Communication method and apparatus

Abstract

The present application provides a communication method and apparatus. A first access network device receives first information from a second access network device, wherein the first information is used for indicating first configuration information for a first-type terminal device to receive a multicast service and second configuration information for a second-type terminal device to receive the multicast service; the first access network device sends the first configuration information to the first-type terminal device; the first access network device sends the second configuration information to the second-type terminal device, wherein the first-type terminal device and the second-type terminal device belong to a same multicast group, the first-type terminal device is a reduced-capability terminal device, and the second-type terminal device is a terminal device other than the first-type terminal device. An access network device respectively provides, to different types of terminal devices in a multicast group, configuration information for receiving a multicast service, so as to enable different types of terminal devices to normally receive the same multicast service.

Description

A communication method and device thereof

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of the People's Republic of China on December 28, 2023, with application number 202311849270.5 and application name "A communication method and device thereof", the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

[0003] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method and apparatus thereof. Background Art

[0004] When multiple devices need to receive the same information simultaneously, multicast transmission is more efficient than unicast transmission. If a multicast group includes multiple types of devices, it is important to consider how to ensure that all types of devices can receive the same multicast service. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and apparatus thereof, which are used to enable various types of terminal devices in a multicast group to normally receive the same multicast service.

[0006] In the first aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which can be executed by a first access network device, or by other devices including the functions of the first access network device, or by a chip system (which can also be replaced by a chip) or other functional modules, which can realize the functions of the first access network device, and the chip system or functional module is, for example, set in the first access network device. Take the method executed by the first access network device as an example for introduction: the first access network device receives first information from the second access network device, the first information is used to indicate the first configuration information of the first type of terminal device to receive the multicast service and the second configuration information of the second type of terminal device to receive the multicast service; the first access network device sends the first configuration information to the first type of terminal device; the first access network device sends the second configuration information to the second type of terminal device; wherein the first type of terminal device and the second type of terminal device belong to the same multicast group, the first type of terminal device is a terminal device with reduced capability, and the second type of terminal device is a terminal device other than the first type of terminal device.

[0007] In this embodiment, the access network device provides configuration information for receiving multicast services to different types of terminal devices in a multicast group, so as to enable different types of terminal devices to normally receive the same multicast service.

[0008] In a possible implementation, the first access network device may be a centralized unit CU, and the second access network device may be a distributed unit DU.

[0009] In one possible implementation, the bandwidth configured in the second configuration information for the second type of terminal device to receive the multicast service may be greater than the maximum bandwidth supported by the first type of terminal device. This implementation enables flexible configuration of multicast services for different types of terminal devices.

[0010] In one possible implementation, the sending of the first configuration information to the first type of terminal device and the sending of the second configuration information to the second type of terminal device include: sending a first radio resource control RRC release message to the first type of terminal device, the first RRC release message including the first configuration information; and sending a second RRC release message to the second type of terminal device, the second RRC release message including the second configuration information.

[0011] In this implementation, the first access network device sends configuration information to the terminal device through an RRC release message, and the terminal device changes from a connected state to a deactivated state through the RRC release message. The terminal device can receive multicast services based on the configuration information in the deactivated state.

[0012] In the second aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which can be executed by a first access network device, or by other devices including the functions of the first access network device, or by a chip system (which can also be replaced by a chip) or other functional modules, and the chip system or functional module can realize the functions of the first access network device, and the chip system or functional module is, for example, set in the first access network device. Take the method executed by the first access network device as an example for introduction: the first access network device receives first information from the second access network device, the first information is used to indicate the first configuration information of the first type of terminal device to receive the multicast service, and is used to indicate the second type of terminal device to receive the second configuration information of the multicast service, the first type of terminal device and the second type of terminal device belong to the same multicast group, the first type of terminal device is a terminal device with reduced capability, and the second type of terminal device is a terminal device other than the first type of terminal device; the first access network device sends the second configuration information to the first type of terminal device, wherein the bandwidth configured for the second type of terminal device to receive the multicast service in the second configuration information is less than or equal to the maximum bandwidth supported by the first type of terminal device; the first access network device sends the second configuration information to the second type of terminal device.

[0013] In this embodiment, the access network device provides configuration information for receiving multicast services to different types of terminal devices in a multicast group, so as to support different types of terminal devices to normally receive the same multicast service, and also realize flexible configuration of multicast services for different types of terminal devices.

[0014] In a possible implementation, the first access network device may be a centralized unit CU, and the second access network device may be a distributed unit DU.

[0015] In one possible implementation, the sending of the second configuration information to the first category terminal device and the sending of the second configuration information to the second category terminal device include: sending a first radio resource control RRC release message to the first category terminal device, the first RRC release message including the second configuration information; and sending a second RRC release message to the second category terminal device, the second RRC release message including the second configuration information.

[0016] In this implementation, the first access network device sends configuration information to the terminal device through an RRC release message, and the terminal device changes from a connected state to a deactivated state through the RRC release message. The terminal device can receive multicast services based on the configuration information in the deactivated state.

[0017] In any possible implementation of the first and second aspects above, the first configuration information and the second configuration information include one or more of the following parameters: a neighboring cell list of the first access network device, time domain resources for receiving the multicast service, frequency domain resources for receiving the multicast service, or a demodulation order for the received multicast service data; wherein the values ​​of the same parameter in the first configuration information and the second configuration information are different.

[0018] In this implementation, the parameters included in the first configuration information and the second configuration information may be the same or different. Taking into account the different capabilities of the first and second terminal devices, among the multiple parameters included in the first and second configuration information, at least one parameter may have a different value.

