Communication method and apparatus, communication device, communication system, and storage medium

Abstract

Provided in the present disclosure are a communication method, apparatus and device, and a storage medium. The method comprises: receiving or sending a first message; and receiving or sending at least one second message, wherein the first message is a message related to a first user equipment, different second messages are messages related to different second user equipments, the first user equipment is a user equipment that has established a communication connection with a first network element by means of a second network element, the second user equipment is a user equipment that is different from the first user equipment, and the first message and the second message are received or sent differently, either in a container encapsulation mode or an embedded message mode. The method of the present disclosure distinguishes a first message, which is communicated between a first network element and a first user equipment, from a second message, which is communicated between the first network element and a second user equipment, thereby ensuring the stability of communication.

Description

Communication method and device, communication equipment, communication system, and storage medium Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of communication technologies, and in particular to communication methods and devices, communication equipment, communication systems, and storage media. Background Art

[0002] In order to support direct communication between terminals, a sidelink (SL) communication method is introduced. Ranging refers to determining the distance between two or more terminals, or the direction from one terminal to another, through a PC5 interface. A PC5 interface refers to a communication interface between terminals, such as a short-range direct communication interface between vehicles, people, and road infrastructure. Sidelink SL positioning refers to estimating the position of a located terminal based on the sidelink SL. For example, ranging or sidelink SL positioning can be performed on a located terminal (e.g., a target terminal (target user equipment, target UE)) based on information from a terminal (e.g., a positioning terminal (located user equipment, located UE)). The reference terminal can be, for example, an SL reference terminal whose position is known or can be known in ranging or sidelink SL positioning. For another example, the relative position information of a terminal (e.g., a target terminal (target user equipment, target UE)) and another terminal (e.g., an SL reference terminal (sidelink reference user equipment, sidelink reference UE)) can be determined through ranging or sidelink SL positioning.

[0003] Summary of the Invention

[0004] The present disclosure provides a communication method and apparatus, a communication device, a communication system, and a storage medium.

[0005] According to a first aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication method is provided, which is performed by a first network element or a first terminal. The method includes:

[0006] receiving or sending a first message;

[0007] receiving or sending at least one second message; wherein

[0008] The first message is a message related to a first terminal, and the second message is a message related to a different second terminal; the first terminal is a terminal that has established a communication connection with the first network element through the second network element, and the second terminal is a terminal different from the first terminal; and the first message and the second message are distinguished by being received or sent in a container-encapsulated manner or embedded in messages.

[0009] According to a second aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a first network element or a first terminal is provided, including:

[0010] a transceiver module, configured to receive or send a first message;

[0011] The transceiver module is further configured to receive or send at least one second message;

[0012] The first message is a message related to a first terminal, and the second message is a message related to a different second terminal; the first terminal is a terminal that has established a communication connection with the first network element through the second network element, and the second terminal is a terminal different from the first terminal; and the first message and the second message are distinguished by being received or sent in a container-encapsulated manner or embedded in messages.

[0013] According to a third aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication device is provided, including:

[0014] one or more processors;

[0015] The processor is used to call instructions to enable the communication device to execute the communication method described in the first aspect.

[0016] According to a fourth aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication system is proposed, characterized in that it includes a first network element and a first terminal, wherein the first network element or the first terminal is configured to implement the method described in the first aspect.

[0017] According to a fifth aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a storage medium is proposed, which stores instructions, and is characterized in that when the instructions are executed on a communication device, the communication device executes the communication method as described in the first aspect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] The above and / or additional aspects and advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent and readily understood from the following description of the embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0019] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of some communication systems provided by embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0020] FIG2A is a flow chart of a communication method provided in yet another embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0021] FIG3A is a flow chart of a communication method provided in yet another embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0022] FIG4A is a schematic structural diagram of a first network element or a first terminal provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0023] FIG5A is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0024] FIG5B is a schematic structural diagram of a chip provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] The embodiments of the present disclosure provide communication methods and apparatuses, communication devices, communication systems, and storage media. In some embodiments, the terms "communication method" and "information processing method," "information sending method," and "information receiving method" are interchangeable; the terms "communication apparatus" and "information processing apparatus," "information sending apparatus," and "information receiving apparatus" are interchangeable; and the terms "information processing system," "communication system," "information sending system," and "information receiving system" are interchangeable.

