Communication method, apparatus, terminal, network side device and storage medium

Abstract

The present application belongs to the technical field of communications. Disclosed are communication methods, an apparatus, a terminal, a network side device and a storage medium. A communication method in the embodiments of the present application comprises: a terminal executes at least one of the following operations in a first cell: reporting position information; selecting a network node; reselecting a network node; and switching the network node, wherein a plurality of transmission reception points (TRPs) or a TRP group is deployed in the first cell, and the network node comprises the TRPs or TRP group.

Description

Communication method, device, terminal, network side equipment and storage medium

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the China Patent Office on December 14, 2023, with application number 202311735052.9 and titled “Communication Method, Apparatus, Terminal, Network Side Equipment and Storage Medium,” the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

[0003] The present application belongs to the field of communication technology, and specifically relates to a communication method, apparatus, terminal, network-side equipment, and storage medium. Background Art

[0004] The present application proposes a new cell (i.e., the first cell in the present application), which can be called a large cell or a cell-free cell. It is different from the cell in the 4G / 5G terrestrial network in the related technology. More than a certain number of transceiver units are deployed in a large cell (such as multiple transmission receiving points TRP or TRP groups are deployed), thereby improving cell coverage.

[0005] While proposing the concept of large cells, this application further considers that a terminal may be active in a large cell for a long time. At this time, there is currently no clear solution for how to ensure the communication quality of the terminal in the large cell. Summary of the Invention

[0006] The embodiments of the present application provide a communication method, apparatus, terminal, network-side equipment, and storage medium, which help to improve the communication quality and stability of the terminal in a cell where multiple transmission receiving points TRP or TRP groups are deployed.

[0007] In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, comprising:

[0008] The terminal performs at least one of the following operations in the first cell:

[0009] Report location information;

[0010] Perform network node selection;

[0011] Reselect network nodes;

[0012] Perform network node switching;

[0013] Therein, a plurality of transmission reception points TRP or TRP groups are deployed in the first cell, and the network node includes the TRP or TRP group.

[0014] In a second aspect, a communication method is provided, comprising:

[0015] The network side device sends a first area list to the terminal, wherein the first area list includes the first TRP information, or includes the first TRP information and the first tracking area identifier;

[0016] The first TRP information includes at least one of the following:

[0017] TRP logo;

[0018] TRP group ID.

[0019] According to a third aspect, a communication device is provided, including:

[0020] The execution module is configured to perform at least one of the following operations in the first cell:

[0021] Report location information;

[0022] Perform network node selection;

[0023] Reselect network nodes;

[0024] Perform network node switching;

[0025] Therein, a plurality of transmission reception points TRP or TRP groups are deployed in the first cell, and the network node includes the TRP or TRP group.

[0026] In a fourth aspect, a communication device is provided, including:

[0027] A sending module, configured to send the first area list to the terminal;

[0028] The first area list includes the first TRP information, or includes the first TRP information and the first tracking area identifier;

[0029] The first TRP information includes at least one of the following:

[0030] TRP logo;

[0031] TRP group ID.

[0032] In a fifth aspect, a terminal is provided, which includes a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores a program or instruction that can be run on the processor, and when the program or instruction is executed by the processor, the steps of the method described in the first aspect are implemented.

[0033] In a sixth aspect, a terminal is provided, comprising a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is used to run programs or instructions to implement the steps of the method described in the first aspect.

[0034] In the seventh aspect, a network side device is provided, which includes a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores programs or instructions that can be run on the processor, and when the program or instructions are executed by the processor, the steps of the method described in the second aspect are implemented.

[0035] In an eighth aspect, a network side device is provided, comprising a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is used to run programs or instructions to implement the steps of the method described in the second aspect.

[0036] In a ninth aspect, a readable storage medium is provided, on which a program or instruction is stored. When the program or instruction is executed by a processor, the steps of the method described in the first aspect or the steps of the method described in the second aspect are implemented.

[0037] In the tenth aspect, a wireless communication system is provided, comprising: a terminal and a network side device, wherein the terminal can be used to execute the steps of the method described in the first aspect, and the network side device can be used to execute the steps of the method described in the second aspect.

[0038] In the eleventh aspect, a chip is provided, which includes a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is used to run programs or instructions to implement the steps of the method described in the first aspect, or to implement the steps of the method described in the second aspect.

[0039] In the twelfth aspect, a computer program / program product is provided, which is stored in a storage medium and is executed by at least one processor to implement the steps of the method described in the first aspect, or to implement the steps of the method described in the second aspect.

[0040] In an embodiment of the present application, multiple TRPs or TRP groups are deployed in the first cell to improve the cell coverage capability, and the terminal can report location information in the first cell so that the network side device can know the location changes of the terminal in the first cell and track the terminal location, thereby determining a suitable TRP or TRP group to communicate with the terminal, thereby improving the communication quality of the terminal in the first cell. The terminal can select, reselect or switch a network node in the first cell, and the network node includes the TRP or TRP group deployed in the first cell. This helps to ensure that the terminal can be served by a better network node, improve communication transmission reliability, improve the communication quality of the terminal in the first cell, and improve the overall resource utilization of the system. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0041] FIG1 is a block diagram of a wireless communication system applicable to embodiments of the present application;

[0042] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of a SFN network structure without a cell network in the related art;

[0043] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of a distributed networking structure of a cell-free network in the related art;

[0044] FIG4 is a flowchart of an implementation of a communication method in an embodiment of the present application;

[0045] FIG5 is a flowchart of another communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0046] FIG6 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device corresponding to FIG4 in an embodiment of the present application;

[0047] FIG7 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device corresponding to FIG5 in an embodiment of the present application;

[0048] FIG8 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0049] FIG9 is a schematic structural diagram of a terminal according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0050] FIG10 is a schematic structural diagram of a network-side device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0051] FIG11 is a schematic structural diagram of another network-side device in an embodiment of the present application. Specific embodiments

[0052] The following will be combined with the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of this application to clearly describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application. Obviously, the embodiments described are part of the embodiments of this application, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in this application, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0053] The terms "first", "second", etc. in this application are used to distinguish similar objects, and are not used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that the terms used in this way are interchangeable where appropriate, so that the embodiments of the present application can be implemented in an order other than those illustrated or described herein, and the objects distinguished by "first" and "second" are generally of the same type, and do not limit the number of objects, for example, the first object can be one or more. In addition, "or" in this application represents at least one of the connected objects. For example, "A or B" covers three options, namely, Option 1: including A but not including B; Option 2: including B but not including A; Option 3: including both A and B. The character " / " generally indicates that the objects associated before and after are in an "or" relationship.

[0054] The term "indication" in this application can be either a direct indication (or explicit indication) or an indirect indication (or implicit indication). A direct indication can be understood as the sender explicitly informing the receiver of specific information, the operation to be performed, or the requested result, etc. in the instruction sent; an indirect indication can be understood as the receiver determining the corresponding information based on the instruction sent by the sender, or making a judgment and determining the operation to be performed or the requested result, etc. based on the judgment result.

[0055] It is worth noting that the technology described in the embodiments of the present application is not limited to the Long Term Evolution (LTE) / LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) system, but can also be used in other wireless communication systems, such as Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), Single-carrier Frequency-Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) or other systems. The terms "system" and "network" in the embodiments of the present application are often used interchangeably, and the technology described can be used for the systems and radio technologies mentioned above, as well as for other systems and radio technologies. The following description describes a New Radio (NR) system for illustrative purposes, and NR terminology is used in most of the following description, but these technologies can also be applied to systems other than NR systems, such as 6th generation (6G) systems. th Generation, 6G) communication system.

