell #1 and cell #2 can also be managed by the same base station and have the same baseband processing unit and / or radio frequency processing unit. This application does not specifically limit this.

[0055] Depending on the frequency band range in which the cell is located (or understood to correspond to), a cell in the 450MHz-6000MHz range can be referred to as a cell in frequency range (FR) 1 or a low-frequency cell, and a cell in the 24250MHz-52600MHz range can be referred to as a cell in FR2 or a high-frequency cell. It should be noted that there is a one-to-one correspondence between cells and carriers. In the absence of logical conflicts, cells and carriers can be used interchangeably. In other words, the frequency band in which a cell is located can be understood as the frequency band in which the frequency of the cell's corresponding carrier is located, and can also be referred to as the cell's operating frequency band or the frequency band in which the cell is located.

[0056] 3. Carrier aggregation (CA)

[0057] As shown in Figure 2, CA technology aggregates two or more component carriers (CCs) to support greater transmission bandwidth. In other words, CA can achieve spectrum resource integration, aggregating spectrum resources within the same or different frequency bands for use by terminal devices, thereby improving overall network resource utilization.

[0058] When CA is configured for a terminal device, the terminal device may have multiple service cells, including a primary cell (PCell) and at least one SCell. The PCell is the cell where the terminal device and the network device perform initial connection establishment, or the cell where the terminal device performs radio resource control (RRC) connection reestablishment. The PCell is responsible for radio resource control (RRC) communication with the terminal device, and the CC corresponding to the PCell is called the primary component carrier (PCC). The SCell is added / modified / released through the RRC connection reconfiguration message after the initial security activation procedure; the SCell is used to provide additional radio resources, and there is no RRC communication between the SCell and the terminal device.

[0059] 4. SCell Activation

[0060] The NR protocol defines two SCell states: active and deactivated. When an SCell is active and configured with a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), the terminal device monitors the SCell's PDCCH and transmits signals based on the network configuration and uplink and downlink scheduling information. When an SCell is deactivated, the terminal device does not monitor or transmit any uplink or downlink signals on the SCell.

[0061] Typically, the network device provides the terminal device with SCell configuration information through RRC signaling and instructs the terminal device to add the SCell. At this time, the default state of the SCell is deactivated. In other words, the SCell cannot be used immediately after configuration and must be activated. After the terminal device adds the SCell, the following three processes are involved:

[0062] 4.1 Process of receiving activation command

[0063] Specifically, the network device sends an activation command to the terminal device via a medium access control element (MAC CE); the terminal device sends HARQ feedback information to the network device, where the HARQ feedback information is used to indicate whether the activation command is successfully received.

[0064] 4.2 SCell Activation Process in FR2

[0065] Specifically, when the network device receives HARQ feedback information from the terminal device, indicating that the activation command was successfully received, the terminal device and the network device perform beam alignment. As shown in Figure 3, the activation process of the SCell in FR2 can be understood as a process of coarse beam alignment based on the SSB to determine the network device's transmit beam and the terminal device's receive beam. Specifically, the network device sends SSBs to the terminal device in multiple transmit beam directions, and the terminal device receives SSBs from the network device in multiple receive beam directions. The terminal device performs AGC settling, cell search, and L1-RSRP measurement based on the received SSBs. AGC settling is used to determine the transmit power of the transmit beam; cell search is used to detect SSBs to obtain synchronization information and determine frame boundaries; and L1-RSRP measurement is used to determine the transmit beam range and receive beam range. It should be noted that the terminal device typically needs to perform two AGC settling operations, one cell search, and one L1-RSRP measurement for each receive beam direction.

[0066] 4.3 Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS) Measurement Process

[0067] Specifically, the network device sends a CSI-RS to the terminal device via the SCell. The terminal device receives and measures the CSI-RS to obtain a CSI report. The terminal device then sends the CSI report to the network device. It should be noted that when the network device receives a valid CSI report for the SCell from the terminal device, the activation process for the SCell is considered complete.

[0068] It can be seen that the delay caused by the process of activating the SCell in FR2 can include the following three parts of delay: the delay caused by the process of receiving the activation command, called T HARQ ; The delay caused by the activation process is called T activation_time The delay caused by the CSI-RS measurement process is called T CSI_Reporting .

[0069] In order to shorten the delay of activating an SCell, the present application provides a reference signal burst and a method for activating a secondary cell based on the reference signal burst.