[0019] In any possible implementation of the first and second aspects, the first information may be carried in any of the following messages: a multicast broadcast service context establishment response message, a multicast broadcast service context modification response message, a multicast broadcast service context notification indication message, or a multicast broadcast service context modification request message. In this way, the first information may be carried in multiple messages related to the multicast broadcast service, providing greater implementation flexibility.

[0020] In a third aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device may be the first access network device described in the first or second aspect. The communication device has the functions of the first access network device. The communication device is, for example, a functional module in the first access network device, such as a baseband device or a chip system. In one optional implementation, the communication device includes a baseband device and a radio frequency device. In another optional implementation, the communication device includes a processing unit (sometimes also referred to as a processing module) and a transceiver unit (sometimes also referred to as a transceiver module). The transceiver unit is capable of performing both transmitting and receiving functions. When the transceiver unit performs the transmitting function, it may be referred to as a transmitting unit (sometimes also referred to as a transmitting module); when the transceiver unit performs the receiving function, it may be referred to as a receiving unit (sometimes also referred to as a receiving module). The transmitting unit and the receiving unit may be the same functional module, referred to as a transceiver unit, which is capable of both transmitting and receiving functions. Alternatively, the transmitting unit and the receiving unit may be different functional modules, with the transceiver unit being a collective term for these functional modules.

[0021] In one possible implementation, the communication device also includes a storage unit (sometimes also referred to as a storage module), and the processing unit is used to couple with the storage unit and execute the program or instructions in the storage unit, enabling the communication device to perform the functions of the first access network device described in the first aspect or the second aspect above.

[0022] In one possible implementation, the transceiver unit is used to receive first information from a second access network device, where the first information is used to instruct a first type of terminal device to receive first configuration information for a multicast service, and to instruct a second type of terminal device to receive second configuration information for the multicast service; and to send the first configuration information to the first type of terminal device, and to send the second configuration information to the second type of terminal device.

[0023] In a possible implementation, the processing unit is configured to determine that the bandwidth configured in the second configuration information for the second-category terminal device to receive the multicast service is greater than the maximum bandwidth supported by the first-category terminal device.

[0024] In one possible implementation, the transceiver unit is used to send a first radio resource control RRC release message to the first type of terminal device, wherein the first RRC release message includes the first configuration information; and to send a second RRC release message to the second type of terminal device, wherein the second RRC release message includes the second configuration information.

[0025] In one possible implementation, the transceiver unit is used to send the second configuration information to the first type of terminal device, wherein the second configuration information is sent to the first type of terminal device when it is determined that the bandwidth configured in the second configuration information for the second type of terminal device to receive multicast services is less than or equal to the maximum bandwidth supported by the first type of terminal device; and send the second configuration information to the second type of terminal device.

[0026] In one possible implementation, the transceiver unit is used to send a first radio resource control RRC release message to the first type of terminal device, wherein the first RRC release message includes the second configuration information; and to send a second RRC release message to the second type of terminal device, wherein the second RRC release message includes the second configuration information.

[0027] In a fourth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising an interface circuit and a processor, and optionally, a memory. The memory is used to store a computer program, and the processor is coupled to the memory and the interface circuit. When the processor reads the computer program or instruction, the communication device executes the method performed by the first access network device in the first aspect, or the method performed by the first access network device in the second aspect. Exemplarily, the interface circuit is used to receive a signal from another communication device other than the communication device and transmit it to the processor, or to send a signal from the processor to another communication device other than the communication device. The processor implements the method performed by the first access network device in the first aspect, or the method performed by the first access network device in the second aspect, through a logic circuit or by executing code instructions.

[0028] In a fifth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising a processor and, optionally, a memory; the processor and the memory are coupled; the memory is used to store computer programs or instructions; the processor is used to execute part or all of the computer programs or instructions in the memory, and when the part or all of the computer programs or instructions are executed, it is used to implement the function of the first access network device in the method of the first aspect above, or to implement the function of the first access network device in the method of the second aspect above.

[0029] In one possible implementation, the apparatus may further include a transceiver configured to transmit a signal processed by the processor or receive a signal input to the processor. The transceiver may perform the transmitting or receiving action performed by the first access network device in the method of the first aspect. Alternatively, the transceiver may perform the transmitting or receiving action performed by the first access network device in the method of the second aspect.

[0030] In a possible implementation, the processing unit in the third aspect may be implemented by the processor, the storage unit in the third aspect may be implemented by the memory, and the transceiver unit in the third aspect may be implemented by the transceiver.

[0031] In a sixth aspect, a communications system is provided, comprising a first access network device, a first-category terminal device, and at least two of a second-category terminal device, wherein the first access network device is configured to execute the methods described in the above aspects. For example, the first access network device may be implemented using the communications apparatus described in the third aspect, or the second access network device may be implemented using the communications apparatus described in the fourth aspect.

[0032] In a seventh aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, wherein the computer-readable storage medium is used to store a computer program or instruction, which, when executed, enables the method of the first aspect or the method of the second aspect to be implemented.