[0056] FIG1 is a block diagram of a wireless communication system applicable to an embodiment of the present application. The wireless communication system includes a terminal 11 and a network-side device 12. The terminal 11 may be a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a notebook computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a handheld computer, a netbook, an ultra-mobile personal computer (UMPC), a mobile internet device (MID), an augmented reality (AR), a virtual reality (VR) device, a robot, a wearable device, an aircraft, a vehicle user equipment (VUE), a ship-borne device, a pedestrian user equipment (PUE), a smart home (a household appliance with wireless communication capabilities, such as a refrigerator, a television, a washing machine, or furniture), a game console, a personal computer (PC), a teller machine, or a self-service machine, or other terminal-side device. Wearable devices include: smart watches, smart bracelets, smart headphones, smart glasses, smart jewelry (smart bracelets, smart bracelets, smart rings, smart necklaces, smart anklets, smart anklets, etc.), smart wristbands, smart clothing, etc. Among them, the vehicle-mounted device can also be called a vehicle-mounted terminal, a vehicle-mounted controller, a vehicle-mounted module, a vehicle-mounted component, a vehicle-mounted chip or a vehicle-mounted unit, etc. It should be noted that the specific type of the terminal 11 is not limited in the embodiment of the present application. The network side device 12 may include an access network device or a core network device, wherein the access network device may also be called a radio access network (Radio Access Network, RAN) device, a radio access network function or a radio access network unit. The access network device may include a base station, a wireless local area network (Wireless Local Area Network, WLAN) access point (Access Point, AP) or a wireless fidelity (Wireless Fidelity, WiFi) node, etc.Among them, the base station can be referred to as Node B (NB), Evolved Node B (eNB), the next generation Node B (gNB), New Radio Node B (NR Node B), access point, Relay Base Station (RBS), Serving Base Station (SBS), Base Transceiver Station (BTS), radio base station, radio transceiver, Basic Service Set (BSS), Extended Service Set (ESS), Home Node B (HNB), Home evolved Node B (home evolved Node B), Transmission Reception Point (TRP) or other appropriate terms in the relevant field. As long as the same technical effect is achieved, the base station is not limited to specific technical vocabulary. It should be noted that in the embodiment of the present application, only the base station in the NR system is used as an example for introduction, and the specific type of the base station is not limited.

[0057] The core network equipment may include but is not limited to at least one of the following: core network node, core network function, mobility management entity (MME), access mobility management function (AMF), session management function (SMF), user plane function (UPF), policy control function (PCF), policy and charging rules function unit (PCRF), edge application service discovery function (EASDF), unified data management (UDM), unified data repository (UDR), home user server (HSS), centralized network configuration (CNC), network storage function (NRF), network exposure function (NEF), local NEF (L-NEF), binding support function (BSF), application function ( It should be noted that in the embodiments of the present application, only the core network device in the NR system is introduced as an example, and the specific type of the core network device is not limited.

[0058] To facilitate understanding, the relevant technologies and concepts involved in the embodiments of this application are first introduced.

[0059] 1. Terminal Location Tracking and Update in NR

[0060] In principle, the network could page a device by broadcasting a paging message in every cell within its coverage area. This approach results in high transmission overhead for paging messages, as the vast majority of paging transmissions will occur in cells where the device cannot be found. If paging messages are sent in the cell where the device is located, the network needs to track the device at a cell-by-cell granularity. This means that the device must notify the network of cell changes when it moves from one cell's coverage area to another, which also results in high overhead. Therefore, an approach somewhere in between these two extremes is often used, where the device only notifies the network of changes in area at the cell group level. This means that the network only receives new information about the device's location if the device moves to a cell outside of its current cell group. When the network pages a device, the paging message is broadcast on all cells within the device's cell group.

[0061] For NR, the basic principle of this terminal location tracking is the same for idle and inactive states.

[0062] NR cells are grouped into RAN areas, where each RAN area is identified by a RAN Area Identifier (RAI). RAN areas are in turn grouped into larger tracking areas, each identified by a Tracking Area Identifier (TAI). Therefore, each cell belongs to one RAN area and one tracking area, whose identities are provided as part of the cell's system information.

[0063] Tracking areas are the basis for device tracking at the core network level. The core network assigns each device a UE registration area, which consists of a list of tracking area identifiers. When a device enters a cell belonging to a tracking area not included in the assigned UE registration area, it accesses the network including the core network and performs a non-access stratum (NAS) registration update. The core network registers the device location and updates the device's UE registration area, effectively providing the device with a new TAI list including the new TAI.

[0064] Assigning a set of TAIs, i.e. a set of tracking areas, rather than a single tracking area, to a device avoids repeated NAS registration updates if the device moves back and forth across the boundary of two adjacent tracking areas. By keeping the old TAI within the updated UE registration area, no new update is required if the device moves back to the old tracking area.

[0065] RAN regions are the basis for device tracking at the radio access network level. Devices that are inactive can be assigned a RAN notification region, which consists of any of the following:

[0066] Cell ID list;

[0067] The RAI list is actually a list of RAN areas;

[0068] The TAI list is actually a tracking area list.

[0069] Note that the first case described above is equivalent to having each RAN area consisting of a single cell, whereas the last case is equivalent to having RAN areas that coincide with tracking areas.

[0070] The RAN Notification Area Update process is similar to the UE Registration Area Update process. When a device enters a cell that is not included in the RAN Notification Area, either directly or indirectly (via the RAN / Tracking Area), it accesses the network and performs a Radio Resource Control (RRC) RAN Notification Area Update. The wireless network registers the device's location and updates the device's RAN Notification Area. Because a change in the Tracking Area always implies a change in the device's RAN Area, an RRC RAN Notification Area Update is implicitly performed whenever the device performs a UE Registration Update.

[0071] 2. Cell-free network

[0072] The cell-free massive Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) system can be considered a deconstruction of the traditional massive MIMO system. In a traditional massive MIMO system, antennas are concentrated at a single site (base station), and UEs are distributed around the base station in cells. In a massive MIMO system, each base station deploys a large number of antennas. This provides higher array gain and spatial resolution. Multiple UEs can be served simultaneously using the same time-frequency resources, delivering high throughput, high reliability, and high energy efficiency. The cell-free massive MIMO system eliminates the concept of cells. Instead, a large number of antennas are distributed over a wide area, and UEs are similarly dispersed over this wide area. These antennas are called Transmit-Receive Points (TRPs) or Access Points (APs). In theory, each UE can communicate with every TRP or AP. Leveraging the fronthaul network and the central processing unit (CPU), a large number of geographically dispersed TRPs can collectively serve a smaller number of UEs. The CPU utilizes channel statistics for joint detection. Cell-free massive MIMO networks are expected to be applied to next-generation indoor and hotspot coverage scenarios, such as smart factories, train stations, shopping malls, stadiums, subways, hospitals, community centers, or university campuses.

[0073] In actual deployment, the cell-free network in the hotspot area can be regarded as a super cell containing multiple TRPs, where multiple TRPs use the same cell ID. Based on the synchronization accuracy and connection relationship between these TRPs, multiple TRPs with high synchronization accuracy can achieve collaborative transmission.

[0074] The broadcast-related channels of the cell-free network, such as the synchronization channel, random access channel, broadcast physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) and physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), can be implemented according to the single frequency network (SFN) shown in Figure 2 or the distributed networking shown in Figure 3. The SFN networking structure shown in Figure 2 includes a macro station SFN node and multiple small station TRPs, and the terminal communicates with the small station TRP. The distributed networking structure shown in Figure 3 includes multiple TRPs, and the terminal communicates with the TRP. When the number of TRPs included in the cell-free network increases and the coverage area increases, the number of synchronization signal block (SSB) beams required will continue to increase, and the corresponding broadcast PDCCH and PDSCH occupying resources will also continue to increase.

[0075] The above-mentioned no cell is also referred to as a large cell. In a large cell, more than a certain number of transceiver units are deployed to improve cell coverage. The transceiver unit refers to a TRP or a TRP group.

[0076] The above introduces the relevant technologies and concepts involved in the embodiments of the present application. Now, in combination with the accompanying drawings, the communication method provided in the embodiments of the present application is described in detail through some embodiments and their application scenarios.

[0077] 4 is a flowchart of an implementation of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application. The method includes the following steps:

[0078] S410: The terminal performs at least one of the following operations in the first cell:

[0079] Report location information;

[0080] Perform network node selection;

[0081] Reselect network nodes;

[0082] Perform network node switching.

[0083] There are multiple transmission reception points TRP or TRP groups deployed in the first cell, and the network node includes the TRP or TRP group.

[0084] By applying the method provided in the embodiment of the present application, multiple TRPs or TRP groups are deployed in the first cell, and the terminal can report location information in the first cell so that the network side device can know the location changes of the terminal in the first cell and track the terminal position, thereby determining a suitable TRP or TRP group to communicate with the terminal, improving the communication quality of the terminal in the first cell, and the terminal can select, reselect or switch a network node in the first cell. The network node includes the TRP or TRP group deployed in the first cell, which helps to ensure that the terminal can be served by a better network node, improve signal transmission reliability, improve the communication quality of the terminal in the first cell, and improve the overall resource utilization of the system.