[0070] The reference signal burst mentioned in this application includes a signal used for synchronization, and this application does not limit the specific name of the reference signal burst. The signal used for synchronization includes a primary synchronization signal (PSS) and / or a secondary synchronization signal (SSS); or the signal used for synchronization is a signal generated based on an m-sequence, for example, the signal used for synchronization is a CSI-RS.

[0071] Based on the above-mentioned reference signal burst, the secondary cell activation method and communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application are described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Figure 4 is a flow chart of a secondary cell activation method provided in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 4, the secondary cell activation method includes the following steps S401 to S404. The method execution subject shown in Figure 4 is illustrated by taking a terminal device and a network device as an example. It can be understood that the method execution subject shown in Figure 4 can also be a module in a terminal device (for example, a chip) and a module in a network device (for example, a chip, or a CU, or a DU). Wherein:

[0072] S401: A network device sends first information to a terminal device, where the first information indicates the starting position of a first reference signal burst of a secondary cell in a frame and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts. Accordingly, the terminal device receives the first information from the network device.

[0073] Before the network device sends an activation command for activating the secondary cell to the terminal device, the network device sends RRC signaling to the terminal device through the RRC connection between the primary cell and the terminal device, where the RRC signaling carries the first information.

[0074] It should be understood that the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts can be understood as the time unit between the end time of the previous reference signal burst and the start time of the next reference signal burst in the two adjacent reference signal bursts. The time unit includes but is not limited to a time slot or a symbol.

[0075] In one possible implementation, the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts is determined based on the sub-carrier spacing (SCS) of the secondary cell and the reception time difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell. Exemplarily, the interval X between two adjacent reference signal bursts satisfies the condition shown in formula (1).

[0076] Wherein, μ is an integer greater than or equal to -1, and the relationship between μ and the SCS of the secondary cell satisfies SCS=15kHz·2 μ , ΔT is the reception time difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell. It should be noted that the reception time difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell mentioned in this application can also be called the frame timing difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell, that is, the timing deviation between frames with the same frame number between the primary cell and the secondary cell.

[0077] For example, when the reception time difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell is 25 us, when the SCS of the secondary cell is 60 kHz, the first information may indicate that the interval between the two adjacent reference signal bursts is 4 symbols; when the SCS of the secondary cell is 120 kHz, the first information may indicate that the interval between the two adjacent reference signal bursts is 6 symbols; when the SCS of the secondary cell is 240 kHz, the first information may indicate that the interval between the two adjacent reference signal bursts is 12 symbols.

[0078] It should also be understood that the starting position of the first reference signal burst of the secondary cell in the frame includes the following aspects: ① The relative position of the time slot where the first reference signal burst is located in the corresponding frame (or understood as the frame), which can be understood as indicating which time slot the first reference signal burst is in. Among them, the relative position of the time slot where the first reference signal burst is located in the corresponding frame can be indicated by the first information, or it can be predefined by the communication protocol, and this application does not make specific restrictions on this. ② The symbol position of the first reference signal burst in the time slot can be understood as indicating which symbol the first reference signal burst is in the time slot. Among them, the symbol position of the first reference signal burst in the time slot can be indicated by the first information, or it can be determined by the terminal device according to the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts, or it can be predefined by the communication protocol, and this application does not make specific restrictions on this.

[0079] For example, in Example 1, if the first information indicates that the relative position of the time slot in which the first reference signal burst is located in the corresponding frame is the first time slot, the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts is 12 symbols, and the symbol position of the first reference signal burst in the time slot is the 13th symbol in the time slot. In this case, the reference signal burst pattern determined by the terminal device based on the first information is shown in Figure 5. Among them, the time slot position (i.e., time slot 0) of the time slot in which the first reference signal burst of the secondary cell is located is the first time slot in the frame, and the symbol position of the first reference signal burst in the time slot is the 13th symbol in the time slot.

[0080] In Example 2, the communication protocol predefines that the first reference signal of the secondary cell is sent in the first time slot of the corresponding frame. If the first information indicates that the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts is 4 symbols, the reference signal burst pattern determined by the terminal device based on the first information is shown in Figure 6. Among them, the time slot in which the first reference signal burst of the secondary cell is located (i.e., time slot 0) is the first time slot in the frame, and the symbol position of the first reference signal burst in the time slot is the 5th symbol in the time slot (which can be understood as an interval of 4 symbols from the start time of the time slot).