[0033] In an eighth aspect, a computer program product comprising instructions is provided, which, when executed on a computer, enables the method of the first aspect or the method of the second aspect to be implemented. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0034] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system provided by the present application;

[0035] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of a process flow of a multicast broadcast service provided by this application;

[0036] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of a communication process provided by this application;

[0037] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of a communication process provided by this application;

[0038] FIG5 is a structural diagram of a communication device provided by the present application;

[0039] FIG6 is a structural diagram of a communication device provided in this application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0040] The technical solution of the present application can be applied to various wireless communication systems, including but not limited to the fourth generation mobile communication technology (the 4th generation, 4G) system (also known as the long term evolution (LTE) system), the fifth generation mobile communication technology (the 5th generation, 5G) system (also known as the new radio (NR) system), or can also be applied to the next generation mobile communication system or other similar communication systems (such as the sixth generation mobile communication technology (the 6th generation, 6G) system), etc., without specific limitation. In addition, the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application can be applied to device-to-device (D2D) scenarios, such as NR-D2D scenarios, etc., or can be applied to vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication scenarios, such as NR-V2X scenarios, etc. For example, it can be used in the fields of intelligent driving, assisted driving, or intelligent connected vehicles. For another example, the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application can also be applied to factory manufacturing scenarios, etc. In addition, the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application can be applied in scenarios including but not limited to: terrestrial cellular communications, non-terrestrial networks (NTN), satellite communications, high altitude platform stations (HAPS) communications, integrated access and backhaul (IAB) communications, reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RIS) communications, and other scenarios.

[0041] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system used in an embodiment of the present application. The communication system 1000 shown in Figure 1 includes a wireless access network 100 and a core network 200. Optionally, the communication system 1000 also includes the Internet 300. The wireless access network 100 may include at least one network device (such as 110a and 110b in Figure 1) and may also include at least one terminal device (such as 120a-120j in Figure 1). The terminal device is wirelessly connected to the network device, and the network device is wirelessly or wiredly connected to the core network 200. The core network device and the network device may be independent, distinct physical devices, or the core network device's functions and the network device's logical functions may be integrated into the same physical device, or a single physical device may integrate some of the core network device's functions and some of the network device's functions. Terminal devices and network devices may be interconnected via wired or wireless connections. Figure 1 is merely a schematic diagram; the communication system may also include other network devices, such as wireless relay devices and wireless backhaul devices, which are not shown in Figure 1.

[0042] The radio access network 100 may be a cellular system related to the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), such as 4G, 5G, or an evolved system after 5G (e.g., a 6G mobile communication system). The radio access network 100 may also be an open radio access network (open RAN, O-RAN or ORAN) or a cloud radio access network (CRAN). The radio access network 100 may also be a communication system that integrates two or more of the above systems.

[0043] A network device is a node in a radio access network (RAN), and can also be referred to as an access network device or a RAN node (or device). A network device is used to help terminal devices achieve wireless access. The multiple network devices in communication system 1000 can be nodes of the same type or different types.

[0044] In one possible scenario, a network device can be a base station, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), a transmitting and receiving point (TRP), a transmitting point (TP), a next-generation NodeB (gNB), a next-generation base station in a 6G mobile communication system, a base station in a future mobile communication system, an access point (AP) in a satellite, an integrated access and backhaul node (IAB), a mobile switching center, or a network device in a non-terrestrial network (NTN) communication system. This means it can be deployed on a high-altitude platform or satellite, for example. The network device can be a macro base station (such as 110a in Figure 1 ), a micro base station or an indoor station (such as 110b in Figure 1 ), a relay node or a donor node, or a wireless controller in a CRAN scenario. The network device can also function as a base station in device-to-device (D2D) communication, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2X) communication, drone communication, or machine communication. Optionally, the network device can be a server, a wearable device, a vehicle, or an onboard device. For example, the access network device in V2X technology can be a roadside unit (RSU).

[0045] In another possible scenario, multiple network devices collaborate to assist the terminal device in achieving wireless access, and different network devices respectively implement part of the functions of the base station. For example, the network device can be a centralized unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), a CU-control plane (CP), a CU-user plane (UP), or a radio unit (RU). The CU and DU can be set separately, or they can also be included in the same network element, such as a baseband unit (BBU). The RU can be included in a radio frequency device or a radio frequency unit, such as a remote radio unit (RRU), an active antenna unit (AAU), or a remote radio head (RRH). It can be understood that the network device can be a CU node, a DU node, or a device including a CU node and a DU node. In addition, the CU can be divided into a network device in the access network RAN, or the CU can be divided into a network device in the core network CN, which is not limited here.

[0046] In different systems, CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU or RU may also have different names, but those skilled in the art can understand their meanings. For example, in the ORAN system, CU may also be called O-CU (Open CU), DU may also be called O-DU, CU-CP may also be called O-CU-CP, CU-UP may also be called O-CU-UP, and RU may also be called O-RU. For the convenience of description, this application uses CU, CU-CP, CU-UP, DU and RU as examples for description. Any unit of CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU and RU in this application can be implemented by a software module, a hardware module, or a combination of a software module and a hardware module.

[0047] A terminal device is a device with wireless transceiver capabilities that can send signals to or receive signals from a network device. Terminal devices include but are not limited to terminal devices, terminals, user equipment (UE), mobile stations, mobile terminals, etc. Terminal devices can be widely used in various scenarios, such as device-to-device D2D, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, machine-type communication (MTC), Internet of Things (IoT), virtual reality, augmented reality, industrial control, autonomous driving, telemedicine, smart grid, smart furniture, smart office, smart wearable, smart transportation, smart city, etc. The terminal device can specifically be a mobile phone, tablet computer, computer with wireless transceiver capabilities, wearable device, vehicle, airplane, ship, robot, robotic arm, smart home device, etc. The embodiments of this application do not limit the specific technology and specific device form adopted by the terminal device.