[0085] The size of the first cell is greater than or equal to the sixth threshold, or the number of TRPs or TRP groups deployed in the first cell is greater than or equal to the seventh threshold. For example, the first cell is a large cell.

[0086] In the related art, the terminal location update is mainly based on the tracking area, and the location update for the inactive terminal is mainly based on the RAN area, and the terminal location update is mainly used to determine the paging area. In the case of large and small cells, the terminal may also need to let the network side device know the change of the terminal location in a large cell, so that the network side device can determine the appropriate TRP or TRP group to communicate with the terminal. Therefore, in the embodiment of the present application, the terminal can report the location information in the first cell, so that the network side device can know the location change of the terminal in the first cell, track the terminal location, and thus determine the appropriate TRP or TRP group to communicate with the terminal, thereby improving the communication quality of the terminal in the first cell. In addition, multiple TRPs or TRP groups are deployed in the first cell, and the network nodes include TRPs or TRP groups. The terminal selects, reselects or switches the network node in the first cell, which helps to ensure that the terminal can be served by a better network node, improve signal transmission reliability, reduce transmission delay, improve the communication quality of the terminal in the first cell, and improve the overall resource utilization of the system.

[0087] In some embodiments of the present application, the terminal reporting location information may include the following steps:

[0088] Step 1: The terminal receives a first area list from a network-side device;

[0089] Step 2: When the terminal is located outside the area indicated by the first area list, the terminal reports location information to the network side device.

[0090] For the convenience of description, the above steps are combined for explanation.

[0091] In an embodiment of the present application, the network-side device may send a first area list to the terminal, and the first area list is used to track the location of the terminal. The network-side device may include an AMF or a base station.

[0092] Optionally, the first area list may include first TRP information, or include first TRP information and a first tracking area identifier, where the first TRP information may include at least one of a TRP identifier and a TRP group identifier.

[0093] Among them, the first tracking area identifier, such as TAI, or a tracking area index;

[0094] The TRP identifier, such as a TRP ID, or a TRP index;

[0095] The TRP group identifier, such as a TRP group ID, or a TRP group index.

[0096] For example, the first area list is a list of TRP IDs, or a list of TRP group IDs, or a list of <TRP ID, TRP group ID>, or a list of <TAI, TRP ID>, or a list of <TAI, TRP group ID>, or a list of <TAI, TRP ID, TRP group ID>.

[0097] Among them, the TRP group indicated by the TRP group identifier may include one or more TRPs, and the tracking area identifier may indicate one or more cells.

[0098] If the first cell itself is close to a tracking area, the first area list may only contain the tracking area identifier, which helps to reduce signaling overhead. <00,00203>

[0099] If the first area list contains a TRP identifier or a TRP group identifier, the position change of the terminal within the first cell can be tracked.

[0100] If the first area list contains both a TRP identifier or a TRP group identifier and a tracking area identifier, it is possible to support both position maintenance within the first cell and position change maintenance between cells.

[0101] Optionally, the first area list may include a sub-list of tracking area identifiers, and a sub-list of TRP identifiers or a sub-list of TRP group identifiers. That is, the first area list includes two layers of sub-lists, one layer is a sub-list of tracking area identifiers, and the other layer is a sub-list of TRP identifiers or a sub-list of TRP group identifiers within the first cell.

[0102] Optionally, the first area list may be carried by at least one of the following messages:

[0103] Wireless broadcast message;

[0104] Messages specifically for indicating a list of regions;

[0105] Wireless short message (short message);

[0106] On-demand messages, such as on-demand System Information (on-demand SI);

[0107] Non-Access Stratum (NAS) message.

[0108] After receiving the first area list from the network device, if the terminal finds itself outside the area indicated by the first area list, it can send signaling to the network device to report its location information. This facilitates the network device to track the terminal's location. If the terminal finds itself within the area indicated by the first area list, it can either do nothing or return location confirmation information to the network device.

[0109] In some embodiments of the present application, after the terminal reports the location information to the network-side device, the method may further include the following steps:

[0110] The terminal receives the second area list from the network-side device.

[0111] In an embodiment of the present application, after the terminal receives the first area list from the network side device, if it finds that it is located outside the area indicated by the first area list, the terminal can report the location information to the network side device. The network side device can re-determine the area where the terminal is located based on the location information reported by the terminal and send a second area list to the terminal.

[0112] Optionally, the second area list may include second TRP information, or include second TRP information and a second tracking area identifier, and the second TRP information includes at least one of a TRP identifier and a TRP group identifier.

[0113] Optionally, the second area list may include a tracking area identifier sublist, and a TRP identifier sublist or a TRP group identifier sublist.

[0114] Optionally, the second area list may be carried by at least one of the following messages:

[0115] Wireless broadcast messages;

[0116] Messages specifically for indicating a list of regions;

[0117] Wireless short messaging;

[0118] On-demand messaging;

[0119] Non-access stratum message.

[0120] The above description of the second area list can refer to the description of the first area list, and will not be repeated here.

[0121] The network-side device may be a base station or an AMF. If the base station receives the location information reported by the terminal, it may send a new area list, i.e., the second area list, to the terminal based on the location information. Alternatively, the base station may send at least one of a base station identifier, a TRP group identifier, a TRP identifier, and a tracking area identifier to the AMF based on the terminal's location information. The AMF then sends a new area list, i.e., the second area list, to the terminal based on this information.

[0122] The terminal reports its location information in the first cell, which enables the network side equipment to know the location changes of the terminal in the first cell in a timely manner. In addition, for the first cell, in addition to maintaining the traditional tracking area list, the area list of the TRP or TRP group in the first cell is also maintained. This can reduce the signaling overhead of the paging terminal, shorten the paging delay, and increase the paging success rate. Furthermore, maintaining the location of the terminal in different TRPs or different TRP groups within the RAN is conducive to the network side equipment to understand the network capacity in a timely manner, so that the network side equipment can configure appropriate uplink and downlink resources for different TRPs or TRP groups, such as Synchronization Signal Block (SSB) resources, Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) resources, etc., thereby helping to improve the system capacity and resource utilization.

[0123] In some embodiments of the present application, the terminal may select a network node, reselect a network node, or switch a network node, which may include the following steps:

[0124] When the first condition is met, the terminal selects a network node, reselects a network node, or switches a network node.

[0125] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal is in a first cell and, if a first condition is met, can select, reselect, or switch a network node. The network node includes a TRP or a TRP group deployed in the first cell.

[0126] The first condition may include at least one of the following:

[0127] 1) The measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the target network node is greater than or equal to a first threshold. The target network node is a network node to be selected, reselected, or switched to by the terminal, such as a TRP or TRP group. In this case, the measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the target network node can be considered to be good. The terminal can select, reselect, or switch to a network node to select, reselect, or switch to the target network node, and perform reliable data transmission under the service of the better network node.

[0128] 2) A measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the network node serving the terminal is less than or equal to a second threshold, and the network node serving the terminal is the network node where the terminal is currently located, such as a TRP or TRP group. In this case, it can be considered that the measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the network node serving the terminal is poor, and the terminal can select, reselect, or switch a network node to leave the current network node and select, reselect, or switch to another network node to perform reliable data transmission under the service of a better network node.

[0129] 3) The measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the target network node and the measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the network node serving the terminal meet the second condition;

[0130] 4) The size of the first cell is greater than or equal to the third threshold. In this case, it can be considered that the coverage of the first cell where the terminal is located is large, and the terminal needs to select, reselect, or switch a network node within the first cell to enable reliable data transmission under the service of a better network node.

[0131] 5) The first cell is not a non-terrestrial network (NTN). In this case, it can be considered that the terminal needs to select, reselect, or switch a network node within the first cell so that it can perform reliable data transmission under the service of a better network node.

[0132] 6) The first cell does not meet the cell reselection or cell switching conditions; that is, the first cell where the terminal is located does not meet the cell reselection or cell switching conditions, and the terminal needs to select, reselect or switch a network node within the first cell so that it can perform reliable data transmission under the service of a better network node.