[0081] In Example 3, the communication protocol predefines that the first reference signal burst of the secondary cell is sent in the second time slot of the corresponding frame. If the first information indicates that the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts is 6 symbols, the symbol position of the first reference signal burst in the time slot is the 7th symbol in the time slot. In this case, the pattern of the reference signal burst determined by the terminal device based on the first information is shown in Figure 7. Among them, the time slot position of the time slot where the first reference signal burst of the secondary cell is located (i.e., time slot 1) is the second time slot in the frame, and the symbol position of the first reference signal burst in the time slot is the 7th symbol in the time slot.

[0082] S402. The terminal device receives a reference signal burst#i of the secondary cell, where the reference signal burst#i is one of the reference signal bursts indicated by the first information.

[0083] The terminal device receives the MAC CE carrying the activation command and determines a reference signal burst pattern for the secondary cell based on the first information, or understands it as multiple reference signal bursts determined based on the first information. Further, the terminal device receives multiple reference signal bursts based on the pattern, and reference signal burst#i is any one of the multiple reference signal bursts indicated in the pattern.

[0084] It should be noted that the number of reference signal bursts of the secondary cell (or the number of reference signal bursts indicated in the pattern) is related to the number of transmit beams corresponding to the secondary cell and / or the number of receive beams of the terminal device. Exemplarily, the terminal device performs 2 AGC settlings, 1 cell search, and 1 L1-RSRP measurement in each receive beam direction; in this case, the pattern of the reference signal burst of the secondary cell is shown in FIG8 , and the number of reference bursts of the secondary cell is the number of transmit beams (hereinafter referred to as N Tx ) and the number of receiving beams (hereinafter referred to as N Rx ) is 4 times the product of N. Taking the transmit beam of the secondary cell including the transmit beam Tx1 as an example, the transmit beam Tx1 corresponds to the first part of the reference signal burst, the second part of the reference signal burst, the third part of the reference signal burst and the fourth part of the reference signal burst in the pattern. The number of reference signal bursts included in each part of the reference signal burst is based on N Rx The different reference signal bursts in the first burst are used to perform the first AGC settling on the transmit beam Tx1 in different receive beam directions. The different reference signal bursts in the second burst are used to perform the second AGC settling on the transmit beam Tx1 in different receive beam directions. The different reference signal bursts in the third burst are used to perform cell search on the transmit beam Tx1 in different receive beam directions. The different reference signal bursts in the fourth burst are used to perform L1-RSRP measurement on the transmit beam Tx1 in different receive beam directions.

[0085] It is understandable that when a network device sends a reference signal burst indicated by the first information to a terminal device, a resource conflict may occur with a channel or signal of another terminal device. The following describes a solution provided in this application for avoiding resource conflicts for reference signal burst resources, taking the case where reference signal burst#j (one of the reference signal bursts indicated by the first information) conflicts with a channel or signal of another terminal device as an example.

[0086] In one possible implementation, when the time-frequency resources of the PDCCH overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst#j in the first symbol, the terminal device does not expect to receive the reference signal burst#j in the first symbol. In other words, when the priority of the PDCCH is greater than the priority of the reference signal burst, the network device will send the PDCCH in the first symbol and will not send the reference signal burst#j in the first symbol, that is, puncturing the first symbol in the pattern.

[0087] Alternatively, in one possible implementation, when the time-frequency resources of the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst#j on the second symbol, the terminal device receives the reference signal burst#j on the second symbol. That is, when the priority of the reference signal burst is greater than the priority of the PDSCH, the network device will send the reference signal burst#j on the second symbol and will not send the PDSCH on the second symbol.

[0088] Alternatively, in one possible implementation, when the time-frequency resources of the first reference signal overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst#j on the third symbol, the terminal device receives the reference signal burst#j on the third symbol, where the first reference signal is a CSI-RS or a demodulation reference signal (DMRS). That is, when the priority of the reference signal burst is greater than the priority of the first signal, the network device sends the reference signal burst#j on the third symbol and does not send the first reference signal on the third symbol.

[0089] S403: The terminal device determines an index value of the reference signal burst#i based on the reception time of the reference signal burst#i and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts.