[0048] Network devices and terminal devices can be fixed or mobile. They can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; they can also be deployed on water; they can also be deployed on aircraft, balloons, and artificial satellites. The embodiments of this application do not limit the application scenarios of network devices and terminal devices.

[0049] The roles of network devices and terminal devices can be relative. For example, the helicopter or drone 120i in Figure 1 can be configured as a mobile network device. To terminal devices 120j that access the wireless access network 100 via 120i, terminal device 120i is a network device; however, to network device 110a, 120i is a terminal device, meaning that communication between 110a and 120i occurs via a wireless air interface protocol. Of course, communication between 110a and 120i can also occur via an interface protocol between network devices. In this case, 120i is also a network device relative to 110a. Therefore, both network devices and terminal devices can be collectively referred to as communication devices. 110a and 110b in Figure 1 can be referred to as communication devices with network device functionality, and 120a-120j in Figure 1 can be referred to as communication devices with terminal device functionality.

[0050] Network devices and terminal devices, network devices and network devices, and terminal devices and terminal devices can communicate through authorized spectrum, unauthorized spectrum, or both; can communicate through spectrum below 6 gigahertz (GHz), spectrum above 6 GHz, or spectrum below 6 GHz and spectrum above 6 GHz simultaneously. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the spectrum resources used for wireless communications.

[0051] In the embodiments of the present application, the functions of the network device may also be performed by a module (such as a chip) in the network device, or by a control subsystem that includes the network device functions. The control subsystem that includes the network device functions here may be a control center in the above-mentioned application scenarios such as smart grid, industrial control, smart transportation, and smart city. The functions of the terminal device may also be performed by a module (such as a chip or a modem) in the terminal device, or by a device that includes the terminal device functions.

[0052] Figure 2 shows a flow diagram of a multicast and broadcast service (MBS). MBS data originates from a data server, which sends it to a core network device. The core network device then sends the MBS data to an access network device via an MBS session. The MBS session includes at least one MBS quality of service (QoS) flow. The access network device then sends the MBS data to at least one terminal device via an MBS radio bearer. Multicast includes multicast and broadcast, with multicast being a form of multicast. Multicast services are designed for services with high QoS requirements and can provide the same QoS level as unicast services. The transmission of multicast services between core and access network devices relies on protocol data unit (PDU) sessions. Access network devices support point-to-multipoint (PTM) and point-to-point (PTP) transmission of multicast services to terminal devices.

[0053] A multicast group may include multiple types of terminal devices. This application takes a multicast group including two types of terminal devices as an example: the first type of terminal device is a reduced capability (Redcap) terminal device, and the second type of terminal device is a terminal device other than the first type of terminal device, which can be called a non-reduced capability (Redcap) terminal device, or a traditional terminal device, or an enhanced RedCap terminal device, or an eRedCap terminal device, where e means enhanced (enhanced, e).

[0054] The following is an introduction to reduced-capability terminal devices: 3GPP standard version (release) 17 defines the characteristics of Redcap UE: The maximum bandwidth of Redcap terminal devices in frequency range 1 (FR1) is 20 MHz, and the maximum bandwidth in frequency range 2 (FR2) is 100 MHz. In the discussion of R18, Redcap terminal devices only support 5 MHz of baseband bandwidth for data channels and 20 MHz of radio frequency bandwidth. This means that in the NR system, downlink messages such as system information blocks 1 (SIB1), other system information (OSI), random access response (RAR) and Msg4 (message 4) sent based on the downlink initial bandwidth (BWP) (the downlink initial bandwidth is greater than 5 MHz) need to be scheduled for transmission within 5 MHz in order to be received by the RedCap terminal devices discussed in R18.

[0055] In this application, the terminal device is supported to receive multicast services in the radio resource control (RRC) deactivated state (RRC_inactive). If the terminal device is currently in the RRC connected state, one possible implementation method is to use an RRC Release message to release the terminal device from the connected state to the deactivated state, and at the same time carry the configuration information for the terminal device to receive multicast services in the RRC Release message. The terminal device switches from the connected state to the deactivated state based on the RRC Release message, and receives multicast services in the deactivated state based on the configuration information.

[0056] The access network equipment can provide the same multicast service for redcap UE and non-redcap UE in a multicast group. For the configuration information of receiving the multicast service, one case is that the redcap UE and non-redcap UE use the same configuration information to receive the multicast service, and the other case is that the redcap UE and non-redcap UE use different configuration information to receive the multicast service.

[0057] In current technologies, the multicast service configuration information provided by access network equipment is specific to a multicast group, not to each terminal device in the multicast group. Access network equipment only provides one type of multicast service configuration information for a multicast group. If Redcap UEs and non-Redcap UEs require different configuration information to receive multicast services, some of these terminal devices may not be able to receive multicast services properly.

[0058] Based on this, the present application proposes a communication method, whereby the access network device provides configuration information for receiving multicast services to different types of terminal devices within a multicast group, so as to support different types of terminal devices to normally receive the same multicast services.

[0059] The methods provided in various embodiments of the present application can be applied to the network architecture shown in FIG1 or to the network architecture in which the centralized unit CU and the distributed unit DU are separated. For example, the first access network device involved in various embodiments of the present application is a centralized unit CU, or CU-CP, or CU-UP; the second access network device involved in various embodiments of the present application is a distributed unit DU. Taking the application in FIG1 as an example, for example, the first type of terminal device and the second type of terminal device involved in various embodiments of the present application can be any two of 120i, or 120a, or 120b, or 120c, etc., and the first access network device and the second access network device involved in various embodiments of the present application can be 110a together; for another example, the first type of terminal device and the second type of terminal device involved in various embodiments of the present application can be 120h and 120g, and the first access network device and the second access network device involved in various embodiments of the present application can be 120f together.