[0026] The embodiments of the present disclosure are not exhaustive and are merely illustrative of some embodiments, and are not intended to be a specific limitation on the scope of protection of the present disclosure. In the absence of contradiction, each step in a certain embodiment can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the steps can be arbitrarily combined. For example, a solution after removing some steps in a certain embodiment can also be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the order of the steps in a certain embodiment can be arbitrarily exchanged. In addition, the optional implementation methods in a certain embodiment can be arbitrarily combined; in addition, the embodiments can be arbitrarily combined. For example, some or all steps of different embodiments can be arbitrarily combined, and a certain embodiment can be arbitrarily combined with the optional implementation methods of other embodiments.

[0027] In each embodiment of the present disclosure, unless otherwise specified or provided for by logic, the terms and / or descriptions between the embodiments are consistent and can be referenced by each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form a new embodiment based on their inherent logical relationships.

[0028] The terms used in the embodiments of the present disclosure are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present disclosure.

[0029] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, unless otherwise specified, elements expressed in the singular, such as "a", "an", "the", "above", "said", "the", "the", etc., may mean "one and only one", or "one or more", "at least one", etc. For example, when using articles such as "a", "an", "the" in English in translation, the noun following the article may be understood as a singular expression or a plural expression.

[0030] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, “plurality” refers to two or more.

[0031] In some embodiments, the terms "at least one of", "at least one of", "at least one of", "one or more", "a plurality of", "multiple", etc. can be used interchangeably.

[0032] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, descriptions such as “at least one of A, B, C…”, “A and / or B and / or C…”, etc. include the situation where any one of A, B, C… exists alone, and also include any combination of any multiple of A, B, C…, and each situation can exist alone; for example, “at least one of A, B, C” includes the situation where A exists alone, B exists alone, C exists alone, the combination of A and B, the combination of A and C, the combination of B and C, and the combination of A, B, and C; for example, A and / or B includes the situation where A exists alone, B exists alone, and the combination of A and B.

[0033] In some embodiments, descriptions such as "in one case A, in another case B," or "in response to one case A, in response to another case B," may include the following technical solutions depending on the situation: executing A independently of B (in some embodiments, A); executing B independently of A (in some embodiments, B); selectively executing A and B (in some embodiments, selecting between A and B); and executing both A and B (in some embodiments, A and B). The same applies when there are more branches, such as A, B, and C.

[0034] The prefixes such as "first" and "second" in the embodiments of the present disclosure are only used to distinguish different description objects and do not constitute any restriction on the position, order, priority, quantity or content of the description objects. For the statement of the description object, please refer to the description in the context of the claims or embodiments, and no unnecessary restriction should be constituted due to the use of prefixes. For example, if the description object is a "field", the ordinal number before the "field" in the "first field" and the "second field" does not limit the position or order between the "fields". "First" and "second" do not limit whether the "fields" they modify are in the same message, nor do they limit the order of the "first field" and the "second field". For another example, if the description object is a "level", the ordinal number before the "level" in the "first level" and the "second level" does not limit the priority between the "levels". For another example, the number of description objects is not limited by the ordinal number and can be one or more. Taking "first device" as an example, the number of "devices" can be one or more. In addition, the objects modified by different prefixes can be the same or different. For example, if the description object is "device", then the "first device" and the "second device" can be the same device or different devices, and their types can be the same or different; for another example, if the description object is "information", then the "first information" and the "second information" can be the same information or different information, and their contents can be the same or different.

[0035] In some embodiments, “including A,” “comprising A,” “used to indicate A,” and “carrying A” can be interpreted as directly carrying A or indirectly indicating A.