[0133] Optionally, the second condition may include at least one of the following:

[0134] 1) A difference between a measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the target network node and a measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the network node serving the terminal is greater than or equal to a fourth threshold; in this case, it can be considered that the measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the target network node is better than the measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the network node currently located by the terminal, and the terminal can select, reselect, or switch a network node to leave the current network node, select, reselect, or switch to the target network node, and perform reliable data transmission under the service of the better network node; the fourth threshold may be a value greater than or equal to 0. If the fourth threshold is greater than 0, ping-pong selection, reselection, or switching can be effectively prevented;

[0135] 2) The ratio of the measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the target network node to the measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the network node serving the terminal is greater than or equal to a fifth threshold; in this case, it can be considered that the measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the target network node is better than the measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the network node where the terminal is currently located, and the terminal can select, reselect or switch the network node to leave the current network node, select, reselect or switch to the target network node, and perform reliable data transmission under the service of the better network node; the fifth threshold can be a value greater than or equal to 1. If the fifth threshold is greater than 1, ping-pong selection, reselection or switching can be effectively prevented.

[0136] Optionally, the first downlink reference signal may include at least one of the following:

[0137] Signal modules containing synchronization signals or broadcast signals, such as SSB;

[0138] Signals used for channel information measurement, such as the Channel State Information-Reference Signal (CSI-RS);

[0139] Signals used for time-frequency estimation, such as Tracking Reference Signal (TRS);

[0140] Reference signals used for positioning, such as the Positioning Reference Signal (PRS);

[0141] A reference signal specifically used for TRP or TRP group selection, reselection, or switching. For example, the network-side device additionally configures the corresponding reference signal, which is sent to the terminal by the corresponding TRP or TRP in the TRP group.

[0142] The measurement result of the first downlink reference signal may be an energy measurement result, such as a measurement result corresponding to a reference signal received power (RSRP), or may be a quality measurement result, such as a reference signal received quality (RSRQ), a signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR), a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), etc., or may be a function value corresponding to the above-mentioned RSRP / RSRQ / SINR / SNR.

[0143] Optionally, the measurement result of the first downlink reference signal may include one of the following:

[0144] Function values ​​corresponding to the measured values ​​of multiple first downlink reference signals; multiple first downlink reference signals refer to first downlink reference signals corresponding to multiple SSB indexes, and function values ​​corresponding to the measured values ​​obtained by measuring each SSB index separately. For example, the measured values ​​of all SSB indexes of the first downlink reference signal sent by a TRP or a TRP group, such as the mean, median, or maximum value of RSRP, RSRQ, SINR, or SNR;

[0145] Function values ​​corresponding to multiple measurement values ​​of the first downlink reference signal within a first time range; that is, function values ​​corresponding to measurement values ​​of the first downlink reference signal obtained at different times within the first time range. For example, the weighted sum of the mean, median, or maximum values ​​of RSRP, RSRQ, SINR, or SNR within the first time range, for all SSB indexes of the first downlink reference signal transmitted by a TRP or a TRP group. The first time range may be predefined by the protocol or configured by the network device.

[0146] It should be noted that the first threshold, the second threshold, the third threshold, the fourth threshold, and the fifth threshold may be predefined by a protocol or configured by a network-side device.

[0147] When at least one of the first conditions mentioned above is met, the terminal can select, reselect or switch the network node in a timely manner to obtain the service of a better network node and perform reliable data transmission, while also effectively avoiding frequent selection, reselection or switching.

[0148] In some embodiments of the present application, the terminal may perform network node switching, which may include the following steps:

[0149] The terminal switches from the network node serving the terminal to the target network node;

[0150] The network node serving the terminal and the target network node have at least one of the following relationships:

[0151] The network node serving the terminal does not have the same downlink clock offset or uplink clock offset as the target network node;

[0152] The network node serving the terminal and the target network node have the same downlink clock deviation or uplink clock deviation;

[0153] The network node serving the terminal and the target network node are in the same network node group;

[0154] The network node serving the terminal does not have the same downlink beam or uplink beam as the target network node;

[0155] The network node serving the terminal and the target network node have the same downlink beam or uplink beam.

[0156] In the embodiment of the present application, the terminal may perform network node switching within the first cell, that is, switching from a network node serving the terminal to a target network node.

[0157] The network node serving the terminal and the target network node may have different downlink clock offsets or uplink clock offsets, or may have the same downlink clock offsets or uplink clock offsets. For example, different network nodes may belong to the same timing advance (TA) group, or be in the same network node group, or may have different downlink beams or uplink beams, or may have the same downlink beams or uplink beams. The terminal may perform a network node handover operation based on the relationship between the network node serving the terminal and the target network node to improve the handover success rate.

[0158] If the network node serving the terminal and the target network node are in the same network node group, the two network nodes can be considered to have the same downlink clock offset or uplink clock offset. That is, different network nodes belong to the same TA group. If the network node serving the terminal and the target network node are not in the same network node group, the two network nodes can be considered to have different downlink clock offsets or uplink clock offsets. That is, if the two network nodes are not in the same network node group, they tend to use different downlink clock offsets or uplink clock offsets.

[0159] Similarly, if the network node serving the terminal and the target network node are in the same network node group, the two network nodes can be considered to have the same downlink beam or uplink beam. If the network node serving the terminal and the target network node are not in the same network node group, the two network nodes can be considered to have different downlink beams or uplink beams. That is, if the two network nodes are not in the same network node group, the two network nodes tend to use different downlink beams or uplink beams.

[0160] In some embodiments of the present application, the method may further include the following steps:

[0161] When the terminal switches from the network node serving the terminal to the target network node, it performs downlink clock deviation synchronization and initiates uplink clock deviation synchronization.

[0162] In this embodiment of the present application, a terminal switches from a serving network node to a target network node within a first cell. During the handover process, downlink clock offset synchronization can be performed and uplink clock offset synchronization can be initiated. After performing uplink and downlink clock offset synchronization, the terminal can communicate with the target network node, which helps improve communication efficiency.

[0163] Optionally, the terminal can perform downlink clock deviation synchronization and initiate uplink clock deviation synchronization even when the beams before and after the handoff are different. Whether uplink and downlink clock deviation synchronization is performed depends on whether the beams before and after the handoff have changed. Uplink and downlink clock deviation synchronization is performed only when the beams before and after the handoff are different. If the beams before and after the handoff are the same, the target network node and the network node serving the terminal can be assumed to have the same downlink clock deviation or uplink clock deviation. The terminal does not need to perform downlink or uplink clock deviation synchronization, which helps reduce unnecessary clock deviation synchronization.

[0164] In some embodiments of the present application, the method may further include the following steps:

[0165] During a process of switching from a network node serving the terminal to a target network node, the terminal receives downlink clock deviation information or uplink clock deviation information of the target network node.

[0166] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal switches from a network node serving the terminal to a target network node in a first cell. During the switching process, the terminal may receive downlink clock deviation information or uplink clock deviation information of the target network node.

[0167] The target network node and the network node serving the terminal may have different uplink clock deviations. During the switching process, the network node serving the terminal can indicate the uplink clock deviation information of the target network node to the terminal, such as the time advance. If the terminal receives the uplink clock deviation information of the target network node, it does not need to initiate uplink clock deviation synchronization to save terminal resources and reduce signaling interaction, such as random access to obtain the absolute uplink time advance. If the uplink clock deviation information of the target network node is not received, it is necessary to initiate uplink clock deviation synchronization.

[0168] Similarly, the target network node and the network node serving the terminal may have different downlink clock deviations. During the switching process, the network node serving the terminal can indicate the downlink clock deviation information of the target network node to the terminal. If the terminal receives the downlink clock deviation information of the target network node, it does not need to perform downlink clock deviation synchronization to save terminal resources and reduce signaling interaction. If the downlink clock deviation information of the target network node is not received, downlink clock deviation synchronization is required.

[0169] That is, when the network node serving the terminal and the target network node have different downlink clock deviations or uplink clock deviations, the network node serving the terminal can indicate the downlink clock deviation information or uplink clock deviation information of the target network node to the terminal, or the terminal can synchronize the downlink clock deviation or uplink clock deviation of the target network node during the switching process.