[0060] In order to better describe the embodiments of the present application, the following describes the methods provided by the embodiments of the present application in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Unless otherwise specified, the steps indicated by dotted lines in the accompanying drawings corresponding to the various embodiments of the present application are all optional steps.

[0061] FIG3 is a flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0062] Step 301: The second access network device (eg, DU) sends first information, and correspondingly, the first access network device (eg, CU) receives the first information.

[0063] The first information is used to indicate first configuration information for a first type of terminal device to receive a multicast service and second configuration information for a second type of terminal device to receive the multicast service. The first type of terminal device is a reduced capability (RedCap) terminal device, and the second type of terminal device is a terminal device other than the first type of terminal device, which can be called a non-reduced capability terminal device, a traditional terminal device, an enhanced RedCap terminal device, or an eRedCap terminal device.

[0064] The first type of terminal device and the second type of terminal device belong to the same multicast group.

[0065] Optionally, the first information may also indicate configuration information for receiving multicast services by other types of terminal devices, and the other types of terminal devices belong to the multicast group.

[0066] In a possible implementation, the second access network device may generate the first configuration information and the second configuration information by itself.

[0067] The configuration information for receiving multicast services may be referred to as MBS Multicast Configuration information. The first configuration information may be a list, and the second configuration information may be another list. Of course, the first configuration information and the second configuration information may also be a whole list.

[0068] In one possible example, the format of the data portion of the first information may include: an identifier of the first type of terminal device, first configuration information, an identifier of the second type of terminal device, and second configuration information; or alternatively, the format may be: an identifier of the second type of terminal device, second configuration information, an identifier of the first type of terminal device, and first configuration information. Each terminal device type identifier is followed by the configuration information corresponding to that type. Based on this positional relationship, the first access network device can parse the first configuration information corresponding to the first type of terminal device and the second configuration information corresponding to the second type of terminal device.

[0069] The first information is carried in any of the following messages: a multicast broadcast service context establishment response message, a multicast broadcast service context modification response message, a multicast broadcast service context notification indication message, or a multicast broadcast service context modification request message. In this way, the first information can be carried in multiple messages related to the multicast broadcast service, making the implementation more flexible. In one example, the first information can be carried in an information element (IE) included in the above messages, such as an MBS Multicast Configuration Response Information information element.

[0070] In a possible example, the bandwidth configured in the second configuration information for the second type of terminal device to receive the multicast service is greater than the maximum bandwidth supported by the first type of terminal device.

[0071] Step 302: The first access network device sends the first configuration information to the first type of terminal device.

[0072] In one example, the first access network device may send a first RRC release message to the first-category terminal device, where the first RRC release message includes the first configuration information. The first access network device sends the first configuration information to the first-category terminal device via the RRC release message, so that the first-category terminal device can change from a connected state to a deactivated state via the RRC release message, and receive multicast services based on the first configuration information in the deactivated state.

[0073] Step 303: The first access network device sends the second configuration information to the second type of terminal device.

[0074] In one example, the first access network device may send a second RRC release message to the second-category terminal device, where the second RRC release message includes the second configuration information. The first access network device sends the second configuration information to the second-category terminal device via the RRC release message, so that the second-category terminal device can change from a connected state to a deactivated state via the RRC release message, and receive multicast services based on the second configuration information in the deactivated state.

[0075] It is understandable that, in addition to the RRC release message, the first access network device may also send corresponding configuration information to the first type of terminal device or the second type of terminal device through other messages, and this application does not limit this.

[0076] The first access network device (e.g., CU) sends the corresponding configuration information to the first type of terminal device or the second type of terminal device, which may be forwarded through the second access network device (e.g., DU). In one possible implementation, before step 301, the second access network device (e.g., DU) establishes a multicast broadcast service control channel (MBS control channel, MCCH) with the first type of terminal device and the second type of terminal device respectively, and the first configuration information and the second configuration information can be carried in the corresponding MCCH. In addition, it can be understood that the first access network device will re-encapsulate the first configuration information and the second configuration information parsed from the first information, and send them to the corresponding terminal device. Optionally, when sending configuration information to the terminal device, the first access network device may also carry the identifier of the type of terminal device corresponding to the configuration information parsed from the first information.

[0077] Optionally, step 304: the first type of terminal device receives the multicast service through the first configuration information.

[0078] Optionally, step 305: the first type of terminal device receives the multicast service through the second configuration information.

[0079] The multicast service may be carried in a multicast broadcast service traffic channel (MBS traffic channel, MTCH) established between the terminal device and the access network device.

[0080] The order of step 302, step 303, step 304 and step 305 is not limited.

[0081] In an embodiment of the present application, the first access network device provides configuration information for receiving multicast services to different types of terminal devices within a multicast group, so as to support different types of terminal devices to normally receive the same multicast services, and also realize flexible configuration of multicast services for different types of terminal devices.

[0082] In the above description, the first configuration information includes but is not limited to one or more of the following parameters: the neighboring cell list of the first access network device, the time domain resources for receiving the multicast service, the frequency domain resources for receiving the multicast service, or the demodulation order of the received multicast service data.

[0083] The second configuration information includes but is not limited to one or more of the following parameters: a neighboring cell list of the first access network device, time domain resources for receiving the multicast service, frequency domain resources for receiving the multicast service, or a demodulation order for received multicast service data.