[0090] That is, the terminal device determines the number of reference signal burst#i based on the reception time of the reference signal burst#i and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts, or it can be understood as determining which reference signal burst#i is in the frame.

[0091] In one possible implementation, the terminal device determines multiple time ranges based on the SCS of the secondary cell, the reception time difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell, and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts. Different time ranges in the multiple time ranges correspond to different index values. Furthermore, the terminal device determines the index value corresponding to time range #i (i.e., the time range in which the reception time of reference signal burst #i falls within the multiple time ranges) as the index value of reference signal burst #i.

[0092] Exemplarily, the reception time difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell is 25us, the SCS of the secondary cell is 120kHz, and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts is 6 symbols. Based on the SCS of the secondary cell, the maximum reception time difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell is 3 symbols. Please refer to Figure 9, which is a schematic diagram of the correspondence between a time range and an index value provided in an embodiment of the present application. Each time range includes the reception time of the reference signal burst indicated by the index value corresponding to the time range; or it can be understood that each time range is composed of the earliest reception time and the latest reception time of the reference signal burst indicated by the index value corresponding to the time range under various reception time differences. Furthermore, the terminal device determines the index value of the reference signal burst#i according to the time range in which the reception time of the reference signal burst#i is located. For example, when the reception time of reference signal burst#i is within time range 1, the index value of reference signal burst#i is determined to be 0, that is, reference signal burst#i is the first reference signal burst in the frame; when the reception time of reference signal burst#i is within time range i, the index value of reference signal burst#i is determined to be i-1, that is, reference signal burst#i is the i-th reference signal burst in the frame.

[0093] S404: The terminal device performs a cell search based on the index value of the reference signal burst#i, the starting position of the first reference signal burst in the frame, and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts.

[0094] The terminal device determines the reception time of the first reference signal burst based on the index value of reference signal burst#i and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts; then, based on the starting position of the first reference signal burst in the frame, it determines the starting boundary of the frame (or the starting position) to complete the cell search.

[0095] It should be noted that after the terminal device receives the reference signal burst, it performs the AGC settling process, the cell search process, or the L1-RSRP measurement process in the secondary cell activation process according to the received reference signal burst. This application does not specifically limit the AGC settling process and the L1-RSRP measurement process performed by the terminal device according to the reference signal burst, and only describes in detail the cell search process (i.e., the process of performing frame synchronization) according to the reference signal burst.

[0096] In summary, through the method shown in Figure 4, the first information affects the period of the reference signal burst by indicating the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts, thereby improving the flexibility of the period of the reference signal burst. The method of activating the secondary cell based on receiving the reference signal burst in a flexible period is beneficial to reducing the delay of the terminal device in activating the secondary cell compared to the method of activating the secondary cell based on receiving the SSB in a fixed period. In addition, in the solution provided in the present application, the terminal device determines the index value of the reference signal burst based on the reception time of the reference signal burst, and there is no need to carry the frame indication information and the index value of the reference signal burst in the reference signal burst. Compared with the structure of the SSB that includes a synchronization signal and a channel for carrying the frame indication information and the SSB index, it is also beneficial to save overhead.

[0097] It is understandable that in order to implement the functions in the above embodiments, the terminal device includes hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to the execution of each function. It should be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that, in combination with the units and method steps of the various examples described in the embodiments disclosed in this application, this application can be implemented in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed in hardware or by computer software transceiver components driving hardware depends on the specific application scenario and design constraints of the technical solution.

[0098] Figures 10 and 11 are schematic diagrams of the structures of possible communication devices provided in the embodiments of the present application. These communication devices can be used to implement the functions of the terminal device in the above method embodiments, and thus can also achieve the beneficial effects possessed by the above method embodiments. In the embodiments of the present application, the communication device can be the terminal 120 as shown in Figure 1, or a module (such as a chip) applied to the terminal device, or the communication device can be the network device 110 as shown in Figure 1, or a module (such as a chip) applied to the network device.

[0099] As shown in Figure 10, the communication device 1000 includes a processing unit 1010 and a transceiver unit 1020. The communication device 1000 is used to implement the functions of the terminal device in the method embodiment shown in Figure 4 above.