[0170] In some embodiments of the present application, the method may further include the following steps:

[0171] During the process of switching from a network node serving the terminal to a target network node, the terminal performs beam failure recovery of the target network node.

[0172] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal switches from a network node serving the terminal to a target network node within a first cell. During the switching process, beam failure recovery of the target network node can be performed.

[0173] Optionally, the terminal may select uplink resources according to the second downlink reference signal and perform random access based on the uplink resources, thereby indirectly notifying the network side device of the beam corresponding to the second downlink reference signal selected by the terminal.

[0174] Optionally, the terminal may re-measure the second downlink reference signal and select a second downlink reference signal according to the measurement result of the second downlink reference signal. For example, the second downlink reference signal with the best measurement result or meeting certain conditions may be selected.

[0175] Optionally, the second downlink reference signal may include at least one of the following:

[0176] downlink reference signals sent by all network nodes in the network node group where the target network node is located, that is, the network node group where the target network node is located includes multiple network nodes, and the second downlink reference signal may include downlink reference signals sent by all network nodes in the network node group;

[0177] a downlink reference signal sent by any network node in the network node group where the target network node is located, that is, the network node group where the target network node is located includes multiple network nodes, and the second downlink reference signal may include a downlink reference signal sent by any network node in the network node group;

[0178] Downlink reference signals sent by all TRPs in the target network node, that is, the target network node includes a TRP group, the TRP group includes multiple TRPs, and the second downlink reference signal may include downlink reference signals sent by all TRPs in the TRP group;

[0179] The downlink reference signal sent by any TRP in the target network node, that is, the target network node includes a TRP group, the TRP group includes multiple TRPs, and the second downlink reference signal may include the downlink reference signal sent by any TRP in the TRP group.

[0180] Optionally, the second downlink reference signal may include at least one of the following:

[0181] Signal modules containing synchronization signals or broadcast signals;

[0182] A signal used for channel information measurement;

[0183] Signals for time-frequency estimation;

[0184] Reference signals for positioning;

[0185] A reference signal specifically used for TRP or TRP group selection, reselection, or switching.

[0186] Optionally, the measurement result of the second downlink reference signal may include function values ​​corresponding to different measurement values ​​of the second downlink reference signal, or function values ​​corresponding to measurement values ​​of the second downlink reference signal within a second time range. The second time range may be predefined by the protocol or configured by a network-side device.

[0187] The inspection range based on the above-mentioned second downlink reference signal can enable the terminal to successfully perform beam failure recovery of the target network node.

[0188] In some embodiments of the present application, the method may further include the following steps:

[0189] During the process of switching from a network node serving the terminal to a target network node, the terminal receives downlink beam information or uplink beam information of the target network node.

[0190] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal switches from a network node serving the terminal to a target network node within a first cell. During the switching process, the terminal can receive downlink beam information or uplink beam information of the target network node.

[0191] The target network node and the network node serving the terminal may have different uplink beams. During the switching process, the network node serving the terminal can indicate the uplink beam information of the target network node to the terminal. If the terminal receives the uplink beam information of the target network node, it is not necessary to perform beam failure recovery of the target network node to save terminal resources and reduce signaling interaction. If the uplink beam information of the target network node is not received, it is necessary to perform beam failure recovery of the target network node.

[0192] Similarly, the target network node and the network node serving the terminal may have different downlink beams. During the switching process, the network node serving the terminal can indicate the downlink beam information of the target network node to the terminal. If the terminal receives the downlink beam information of the target network node, it is not necessary to perform beam failure recovery of the target network node to save terminal resources and reduce signaling interaction. If the downlink beam information of the target network node is not received, it is necessary to perform beam failure recovery of the target network node.

[0193] That is, when the network node serving the terminal and the target network node have different downlink beams or uplink beams, the network node serving the terminal can indicate the downlink beam information or uplink beam information of the target network node to the terminal, or the terminal can perform beam failure recovery of the target network node during the switching process.

[0194] In some embodiments of the present application, the method may further include the following steps:

[0195] During the process of switching from the network node serving the terminal to the target network node, the terminal determines whether to perform clock deviation synchronization or beam failure recovery based on the indication information received from the network side device. The indication information is determined based on the location of the terminal, the location of the network node serving the terminal, and the location of the target network node.

[0196] In an embodiment of the present application, whether a terminal performs clock deviation synchronization or beam failure recovery can be determined by terminal positioning. When a terminal switches from a serving network node to a target network node, a network-side device can locate the terminal and, based on the terminal's location, the location of the serving network node, and the location of the target network node, determine whether the terminal needs to perform clock deviation synchronization or beam failure recovery, and send corresponding indication information to the terminal.

[0197] For example, the network-side device uses the uplink time difference of arrival (ul-TDOA) positioning method based on the uplink sounding reference signal (SRS) to locate the terminal. If the positioning result shows that the RTT of the terminal remains basically unchanged before and after the network node switch, it can be determined that the terminal does not need to be actually synchronized.

[0198] For another example, if the network side device finds based on the positioning results that the transmission direction changes before and after the network node switches, the network side device can determine that the terminal needs to perform beam failure recovery, and can instruct the terminal to switch to which beam or perform beam failure recovery through indication information.

[0199] When the terminal switches from the network node serving the terminal to the target network node, it can determine whether to perform clock deviation synchronization or beam failure recovery based on the indication information received from the network side device.

[0200] From the above description of the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application, it can be seen that the embodiments of the present application propose a terminal location tracking method and an area list definition method for the first cell, such as a large cell, introduce a variety of network node selection, reselection or switching conditions, and define a network node switching process, so that the terminal can perform efficient network node selection, reselection or switching within the first cell, so that the terminal can be served by a better network node, improve the reliability of signal transmission, reduce transmission delay, and improve the overall resource utilization efficiency of the system.

[0201] Corresponding to the above method embodiment, the embodiment of the present application further provides a communication method, as shown in FIG5 , the method includes the following steps:

[0202] S510: The network device sends a first area list to the terminal;

[0203] The first area list includes the first TRP information, or includes the first TRP information and the first tracking area identifier;

[0204] The first TRP information includes at least one of the following:

[0205] TRP logo;

[0206] TRP group ID.

[0207] Applying the method provided in the embodiment of the present application, the network side device sends a first area list to the terminal, the first area list includes first TRP information, or includes first TRP information and a first tracking area identifier, the first TRP information includes at least one of a TRP identifier and a TRP group identifier. The first area list can be used to track the position of the terminal in the first cell so as to know the position change of the terminal in the first cell, thereby determining a suitable TRP or TRP group to communicate with the terminal, thereby improving the communication quality of the terminal in the first cell.

[0208] In some embodiments of the present application, the method may further include the following steps:

[0209] The network side device receives the location information reported by the terminal;

[0210] The network side device sends a second area list to the terminal according to the location information;

[0211] The second area list includes the second TRP information, or includes the second TRP information and the second tracking area identifier;

[0212] The second TRP information includes at least one of the following:

[0213] TRP logo;

[0214] TRP group ID.

[0215] In some embodiments of the present application, at least one of the first area list and the second area list is carried by at least one of the following messages:

[0216] Wireless broadcast messages;

[0217] Messages specifically for indicating a list of regions;

[0218] Wireless short messaging;

[0219] On-demand messaging;

[0220] Non-access stratum message.

[0221] The communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application can implement the various processes implemented in the method embodiment shown in Figure 4 and achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here.

[0222] The communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application can be executed by a communication device. In the embodiment of the present application, the communication device provided in the embodiment of the present application is described by taking the communication method executed by the communication device as an example.

[0223] As shown in FIG6 , the communication device 600 includes the following modules:

[0224] The execution module 610 is configured to perform at least one of the following operations in the first cell:

[0225] Report location information;

[0226] Perform network node selection;

[0227] Reselect network nodes;

[0228] Perform network node switching;

[0229] There are multiple transmission reception points TRP or TRP groups deployed in the first cell, and the network node includes the TRP or TRP group.

[0230] By applying the device provided in the embodiment of the present application, multiple TRPs or TRP groups are deployed in the first cell, and location information can be reported in the first cell so that the network side equipment can know the location changes of the terminal in the first cell and track the terminal location, thereby determining the appropriate TRP or TRP group to communicate with the terminal, improving the communication quality of the terminal in the first cell, and network node selection, reselection or switching can be performed in the first cell. The network node includes the TRP or TRP group deployed in the first cell, which helps to ensure that the terminal can be served by a better network node, improve signal transmission reliability, improve the communication quality of the terminal in the first cell, and improve the overall resource utilization of the system.