[0084] Exemplarily, the neighbor cell list of the first access network device may be carried in an information element: MBS neighbor cell list (mbs-NeighbourCellList).

[0085] The time domain resources for receiving multicast services can be carried in the pdsch time domain resource allocation list (pdsch-TimeDomainResourceAllocationList). The demodulation order can be carried in the information element: mcs-Table-r17.

[0086] The parameters included in the first configuration information and the second configuration information may be the same or different. Taking the example of the same parameters included in the two, the first configuration information and the second configuration information may both include the following parameters: the neighbor list of the first access network device, the time domain resources for receiving the multicast service, the frequency domain resources for receiving the multicast service, or the demodulation order of the received multicast service data. Taking the example of different parameters included in the two, the first configuration information includes the following parameters: the neighbor list of the first access network device, the time domain resources for receiving the multicast service, the frequency domain resources for receiving the multicast service, and the demodulation order of the received multicast service data; the second configuration information includes the following parameters: the time domain resources for receiving the multicast service and the frequency domain resources for receiving the multicast service, and the second configuration information does not include the neighbor list of the first access network device and the demodulation order of the received multicast service data.

[0087] Among the multiple parameters commonly included in the first configuration information and the second configuration information, there is at least one parameter whose corresponding values ​​are different.

[0088] For example, the neighbor list of the first access network device may represent the scope of the multicast service. If the values ​​of the neighbor lists of the first configuration information and the second configuration information are different, it may represent that the service scopes of redcap UE and non-redcap UE are different.

[0089] For another example, the time domain resource for receiving the multicast service may be the number of time domain resource repetitions of the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), and the frequency domain resource for receiving the multicast service may be the frequency domain bandwidth. In one possible example, the frequency domain bandwidth in the first configuration information is greater than the frequency domain bandwidth in the second configuration information, and the number of time domain resource repetitions in the first configuration information is less than the number of time domain resource repetitions in the second configuration information. Considering that the maximum bandwidth supported by redcap UE is lower than the maximum bandwidth supported by non-redcap UE, in order to provide the same multicast service, if the bandwidth configured for redcap UE is lower than the bandwidth configured for non-redcap UE, the number of time domain resource repetitions configured for redcap UE is greater than the number of time domain resource repetitions configured for non-redcap UE.

[0090] For another example, the demodulation order in the first configuration information is less than or equal to the demodulation order in the second configuration information. The redcap UE has lower capabilities than the non-redcap UE, and the modulation / demodulation order supported by the redcap UE is lower than the modulation / demodulation order supported by the non-redcap UE. For example, the modulation / demodulation order supported by the non-redcap UE is as low as 64 quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) and as high as 256QAM, and the modulation / demodulation order supported by the redcap UE may be lower.

[0091] The above-mentioned step 302 introduces: the first access network device sends the first configuration information to the first type of terminal device. In a possible implementation, after step 301 and before step 302, the first access network device may also perform the following judgment step: judge whether the bandwidth configured in the second configuration information for the second type of terminal device to receive the multicast service is greater than the maximum bandwidth supported by the first type of terminal device. If yes, the first access network device sends the first configuration information to the first type of terminal device. If not, the first access network device may send the second configuration information to the first type of terminal device. The CU may judge which configuration information to provide to the redcap UE based on the bandwidth information. For example, the public frequency resource currently used by the non-redcap UE is 4MHz, and the CU judges that the redcap UE can use 4MHz to receive the multicast service, then the multicast service configuration information used by the non-redcap UE may be provided to the redcap UE.

[0092] The following introduces a specific example by taking the first access network device as CU, the second access network device as DU, the first type of terminal device as RedCapUE, and the second type of terminal device as non-RedCapUE.

[0093] FIG4 is a flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0094] Step 400a: The DU establishes a multicast broadcast service control channel MCCH with the RedCap UE.

[0095] Step 400b: The DU establishes a multicast broadcast service control channel MCCH with the non-RedCap UE.

[0096] Step 401: The DU sends first information to the CU, and correspondingly, the CU receives the first information.

[0097] The first information is used to instruct the RedCap UE to receive the first configuration information of the multicast service and the non-RedCap UE to receive the second configuration information of the multicast service. For other details of step 401, please refer to the description of step 301 and will not be repeated here.

[0098] Step 402: The CU determines whether the bandwidth configured in the second configuration information for the non-RedCap UE to receive the multicast service is greater than the maximum bandwidth supported by the RedCap UE. If yes, step 403a is executed; if not, step 403b is executed.

[0099] Step 403a: The CU sends an RRC release message to the RedCap UE, where the RRC release message includes the first configuration information.

[0100] Step 403b: The CU sends an RRC release message to the RedCap UE, where the RRC release message includes the second configuration information.

[0101] Step 404: The CU sends an RRC release message to the non-RedCap UE, where the RRC release message includes the second configuration information.

[0102] Specifically, the CU sends configuration information to the RedCap UE and the non-RedCap UE through forwarding by the DU. The DU sends the first configuration information or the second configuration information to the RedCap UE through the MCCH established with the RedCap UE in step 400a. The DU sends the second configuration information to the non-RedCap UE through the MCCH established with the non-RedCap UE in step 400b.

[0103] Step 405: The RedCap UE receives the multicast service through the first configuration information or the second configuration information.

[0104] Step 406: The non-RedCap UE receives the multicast service through the second configuration information.