[0100] When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the functions of the terminal device in the method embodiment shown in Figure 4: the transceiver unit 1020 is used to receive first information from the network device, where the first information indicates the starting position of the first reference signal burst of the secondary cell in the frame and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts; the transceiver unit 1020 is also used to receive a reference signal burst #i of the secondary cell, where the reference signal burst #i is one of the reference signal bursts indicated by the first information; the processing unit 1010 is used to determine the index value of the reference signal burst #i based on the reception time of the reference signal burst #i and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts; the processing unit 1010 is also used to perform a cell search based on the index value of the reference signal burst #i, the starting position of the first reference signal burst in the frame, and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts.

[0101] In one possible implementation, the processing unit 1010 is further used to determine multiple time ranges based on the subcarrier spacing of the secondary cell, the reception time difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell, and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts, where different time ranges in the multiple time ranges correspond to different index values; the processing unit 1010 is further used to determine the index value corresponding to the time range #i as the index value of the reference signal burst #i, and the time range #i is the time range in which the reception time of the reference signal burst #i is located in the multiple time ranges.

[0102] In one possible implementation, the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts is greater than or equal to Wherein, μ is an integer greater than or equal to -1, and the relationship between μ and the subcarrier spacing SCS of the secondary cell satisfies SCS=15kHz·2 μ , ΔT is the reception time difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell.

[0103] In one possible implementation, when the time-frequency resources of the physical downlink control channel PDCCH overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst #j in the first symbol, the terminal device does not expect to receive the reference signal burst #j in the first symbol, and the reference signal burst #j is one of the reference signal bursts indicated by the first information; or, when the time-frequency resources of the physical downlink shared channel PDSCH overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst #j in the second symbol, the transceiver unit 1020 is further used to receive the reference signal burst #j in the second symbol; or, when the time-frequency resources of the first reference signal overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst #j in the third symbol, the transceiver unit 1020 is further used to receive the reference signal burst #j in the third symbol, and the first reference signal is a channel state information reference signal CSI-RS or a demodulation reference signal DMRS.

[0104] For a more detailed description of the transceiver unit 1020 and the processing unit 1010 , reference may be made to the relevant description of the terminal device in the method embodiment shown in FIG. 4 .

[0105] As shown in Figure 10, the communication device 1000 includes a processing unit 1010 and a transceiver unit 1020. The communication device 1000 is used to implement the functions of the network device in the method embodiment shown in Figure 4 above.

[0106] When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the function of the network device in the method embodiment shown in Figure 4: the transceiver unit 1020 is used to send first information to the terminal device, where the first information indicates the starting position of the first reference signal burst of the secondary cell in the frame and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts; wherein the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts is greater than or equal to Wherein, μ is an integer greater than or equal to -1, and the relationship between μ and the subcarrier spacing SCS of the secondary cell satisfies SCS=15kHz·2 μ , ΔT is the reception time difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell; the transceiver unit 1020 is further used to send a reference signal burst of the secondary cell to the terminal device based on the starting position of the first reference signal burst in the frame and the interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts, where the reference signal burst of the secondary cell includes the first reference signal burst.

[0107] In one possible implementation, when the time-frequency resources of the physical downlink control channel PDCCH overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst #j in the first symbol, the transceiver unit 1020 is further used to send the PDCCH in the first symbol, and not send the reference signal burst #j in the first symbol, and the reference signal burst #j is one of the reference signal bursts indicated by the first information; or, when the time-frequency resources of the physical downlink shared channel PDSCH overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst #j in the second symbol, the transceiver unit 1020 is further used to send the reference signal burst #j in the second symbol, and not send the PDSCH in the second symbol; or, when the time-frequency resources of the first reference signal overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst #j in the third symbol, the transceiver unit 1020 is further used to send the reference signal burst #j in the third symbol, and not send the first reference signal in the third symbol, and the first reference signal is a channel state information reference signal CSI-RS or a demodulation reference signal DMRS.

[0108] For a more detailed description of the transceiver unit 1020 and the processing unit 1010 , reference may be made to the relevant description of the network device in the method embodiment shown in FIG. 4 .

[0109] As shown in Figure 11, communication device 1100 includes a processor 1110 and an interface circuit 1120. Processor 1110 and interface circuit 1120 are coupled to each other. It will be appreciated that interface circuit 1120 may be a transceiver or an input / output interface. Optionally, communication device 1100 may further include a memory 1130 for storing instructions executed by processor 1110, input data required by processor 1110 to execute instructions, or data generated by processor 1110 after executing instructions.