[0036] In some embodiments, terms such as "in response to...", "in response to determining...", "in the case of...", "at the time of...", "when...", "if...", "if...", etc. can be used interchangeably.

[0037] In some embodiments, terms such as "greater than", "greater than or equal to", "not less than", "more than", "more than or equal to", "not less than", "higher than", "higher than or equal to", "not less than", and "above" can be replaced with each other, and terms such as "less than", "less than or equal to", "not greater than", "less than", "less than or equal to", "not more than", "lower than", "lower than or equal to", "not higher than", and "below" can be replaced with each other.

[0038] In some embodiments, devices, etc. can be interpreted as physical or virtual, and their names are not limited to the names recorded in the embodiments. Terms such as "device", "equipment", "device", "circuit", "network element", "node", "function", "unit", "section", "system", "network", "chip", "chip system", "entity", and "subject" can be used interchangeably.

[0039] In some embodiments, "network" can be interpreted as devices included in the network (eg, access network equipment, core network equipment, etc.).

[0040] In some embodiments, the terms "access network device (AN device)", "radio access network device (RAN device)", "base station (BS)", "radio base station" "fixed station", "node", "access point", "transmission point (TP)", "reception point (RP)", "transmission / reception point (TRP)", "panel", "antenna panel", "antenna array", "cell", "macro cell", "small cell", "femto cell", "pico cell", "sector", "cell group", "carrier", "component carrier", "bandwidth part (BWP)" and the like may be used interchangeably.

[0041] In some embodiments, the terms "terminal", "terminal device", "user equipment (UE)", "user terminal", "mobile station (MS)", "mobile terminal (MT)", subscriber station, mobile unit, subscriber unit, wireless unit, remote unit, mobile device, wireless device, wireless communication device, remote device, mobile subscriber station, access terminal, mobile terminal, wireless terminal, remote terminal, handset, user agent, mobile client, client, etc. can be used interchangeably.

[0042] In some embodiments, the access network device, the core network device, or the network device can be replaced by a terminal. For example, the various embodiments of the present disclosure can also be applied to a structure in which the communication between the access network device, the core network device, or the network device and the terminal is replaced by communication between multiple terminals (for example, it can also be called device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X), etc.). In this case, it can also be set as a structure in which the terminal has all or part of the functions of the access network device. In addition, language such as "uplink" and "downlink" can also be replaced by language corresponding to communication between terminals (for example, "side"). For example, uplink channels, downlink channels, etc. can be replaced by side channels, and uplinks, downlinks, etc. can be replaced by side links.

[0043] In some embodiments, the terminal may be replaced by an access network device, a core network device, or a network device. In this case, the access network device, the core network device, or the network device may have a structure that has all or part of the functions of the terminal.

[0044] In some embodiments, obtaining data, information, etc. may comply with the laws and regulations of the country where the data is obtained.

[0045] In some embodiments, data, information, etc. may be obtained with the user's consent.

[0046] In addition, each element, each row, or each column in the table of the embodiment of the present disclosure can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the combination of any elements, any rows, and any columns can also be implemented as an independent embodiment.

[0047] The correspondences shown in the tables of the present disclosure can be configured or predefined. The values ​​of the information in each table are merely examples and can be configured to other values, which are not limited by the present disclosure. When configuring the correspondences between information and parameters, it is not necessarily required to configure all the correspondences shown in each table. For example, in the tables of the present disclosure, the correspondences shown in certain rows may not be configured. For another example, appropriate deformation adjustments can be made based on the above tables, such as splitting, merging, etc. The names of the parameters shown in the titles of the above tables may also adopt other names that can be understood by the communication device, and the values ​​or representations of the parameters may also adopt other values ​​or representations that can be understood by the communication device. When implementing the above tables, other data structures may also be used, such as arrays, queues, containers, stacks, linear lists, pointers, linked lists, trees, graphs, structures, classes, heaps, hash tables or hash tables, etc.