[0105] It is understandable that in order to implement the functions in the above embodiments, the first type of terminal device, the second type of terminal device (hereinafter referred to as the first type of terminal device and / or the second type of terminal device), the first access network device, and the second access network device (hereinafter referred to as the first access network device and the second access network device) include hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to the execution of each function. It should be easy for those skilled in the art to realize that, in combination with the units and method steps of each example described in the embodiments disclosed in this application, the present application can be implemented in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed in the form of hardware or computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application scenario and design constraints of the technical solution.

[0106] Figures 5 and 6 are schematic diagrams of possible communication devices provided in embodiments of the present application. These communication devices can be used to implement the functions of the terminal device and access network device in the above method embodiments, thereby also achieving the beneficial effects of the above method embodiments.

[0107] As shown in FIG. 5 , the communication device 500 includes a processing unit 510 and a transceiver unit 520 .

[0108] For example, the communication device 500 is used to implement the functions of the access network device in the method embodiments shown in Figures 3 and 4. The transceiver unit 520 can perform the receiving and sending actions performed by the access network device in the method embodiments described above. The processing unit 510 can perform other actions, except for the sending and receiving actions, among the actions performed by the access network device in the method embodiments described above.

[0109] Exemplarily, when the communication device 500 is used to implement the function of the second access network device in the method embodiment shown in Figure 3: the transceiver unit 520 is used to send the first information, forward the first configuration information, and forward the second configuration information; the processing unit 510 is used to generate the first information.

[0110] Exemplarily, when the communication device 500 is used to implement the function of the first access network device in the method embodiment shown in Figure 3: the transceiver unit 520 is used to receive the first information, send the first configuration information, and send the second configuration information; the processing unit 510 is used to parse the first configuration information and the second configuration information from the first information.

[0111] When the communication device 500 is used to implement the functions of the terminal device in the method embodiments shown in Figures 3 and 4, the transceiver unit 520 can perform the receiving and sending actions performed by the terminal device in the method embodiments. The processing unit 510 can perform the actions performed by the terminal device in the method embodiments, except for the sending and receiving actions.

[0112] Exemplarily, when the communication device 500 is used to implement the functions of the terminal device in the method embodiment shown in Figure 3: the transceiver unit 520 is used to receive configuration information and receive multicast services based on the configuration information; the processing unit 510 is used to parse the configuration information.

[0113] A more detailed description of the processing unit 510 and the transceiver unit 520 can be directly obtained by referring to the relevant description of the method embodiments shown in Figures 3 and 4, and is not repeated here. The processing unit 510 can be implemented by a processor, and the transceiver unit 520 can be implemented by a transceiver.

[0114] As shown in Figure 6, communication device 600 includes a processor 610 and an interface circuit 620. Processor 610 and interface circuit 620 are coupled to each other. It is understood that interface circuit 620 can be a transceiver or an input / output interface. Optionally, communication device 600 may also include a memory 630 for storing instructions executed by processor 610, input data required by processor 610 to execute instructions, or data generated after processor 610 executes instructions.

[0115] For example, the communication device 600 is used to implement the functions of the access network device and the terminal device in the method embodiments shown in Figures 3 and 4. For example, the processor 610 is used to implement the functions of the processing unit 510, and the interface circuit 620 is used to implement the functions of the transceiver unit 520.

[0116] When the communication device is a chip used in a terminal device, the chip of the terminal device implements the functions of the terminal device in the above method embodiments. The chip of the terminal device receives information from other modules in the terminal device (such as a radio frequency module or antenna), and the information is sent by the access network device to the terminal device; or the chip of the terminal device sends information to other modules in the terminal device (such as a radio frequency module or antenna), and the information is sent by the terminal device to the access network device.

[0117] When the above-mentioned communication device is a module applied to an access network device, the access network device module implements the functions of the access network device in the above-mentioned method embodiment. The access network device module receives information from other modules in the access network device (such as a radio frequency module or an antenna), and the information is sent by the terminal device to the access network device; or, the access network device module sends information to other modules in the access network device (such as a radio frequency module or an antenna), and the information is sent by the access network device to the terminal device. The access network device module here can be a baseband chip of the access network device, or it can be a DU or other module. The DU here can be a DU under the open radio access network O-RAN architecture.

[0118] It is understood that the processor in the embodiments of the present application may be a central processing unit (CPU), or may be other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSP), application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC), field programmable gate arrays (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components, or any combination thereof. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor.

[0119] The present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program, which, when executed by a computer, enables the computer to perform the above-mentioned communication method. In other words, the computer program includes instructions for implementing the above-mentioned communication.

[0120] An embodiment of the present application further provides a computer program product, including: computer program code, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute the communication method provided above.

[0121] An embodiment of the present application also provides a communication system, which includes: a first access network device, a second access network device, a first type of terminal device, and at least one of a second type of terminal device that executes the above-mentioned communication method.

[0122] The method steps in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented by hardware or by a processor executing software instructions. The software instructions can be composed of corresponding software modules, and the software modules can be stored in a random access memory, a flash memory, a read-only memory, a programmable read-only memory, an erasable programmable read-only memory, an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory, a register, a hard disk, a mobile hard disk, a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) (also known as a read-only optical disc) or any other form of storage medium well known in the art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. Of course, the storage medium can also be an integral part of the processor. The processor and the storage medium can be located in an ASIC. In addition, the ASIC can be located in a base station or a terminal. Of course, the processor and the storage medium can also be present in a base station or a terminal as discrete components.