[0110] When the communication device 1100 is used to implement the method shown in FIG. 4 , the processor 1110 is used to implement the functions of the processing unit 1010 , and the interface circuit 1120 is used to implement the functions of the transceiver unit 1020 .

[0111] When the above-mentioned communication device is a chip applied to a terminal, the terminal chip implements the functions of the terminal in the above-mentioned method embodiment. When the terminal chip receives information from the base station, it can be understood that the information is first received by other modules in the terminal (such as a radio frequency module or antenna) and then sent to the terminal chip by these modules. When the terminal chip sends information to the base station, it can be understood that the information is first sent to other modules in the terminal (such as a radio frequency module or antenna) and then sent to the base station by these modules.

[0112] When the communication device is a chip used in a network device, the network device chip implements the functions of the network device in the above method embodiments. When the network device chip receives information from a terminal, it can be understood that the information is first received by other modules in the network device (such as a radio frequency module or antenna) and then sent to the network device chip by these modules. When the network device chip sends information to a terminal, it can be understood that the information is sent to other modules in the network device (such as a radio frequency module or antenna) and then sent to the terminal by these modules.

[0113] In this application, when entity A sends information to entity B, it can be done directly from A to B or indirectly through another entity. Similarly, when entity B receives information from entity A, it can be done directly from entity B or indirectly through another entity. Entities A and B herein can be RAN nodes or terminals, or modules within a RAN node or terminal. The sending and receiving of information can be information exchange between a RAN node and a terminal, for example, between a base station and a terminal; the sending and receiving of information can also be information exchange between two RAN nodes, for example, between a CU and a DU; the sending and receiving of information can also be information exchange between different modules within a device, for example, between a terminal chip and other modules in the terminal, or between a base station chip and other modules within the base station.

[0114] It is understood that the processor in the embodiments of the present application may be a central processing unit (CPU), or may be other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSP), application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC), field programmable gate arrays (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components, or any combination thereof. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor.

[0115] The method steps in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented in hardware or in software instructions that can be executed by a processor. The software instructions can be composed of corresponding software modules, and the software modules can be stored in random access memory, flash memory, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory, erasable programmable read-only memory, electrically erasable programmable read-only memory, registers, hard disk, mobile hard disk, CD-ROM or any other form of storage medium well known in the art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. The storage medium can also be an integral part of the processor. The processor and storage medium can be located in an ASIC. In addition, the ASIC can be located in a base station or a terminal. The processor and storage medium can also exist in a base station or a terminal as discrete components.

[0116] In the above embodiments, all or part of the embodiments may be implemented using 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 programs or instructions. When the computer program or instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present application are performed in whole or in part. The computer may be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, a network device, a user device, or other programmable device. The computer program or instructions may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transferred from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, the computer program or instructions may be transferred from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wired or wireless means. The computer-readable storage medium may be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server or data center that integrates one or more available media. The available medium may be a magnetic medium, such as a floppy disk, hard disk, or magnetic tape; an optical medium, such as a digital video disk; or a semiconductor medium, such as a solid-state drive. The computer-readable storage medium may be a volatile or nonvolatile storage medium, or may include both volatile and nonvolatile types of storage media.

[0117] In the various embodiments of the present application, unless otherwise specified or there is a logical conflict, the terms and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced by each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their inherent logical relationships.

[0118] In this application, "at least one" means one or more, and "more" means two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. In the text description of this application, the character " / " generally indicates that the previous and next associated objects are in an "or" relationship; in the formula of this application, the character " / " indicates that the previous and next associated objects are in a "division" relationship. "Including at least one of A, B and C" can mean: including A; including B; including C; including A and B; including A and C; including B and C; including A, B and C.

[0119] It is understood that the various numbers used in the embodiments of this application are merely for ease of description and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of this application. The order of the sequence numbers of the above-mentioned processes does not necessarily imply a specific order of execution; the order of execution of the processes should be determined by their functions and inherent logic.