[0231] In some embodiments of the present application, the execution module 610 is configured to:

[0232] receiving a first area list from a network-side device;

[0233] When the terminal is located outside the area indicated by the first area list, the location information is reported to the network side device.

[0234] In some embodiments of the present application, the first area list includes first TRP information, or includes first TRP information and a first tracking area identifier, wherein the first TRP information includes at least one of a TRP identifier and a TRP group identifier.

[0235] In some embodiments of the present application, the execution module 610 is further configured to:

[0236] After reporting the location information to the network-side device, a second area list is received from the network-side device.

[0237] In some embodiments of the present application, the second area list includes second TRP information, or includes second TRP information and a second tracking area identifier, wherein the second TRP information includes at least one of a TRP identifier and a TRP group identifier.

[0238] In some embodiments of the present application, at least one of the first area list and the second area list is carried by at least one of the following messages:

[0239] Wireless broadcast messages;

[0240] Messages specifically for indicating a list of regions;

[0241] Wireless short messaging;

[0242] On-demand messaging;

[0243] Non-access stratum message.

[0244] In some embodiments of the present application, the execution module 610 is configured to:

[0245] When the first condition is met, performing network node selection, network node reselection, or network node switching;

[0246] The first condition includes at least one of the following:

[0247] A measurement result of a first downlink reference signal of the target network node is greater than or equal to a first threshold, and the target network node is a network node to be selected, reselected, or switched to by the terminal;

[0248] A measurement result of a first downlink reference signal of a network node serving the terminal is less than or equal to a second threshold;

[0249] The measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the target network node and the measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the network node serving the terminal meet the second condition;

[0250] The size of the first cell is greater than or equal to a third threshold;

[0251] The first cell is not a non-terrestrial network;

[0252] The first cell does not meet the cell reselection or cell switching conditions.

[0253] In some embodiments of the present application, the second condition includes at least one of the following:

[0254] A difference between a measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the target network node and a measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the network node serving the terminal is greater than or equal to a fourth threshold, and the fourth threshold is greater than or equal to 0;

[0255] A ratio of a measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the target network node to a measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the network node serving the terminal is greater than or equal to a fifth threshold, and the fifth threshold is greater than or equal to 1.

[0256] In some embodiments of the present application, the first downlink reference signal includes at least one of the following:

[0257] Signal modules containing synchronization signals or broadcast signals;

[0258] A signal used for channel information measurement;

[0259] Signals for time-frequency estimation;

[0260] Reference signals for positioning;

[0261] A reference signal specifically used for TRP or TRP group selection, reselection, or switching.

[0262] In some embodiments of the present application, the measurement result of the first downlink reference signal includes one of the following:

[0263] Function values ​​corresponding to measurement values ​​of multiple first downlink reference signals;

[0264] Function values ​​corresponding to multiple measurement values ​​of the first downlink reference signal within a first time range.

[0265] In some embodiments of the present application, the execution module 610 is configured to:

[0266] Switching from a network node serving the terminal to a target network node;

[0267] The network node serving the terminal and the target network node have at least one of the following relationships:

[0268] The network node serving the terminal does not have the same downlink clock offset or uplink clock offset as the target network node;

[0269] The network node serving the terminal and the target network node have the same downlink clock deviation or uplink clock deviation;

[0270] The network node serving the terminal and the target network node are in the same network node group;

[0271] The network node serving the terminal does not have the same downlink beam or uplink beam as the target network node;

[0272] The network node serving the terminal and the target network node have the same downlink beam or uplink beam.

[0273] In some embodiments of the present application, the execution module 610 is further configured to perform one of the following:

[0274] During the handover from the network node serving the terminal to the target network node, downlink clock deviation synchronization is performed and uplink clock deviation synchronization is initiated;

[0275] In a process of switching from a network node serving the terminal to a target network node, receiving downlink clock deviation information or uplink clock deviation information of the target network node;

[0276] During a handover from a network node serving a terminal to a target network node, performing beam failure recovery of the target network node;

[0277] During a handover from a network node serving the terminal to a target network node, downlink beam information or uplink beam information of the target network node is received.

[0278] In some embodiments of the present application, the execution module 610 is configured to:

[0279] When the beams before and after switching are different, downlink clock deviation synchronization is performed and uplink clock deviation synchronization is initiated.

[0280] In some embodiments of the present application, the execution module 610 is further configured to:

[0281] In the process of switching from the network node serving the terminal to the target network node, whether to perform clock deviation synchronization or beam failure recovery is determined based on the indication information received from the network side device. The indication information is determined based on the location of the terminal, the location of the network node serving the terminal, and the location of the target network node.

[0282] In some embodiments of the present application, the execution module 610 is configured to perform one of the following:

[0283] selecting an uplink resource according to the second downlink reference signal, and performing random access based on the uplink resource;

[0284] The second downlink reference signal is remeasured, and a second downlink reference signal is selected according to the measurement result of the second downlink reference signal.

[0285] In some embodiments of the present application, the second downlink reference signal includes at least one of the following:

[0286] downlink reference signals sent by all network nodes in the network node group where the target network node is located;

[0287] a downlink reference signal sent by any network node in the network node group where the target network node is located;

[0288] Downlink reference signals sent by all TRPs in the target network node;

[0289] A downlink reference signal sent by any TRP in the target network node.

[0290] The communication device 600 in the embodiment of the present application can be an electronic device, such as an electronic device with an operating system, or a component in an electronic device, such as an integrated circuit or chip. The electronic device can be a terminal or other device other than a terminal. For example, the terminal can include but is not limited to the types of terminal 11 listed above, and other devices can be servers, network attached storage (NAS), etc., which are not specifically limited in the embodiment of the present application.

[0291] The communication device 600 provided in the embodiment of the present application can implement each process implemented in the method embodiment shown in Figure 4 and achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here.

[0292] As shown in FIG7 , the communication device 700 includes the following modules:

[0293] A sending module 710 is configured to send a first area list to a terminal;

[0294] The first area list includes the first TRP information, or includes the first TRP information and the first tracking area identifier;

[0295] The first TRP information includes at least one of the following:

[0296] TRP logo;

[0297] TRP group ID.

[0298] Using the device provided in the embodiment of the present application, a first area list is sent to the terminal, the first area list includes the first TRP information, or includes the first TRP information and the first tracking area identifier, the first TRP information includes at least one of the TRP identifier and the TRP group identifier. The first area list can be used to track the position of the terminal in the first cell so as to know the position change of the terminal in the first cell, thereby determining a suitable TRP or TRP group to communicate with the terminal, thereby improving the communication quality of the terminal in the first cell.

[0299] In some embodiments of the present application, the communication device 700 further includes a receiving module:

[0300] a receiving module, configured to receive location information reported by the terminal after sending the first area list to the terminal;

[0301] The sending module is further used to send the second area list to the terminal according to the location information;

[0302] The second area list includes the second TRP information, or includes the second TRP information and the second tracking area identifier;

[0303] The second TRP information includes at least one of the following:

[0304] TRP logo;

[0305] TRP group ID.

[0306] In some embodiments of the present application, at least one of the first area list and the second area list is carried by at least one of the following messages:

[0307] Wireless broadcast messages;

[0308] Messages specifically for indicating a list of regions;

[0309] Wireless short messaging;

[0310] On-demand messaging;

[0311] Non-access stratum message.

[0312] The communication device 700 provided in the embodiment of the present application can implement each process implemented in the method embodiment shown in Figure 5 and achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here.

[0313] As shown in Figure 8, an embodiment of the present application further provides a communication device 800, including a processor 801 and a memory 802. The memory 802 stores a program or instruction that can be run on the processor 801. For example, when the communication device 800 is a terminal, the program or instruction, when executed by the processor 801, implements the various steps of the method embodiment shown in Figure 4 above, and can achieve the same technical effect. When the communication device 800 is a network-side device, the program or instruction, when executed by the processor 801, implements the various steps of the method embodiment shown in Figure 5 above, and can achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here.