[0123] The above embodiments can be implemented in whole or in part using software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, they can be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer programs or instructions. When the computer programs or instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, the processes or functions described in the embodiments of this application are performed in whole or in part. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, a network device, a first control plane network element, a user equipment, or other programmable device. The computer program or instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transferred from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, the computer program or instructions can be transferred from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wired or wireless means. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium accessible by a computer or a data storage device such as a server or data center that integrates one or more available media. The available medium can be a magnetic medium, such as a floppy disk, hard disk, or magnetic tape; an optical medium, such as a digital video disk; or a semiconductor medium, such as a solid-state drive. The computer-readable storage medium may be a volatile or nonvolatile storage medium, or may include both volatile and nonvolatile types of storage media.

[0124] In the various embodiments of the present application, unless otherwise specified or there is a logical conflict, the terms and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced by each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their inherent logical relationships.

[0125] In the embodiments of the present application, the number of nouns, unless otherwise specified, means "singular noun or plural noun", that is, "one or more". "At least one" means one or more, and "plural" means two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that there can be three relationships. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone, where A or B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the previous and next associated objects are in an "or" relationship. For example, A / B means: A or B. "At least one of the following items" or "one or more of them" and other similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of single items or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c, or one or more of a, b, or c, means: a, b, c, a and b, a and c, b and c, or a and b and c. Each of a, b, and c can be single or multiple.

[0126] The ordinal numbers "first" and "second" mentioned in the embodiments of this application are used to distinguish multiple objects and are not used to limit the size, content, order, timing, priority, or importance of multiple objects. Moreover, such names do not indicate differences in the content, sender / receiver, transmission order, size, application scenario, priority, or importance of the two pieces of information. In addition, the numbering of the steps in the various embodiments introduced in this application is only for distinguishing different steps and is not used to define the order of the steps.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that, Applied to a first access network device, including: Receiving first information from a second access network device, the first information being used to indicate first configuration information for a first type of terminal device to receive a multicast service and to indicate second configuration information for a second type of terminal device to receive the multicast service, the first type of terminal device and the second type of terminal device belonging to the same multicast group, the first type of terminal device being a terminal device with reduced capabilities, and the second type of terminal device being a terminal device other than the first type of terminal device; Sending the first configuration information to the first type of terminal device and sending the second configuration information to the second type of terminal device.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The bandwidth configured for the second type of terminal device to receive the multicast service in the second configuration information is greater than the maximum bandwidth supported by the first type of terminal device.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The sending the first configuration information to the first type of terminal device and sending the second configuration information to the second type of terminal device includes: Sending a first Radio Resource Control (RRC) release message to the first type of terminal device, where the first RRC release message includes the first configuration information; And sending a second RRC release message to the second type of terminal device, where the second RRC release message includes the second configuration information.

4. A communication method, characterized in that, Applied to a first access network device, including: Receiving first information from a second access network device, the first information being used to indicate first configuration information for a first type of terminal device to receive a multicast service and to indicate second configuration information for a second type of terminal device to receive the multicast service, the first type of terminal device and the second type of terminal device belonging to the same multicast group, the first type of terminal device being a terminal device with reduced capabilities, and the second type of terminal device being a terminal device other than the first type of terminal device; Sending the second configuration information to the first type of terminal device, where the bandwidth configured for the second type of terminal device to receive the multicast service in the second configuration information is less than or equal to the maximum bandwidth supported by the first type of terminal device; Sending the second configuration information to the second type of terminal device.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein The sending the second configuration information to the first type of terminal device and sending the second configuration information to the second type of terminal device includes: Sending a first Radio Resource Control (RRC) release message to the first type of terminal device, where the first RRC release message includes the second configuration information; And sending a second RRC release message to the second type of terminal device, where the second RRC release message includes the second configuration information.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, The first configuration information and the second configuration information include one or more of the following parameters: The neighbor cell list of the first access network device, the time domain resources for receiving the multicast service, the frequency domain resources for receiving the multicast service, or the demodulation order for the received multicast service data; Wherein, the values of the same parameter in the first configuration information and the second configuration information are different.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The first access network device is a Centralized Unit (CU), and the second access network device is a Distributed Unit (DU).

8. The method according to any one of claims 1-7, characterized in that, The first information is carried in any of the following messages: Multicast broadcast service context establishment response message, or multicast broadcast service context modification response message, or multicast broadcast service context notification indication message, or multicast broadcast service context modification request message.

9. A communication device, characterized in that, Comprising a module for performing the method according to any one of claims 1-8.

10. A communication device, characterized in that, Comprising a processor, the processor being coupled to a memory; The memory for storing computer programs or instructions; The processor for executing some or all of the computer programs or instructions in the memory, and when the some or all of the computer programs or instructions are executed, for implementing the method according to any one of claims 1-8.

11. A communication device, characterized in that, Comprising a processor and a memory; The memory for storing computer programs or instructions; The processor for executing some or all of the computer programs or instructions in the memory, and when the some or all of the computer programs or instructions are executed, for implementing the method according to any one of claims 1-8.

12. A communication device, characterized in that, Comprising a processor and an interface circuit, the interface circuit for receiving signals from other communication devices outside the communication device and transmitting them to the processor or sending signals from the processor to other communication devices outside the communication device, the processor for implementing the method according to any one of claims 1-8 through logic circuits or executing code instructions.

13. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The storage medium stores computer programs or instructions, and when the computer programs or instructions are executed by the communication device, the method according to any one of claims 1-8 is implemented.

14. A computer program product, characterized in that, The computer program product includes: computer instructions, and when the computer instructions run on a computer, the method according to any one of claims 1-8 is implemented.

15. A communication system, characterized in that, Comprising: A first access network device, the first type of terminal device, and the second type of terminal device that execute the method according to any one of claims 1-8.

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