Claims

1. A method for activating a secondary cell, characterized in that: The method is applied to a terminal device or a module in the terminal device, and the method includes: receiving first information from a network device, where the first information indicates a starting position of a first reference signal burst of a secondary cell in a frame and an interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts; receiving a reference signal burst #i of the secondary cell, where the reference signal burst #i is one of the reference signal bursts indicated by the first information; Determine the index value of the reference signal burst #i based on the reception time of the reference signal burst #i and the interval between the two adjacent reference signal bursts; A cell search is performed based on the index value of the reference signal burst #i, the starting position of the first reference signal burst in the frame, and the interval between the two adjacent reference signal bursts.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The determining the index value of the reference signal burst #i based on the reception time of the reference signal burst #i and the interval between the two adjacent reference signal bursts includes: Determine, based on the subcarrier spacing of the secondary cell, the reception time difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell, and the interval between the two adjacent reference signal bursts, a plurality of time ranges, wherein different time ranges in the plurality of time ranges correspond to different index values; An index value corresponding to a time range #i is determined as an index value of the reference signal burst #i, and the time range #i is a time range in which a reception time of the reference signal burst #i is located among the multiple time ranges.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts is greater than or equal to Wherein, μ is an integer greater than or equal to -1, and the relationship between μ and the subcarrier spacing SCS of the secondary cell satisfies SCS=15kHz·2 μ , the ΔT is the reception time difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: In a case where the time-frequency resources of the physical downlink control channel PDCCH overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst #j on the first symbol, the terminal device does not expect to receive the reference signal burst #j on the first symbol, and the reference signal burst #j is one of the reference signal bursts indicated by the first information; Alternatively, when the time-frequency resources of the physical downlink shared channel PDSCH overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst #j on the second symbol, the reference signal burst #j is received on the second symbol; Alternatively, when the time-frequency resources of the first reference signal overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst #j on the third symbol, the reference signal burst #j is received in the third symbol, and the first reference signal is a channel state information reference signal CSI-RS or a demodulation reference signal DMRS.

5. A method for activating a secondary cell, characterized in that: The method is applied to a network device or a module in the network device, and the method comprises: Sending first information to the terminal device, where the first information indicates a starting position of a first reference signal burst of the secondary cell in a frame and an interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts; The interval between two adjacent reference signal bursts is greater than or equal to Wherein, μ is an integer greater than or equal to -1, and the relationship between μ and the subcarrier spacing SCS of the secondary cell satisfies SCS=15kHz·2 μ , the ΔT is a reception time difference between the primary cell and the secondary cell; Based on the starting position of the first reference signal burst in the frame and the interval between the two adjacent reference signal bursts, the reference signal burst of the secondary cell is sent to the terminal device, and the reference signal burst of the secondary cell includes the first reference signal burst.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that: In a case where the time-frequency resources of a physical downlink control channel PDCCH overlap with the time-frequency resources of a reference signal burst #j on a first symbol, the PDCCH is sent in the first symbol, and the reference signal burst #j is not sent in the first symbol, and the reference signal burst #j is one of the reference signal bursts indicated by the first information; Alternatively, when the time-frequency resources of the physical downlink shared channel PDSCH overlap with the time-frequency resources of the reference signal burst #j on the second symbol, the reference signal burst #j is sent in the second symbol, and the PDSCH is not sent in the second symbol; Alternatively, when the time-frequency resource of the first reference signal overlaps with the time-frequency resource of the reference signal burst #j on the third symbol, The third symbol sends the reference signal burst #j, and the first reference signal is not sent in the third symbol, and the first reference signal is a channel state information reference signal CSI-RS or a demodulation reference signal DMRS.

7. A communication device, characterized in that: The method comprises a module for executing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, or comprises a module for executing the method according to claim 5 or 6.

8. A communication device, characterized in that: The method comprises a processor and an interface circuit, wherein the interface circuit is used to receive signals from other communication devices outside the communication device and transmit them to the processor or send signals from the processor to other communication devices outside the communication device, and the processor is used to implement the method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4 through a logic circuit or by executing code instructions, or the processor is used to implement the method as claimed in claim 5 or 6 through a logic circuit or by executing code instructions.

9. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The storage medium stores a computer program or instruction. When the computer program or instruction is executed by the communication device, the communication device implements the method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, or implements the method according to claim 5 or 6.

10. A computer program product, characterized in that The computer program product includes a computer program or instructions. When the computer program or instructions are executed by a communication device, the communication device implements the method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, or implements the method according to claim 5 or 6.

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