[0314] The present application also provides a terminal including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is configured to execute a program or instruction to implement the steps of the method embodiment shown in FIG4 . This terminal embodiment corresponds to the aforementioned terminal-side method embodiment, and each implementation process and implementation method of the aforementioned method embodiment is applicable to this terminal embodiment and can achieve the same technical effects. Specifically, FIG9 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a terminal implementing an embodiment of the present application.

[0315] The terminal 900 includes but is not limited to: a radio frequency unit 901, a network module 902, an audio output unit 903, an input unit 904, a sensor 905, a display unit 906, a user input unit 907, an interface unit 908, a memory 909 and at least some of the components of the processor 910.

[0316] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the terminal 900 may also include a power supply (such as a battery) to power various components. The power supply may be logically connected to the processor 910 via a power management system, thereby enabling the power management system to manage charging, discharging, and power consumption. The terminal structure shown in FIG9 does not limit the terminal. The terminal may include more or fewer components than shown, or may combine certain components, or have different component arrangements, which will not be described in detail here.

[0317] It should be understood that in an embodiment of the present application, the input unit 904 may include a graphics processing unit (GPU) 9041 and a microphone 9042, and the graphics processor 9041 processes the image data of a static picture or video obtained by an image capture device (such as a camera) in a video capture mode or an image capture mode. The display unit 906 may include a display panel 9061, and the display panel 9061 may be configured in the form of a liquid crystal display, an organic light emitting diode, etc. The user input unit 907 includes a touch panel 9071 and at least one of other input devices 9072. The touch panel 9071 is also called a touch screen. The touch panel 9071 may include two parts: a touch detection device and a touch controller. Other input devices 9072 may include, but are not limited to, a physical keyboard, function keys (such as volume control keys, switch keys, etc.), a trackball, a mouse, and an operating stick, which will not be repeated here.

[0318] In the embodiment of the present application, after receiving downlink data from a network-side device, the RF unit 901 may transmit the data to the processor 910 for processing. Furthermore, the RF unit 901 may send uplink data to the network-side device. Typically, the RF unit 901 includes, but is not limited to, an antenna, an amplifier, a transceiver, a coupler, a low-noise amplifier, a duplexer, and the like.

[0319] The memory 909 can be used to store software programs or instructions and various data. The memory 909 may mainly include a first storage area for storing programs or instructions and a second storage area for storing data, wherein the first storage area may store an operating system, applications or instructions required for at least one function (such as a sound playback function, an image playback function, etc.). In addition, the memory 909 may include a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory. Among them, the non-volatile memory may be a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable read-only memory (PROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or a flash memory. Volatile memory can be random access memory (RAM), static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (DDRSDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (ESDRAM), synchronous link dynamic random access memory (SLDRAM), and direct RAM bus random access memory (DRRAM). The memory 909 in the embodiment of the present application includes but is not limited to these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0320] Processor 910 may include one or more processing units. Optionally, processor 910 integrates an application processor and a modem processor. The application processor primarily handles operations related to the operating system, user interface, and application programs, while the modem processor primarily processes wireless communication signals, such as a baseband processor. It is understood that the modem processor may not be integrated into processor 910.

[0321] It can be understood that the implementation process of each implementation method mentioned in this embodiment can refer to the relevant description of the method embodiment shown in Figure 4, and achieve the same or corresponding technical effects. To avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here.

[0322] The present application also provides a network-side device, including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is configured to execute a program or instruction to implement the steps of the method embodiment shown in FIG5 . This network-side device embodiment corresponds to the aforementioned network-side device method embodiment, and each implementation process and implementation method of the aforementioned method embodiment are applicable to this network-side device embodiment and can achieve the same technical effects.

[0323] Specifically, an embodiment of the present application also provides a network-side device. As shown in Figure 10, the network-side device 1000 includes: an antenna 1001, a radio frequency device 1002, a baseband device 1003, a processor 1004, and a memory 1005. Antenna 1001 is connected to radio frequency device 1002. In the uplink direction, radio frequency device 1002 receives information via antenna 1001 and sends the received information to baseband device 1003 for processing. In the downlink direction, baseband device 1003 processes the information to be transmitted and sends it to radio frequency device 1002. Radio frequency device 1002 processes the received information and sends it through antenna 1001.

[0324] The method executed by the network-side device in the above embodiment may be implemented in the baseband device 1003 , which includes a baseband processor.

[0325] The baseband device 1003 may include, for example, at least one baseband board, on which multiple chips are arranged, as shown in Figure 10, one of which is, for example, a baseband processor, which is connected to the memory 1005 through a bus interface to call the program in the memory 1005 and execute the network side device operations shown in the above method embodiment.

[0326] The network side device may further include a network interface 1006, which is, for example, a Common Public Radio Interface (CPRI).

[0327] Specifically, the network side device 1000 of the embodiment of the present application also includes: instructions or programs stored in the memory 1005 and executable on the processor 1004. The processor 1004 calls the instructions or programs in the memory 1005 to execute the method of execution of each module shown in Figure 7 and achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, it will not be described here.

[0328] Specifically, the embodiment of the present application further provides a network-side device. As shown in FIG11 , the network-side device 1100 includes a processor 1101, a network interface 1102, and a memory 1103. The network interface 1102 is, for example, a common public radio interface (CPRI).

[0329] Specifically, the network side device 1100 of the embodiment of the present application also includes: instructions or programs stored in the memory 1103 and executable on the processor 1101. The processor 1101 calls the instructions or programs in the memory 1103 to execute the method of execution of each module shown in Figure 5 and achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here.

[0330] An embodiment of the present application also provides a readable storage medium, on which a program or instruction is stored. When the program or instruction is executed by a processor, the various processes of the method embodiment shown in Figure 4 or Figure 5 above are implemented, and the same technical effect can be achieved. To avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here.

[0331] The processor is the processor in the terminal described in the above embodiment. The readable storage medium includes a computer-readable storage medium, such as a computer read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk, or an optical disk. In some examples, the readable storage medium may be a non-transitory readable storage medium.

[0332] An embodiment of the present application further provides a chip, which includes a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is used to run programs or instructions to implement the various processes of the method embodiments shown in Figures 4 or 5 above, and can achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, they will not be described here.

[0333] It should be understood that the chip mentioned in the embodiments of the present application can also be called a system-level chip, a system chip, a chip system or a system-on-chip chip, etc.

[0334] An embodiment of the present application further provides a computer program / program product, which is stored in a storage medium. The computer program / program product is executed by at least one processor to implement the various processes of the method embodiment shown in Figure 4 or Figure 5 above, and can achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here.

[0335] An embodiment of the present application also provides a wireless communication system, including: a terminal and a network side device, wherein the terminal can be used to execute the steps of the method embodiment shown in Figure 4 as described above, and the network side device can be used to execute the steps of the method embodiment shown in Figure 5 as described above.

[0336] It should be noted that, in this article, the terms "comprise", "include" or any other variants thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, article or device comprising a series of elements includes not only those elements, but also other elements not explicitly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such process, method, article or device. In the absence of further restrictions, an element defined by the sentence "comprises a ..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article or device comprising the element. In addition, it should be pointed out that the scope of the methods and devices in the embodiments of the present application is not limited to performing functions in the order shown or discussed, and may also include performing functions in a substantially simultaneous manner or in the opposite order according to the functions involved. For example, the described method may be performed in an order different from that described, and various steps may also be added, omitted or combined. In addition, the features described with reference to certain examples may be combined in other examples.

[0337] Through the description of the above embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the above-mentioned embodiment methods can be implemented by means of a computer software product plus a necessary general-purpose hardware platform, or of course, by hardware. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium (such as ROM, RAM, magnetic disk, optical disk, etc.) and includes a number of instructions for enabling a terminal or network-side device to execute the methods described in each embodiment of the present application.

[0338] The embodiments of the present application are described above in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, but the present application is not limited to the above-mentioned specific implementation methods. The above-mentioned specific implementation methods are merely illustrative and not restrictive. Under the guidance of this application, ordinary technicians in this field can also make many forms of implementation methods without departing from the purpose of this application and the scope of protection of the claims. These implementation methods are all within the protection of this application.

Claims

1. A communication method, wherein: include: The terminal performs at least one of the following operations in the first cell: Report location information; Perform network node selection; Reselect network nodes; Perform network node switching; Among them, multiple transmission receiving points TRP or TRP groups are deployed in the first cell, and the network node includes TRP or TRP group.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The terminal reports location information, including: The terminal receives a first area list from a network side device; When the terminal is located outside the area indicated by the first area list, the terminal reports the location information to the network side device.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein: The first area list includes first TRP information, or includes first TRP information and a first tracking area identifier, wherein the first TRP information includes at least one of a TRP identifier and a TRP group identifier.

4. The method according to claim 2 or 3, wherein: After the terminal reports the location information to the network side device, the method further includes: The terminal receives a second area list from the network side device.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein: The second area list includes second TRP information, or includes second TRP information and a second tracking area identifier, wherein the second TRP information includes at least one of a TRP identifier and a TRP group identifier.

6. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 5, wherein: At least one of the first area list and the second area list is carried by at least one of the following messages: Wireless broadcast messages; Messages specifically for indicating a list of regions; Wireless short message; On-demand messaging; Non-access stratum message.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein: The terminal performs network node selection, network node reselection, or network node switching, including: When the first condition is met, the terminal selects a network node, reselects a network node, or switches a network node; The first condition includes at least one of the following: A measurement result of a first downlink reference signal of a target network node is greater than or equal to a first threshold, and the target network node is a network node to be selected, reselected, or switched to by the terminal; A measurement result of a first downlink reference signal of a network node serving the terminal is less than or equal to a second threshold; The measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the target network node and the measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the network node serving the terminal meet the second condition; The size of the first cell is greater than or equal to a third threshold; The first cell is not a non-terrestrial network; The first cell does not meet a cell reselection or cell switching condition.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein: The second condition includes at least one of the following: A difference between a measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the target network node and a measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the network node serving the terminal is greater than or equal to a fourth threshold, and the fourth threshold is greater than or equal to 0; A ratio of a measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the target network node to a measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the network node serving the terminal is greater than or equal to a fifth threshold, and the fifth threshold is greater than or equal to 1.

9. The method according to claim 7 or 8, wherein: The first downlink reference signal includes at least one of the following: A signal module containing a synchronization signal or a broadcast signal; A signal used for channel information measurement; Signals for time-frequency estimation; Reference signals for positioning; A reference signal specifically used for TRP or TRP group selection or reselection or switching.

10. The method according to any one of claims 7 to 9, wherein: The measurement result of the first downlink reference signal includes one of the following: Function values ​​corresponding to the measured values ​​of multiple first downlink reference signals; Function values ​​corresponding to multiple measurement values ​​of the first downlink reference signal within a first time range.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein: The terminal performs network node switching, including: The terminal switches from a network node serving the terminal to a target network node; The network node serving the terminal has at least one of the following relationships with the target network node: The network node serving the terminal and the target network node do not have the same downlink clock deviation or uplink clock deviation; The network node serving the terminal and the target network node have the same downlink clock deviation or uplink clock deviation; The network node serving the terminal and the target network node are in the same network node group; The network node serving the terminal and the target network node do not have the same downlink beam or uplink beam; The network node serving the terminal and the target network node have the same downlink beam or uplink beam.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein: The method further comprises one of the following: The terminal performs downlink clock deviation synchronization and initiates uplink clock deviation synchronization during a process of switching from the network node serving the terminal to the target network node; The terminal receives downlink clock deviation information or uplink clock deviation information of the target network node during a process of switching from the network node serving the terminal to the target network node; The terminal performs beam failure recovery of the target network node during a process of switching from the network node serving the terminal to the target network node; The terminal receives downlink beam information or uplink beam information of the target network node during a process of switching from the network node serving the terminal to the target network node.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein: The terminal performs downlink clock deviation synchronization and initiates uplink clock deviation synchronization, including: When the beams before and after the switching are different, the terminal performs downlink clock deviation synchronization and initiates uplink clock deviation synchronization.

14. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 13, wherein: The method further comprises: During the process of switching from the network node serving the terminal to the target network node, the terminal determines whether to perform clock deviation synchronization or beam failure recovery based on indication information received from a network side device, wherein the indication information is determined based on the location of the terminal, the location of the network node serving the terminal, and the location of the target network node.

15. The method according to claim 12, wherein: The terminal performs beam failure recovery of the target network node, including the following: The terminal selects an uplink resource according to the second downlink reference signal, and performs random access based on the uplink resource; The terminal remeasures the second downlink reference signal, and selects a second downlink reference signal according to the measurement result of the second downlink reference signal.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein: The second downlink reference signal includes at least one of the following: downlink reference signals sent by all network nodes in the network node group where the target network node is located; A downlink reference signal sent by any network node in the network node group where the target network node is located; Downlink reference signals sent by all TRPs in the target network node; A downlink reference signal sent by any TRP within the target network node.

17. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 16, wherein: The size of the first cell is greater than or equal to a sixth threshold, or the number of TRPs or TRP groups deployed in the first cell is greater than or equal to a seventh threshold.

18. A communication method, wherein: include: The network side device sends the first area list to the terminal; The first area list includes the first TRP information, or includes the first TRP information and the first tracking area identifier; The first TRP information includes at least one of the following: TRP logo; TRP group ID.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein: The method further comprises: The network side device receives the location information reported by the terminal; The network side device sends a second area list to the terminal according to the location information; The second area list includes the second TRP information, or includes the second TRP information and the second tracking area identifier; The second TRP information includes at least one of the following: TRP logo; TRP group ID.

20. The method according to claim 18 or 19, wherein: At least one of the first area list and the second area list is carried by at least one of the following messages: Wireless broadcast messages; Messages specifically for indicating a list of regions; Wireless short message; On-demand messaging; Non-access stratum message.

21. A communication device, wherein: include: The execution module is used to perform at least one of the following operations in the first cell: Report location information; Perform network node selection; Reselect network nodes; Perform network node switching; Among them, multiple transmission receiving points TRP or TRP groups are deployed in the first cell, and the network node includes TRP or TRP group.

22. The communication device according to claim 21, wherein: The execution module is specifically used for: receiving a first area list from a network side device; When the terminal is located outside the area indicated by the first area list, the location information is reported to the network side device.

23. The communication device according to claim 21 or 22, wherein: The execution module is specifically used for: When the first condition is met, performing network node selection, network node reselection, or network node switching; The first condition includes at least one of the following: A measurement result of a first downlink reference signal of a target network node is greater than or equal to a first threshold, and the target network node is a network node to be selected, reselected, or switched to by the terminal; A measurement result of a first downlink reference signal of a network node serving the terminal is less than or equal to a second threshold; The measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the target network node and the measurement result of the first downlink reference signal of the network node serving the terminal meet the second condition; The size of the first cell is greater than or equal to a third threshold; The first cell is not a non-terrestrial network; The first cell does not meet a cell reselection or cell switching condition.

24. A communication device, wherein: include: A sending module, used for sending the first area list to the terminal; The first area list includes the first TRP information, or includes the first TRP information and the first tracking area identifier; The first TRP information includes at least one of the following: TRP logo; TRP group ID.

25. The communication device according to claim 24, wherein: The communication device also includes a receiving module: The receiving module is used to receive the location information reported by the terminal; The sending module is further used to send a second area list to the terminal according to the location information; The second area list includes the second TRP information, or includes the second TRP information and the second tracking area identifier; The second TRP information includes at least one of the following: TRP logo; TRP group ID.

26. The communication device according to claim 24 or 25, wherein: At least one of the first area list and the second area list is carried by at least one of the following messages: Wireless broadcast messages; Messages specifically for indicating a list of regions; Wireless short message; On-demand messaging; Non-access stratum message.

27. A terminal, wherein: The method comprises a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores a program or instruction that can be run on the processor, and when the program or instruction is executed by the processor, the steps of the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 17 are implemented.

28. A network side device, wherein: The method comprises a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores a program or instruction that can be run on the processor, and when the program or instruction is executed by the processor, the steps of the communication method according to any one of claims 18 to 20 are implemented.

29. A readable storage medium, wherein: The readable storage medium stores a program or instruction, and when the program or instruction is executed by the processor, it implements the steps of the communication method as described in any one of claims 1 to 17, or implements the steps of the communication method as described in any one of claims 18 to 20.

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