[0048] The predefined in the present disclosure may be understood as defined, predefined, stored, pre-stored, pre-negotiated, pre-configured, solidified, or pre-burned.

[0049] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 1, the communication system 100 may include a first terminal, a second terminal, a core network device, and an access network device.

[0050] In some embodiments, the terminal (i.e., the first terminal or the second terminal mentioned above) includes, for example, a mobile phone, a wearable device, an Internet of Things device, a car with communication function, a smart car, a tablet computer, a computer with wireless transceiver function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal device in industrial control, a wireless terminal device in self-driving, a wireless terminal device in remote medical surgery, a wireless terminal device in a smart grid, a wireless terminal device in transportation safety, a wireless terminal device in a smart city, and at least one of a wireless terminal device in a smart home, but is not limited thereto.

[0051] In some embodiments, the access network device is, for example, a node or device that accesses a terminal to a wireless network. The access network device may include an evolved NodeB (eNB), a next generation evolved NodeB (ng-eNB), a next generation NodeB (gNB), a node B (NB), a home node B (HNB), a home evolved nodeB (HeNB), a wireless backhaul device, a radio network controller (RNC), a base station controller (BSC), a base transceiver station (BTS), a base band unit (BBU), a mobile switching center, a base station in a 6G communication system, an open base station (Open RAN), a cloud base station (Cloud RAN), a base station in other communication systems, and at least one of an access node in a wireless fidelity (WiFi) system, but is not limited thereto.

[0052] In some embodiments, the access network device can be composed of a centralized unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU), where the CU can also be called a control unit. The CU-DU structure can be used to split the protocol layer of the access network device, with the functions of some protocol layers centrally controlled by the CU, and the functions of the remaining part or all of the protocol layers distributed in the DU, which is centrally controlled by the CU, but is not limited to this.

[0053] In some embodiments, the core network device may be a device including one or more network elements, or may be multiple devices or device groups, each including all or part of one or more network elements. The network element may be virtual or physical. The core network may include, for example, at least one of an Evolved Packet Core (EPC), a 5G Core Network (5GCN), and a Next Generation Core (NGC). Alternatively, the core network device may include, for example, the following network elements:

[0054] A first network element, a location management function (LMF), may optionally be a serving LMF network element of the first terminal. Furthermore, the second terminal may be a terminal different from the first terminal;

[0055] The second network element, Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), optionally, the second network element can be a service AMF network element of the first terminal, and the first terminal can communicate with the above-mentioned first network element through the second network element.

[0056] It can be understood that the communication system described in the embodiment of the present disclosure is for the purpose of more clearly illustrating the technical solution of the embodiment of the present disclosure, and does not constitute a limitation on the technical solution proposed in the embodiment of the present disclosure. Ordinary technicians in this field can know that with the evolution of the system architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solution proposed in the embodiment of the present disclosure is also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0057] The following embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to the communication system 100 shown in Figure 1, or a portion thereof, but are not limited thereto. The entities shown in Figure 1 are illustrative only. The communication system may include all or part of the entities shown in Figure 1, or may include other entities outside of Figure 1. The number and form of the entities may be arbitrary. The connection relationship between the entities is illustrative only. The entities may be connected or disconnected, and the connection may be in any manner, including direct or indirect, wired or wireless.

[0058] The embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied to Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), LTE-Beyond (LTE-B), SUPER 3G, IMT-Advanced, 4th generation mobile communication system (4G), 5th generation mobile communication system (5G), 5G new radio (NR), future radio access (FRA), new radio access technology (RAT), new radio (NR), new radio access (NX), future generation radio access (FX), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM (registered trademark)), CDMA2000, Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi (registered trademark)), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX (registered trademark)), IEEE 802.20, Ultra-WideBand (UWB), Bluetooth (registered trademark), Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) networks, Device-to-Device (D2D) systems, Machine-to-Machine (M2M) systems, Internet of Things (IoT) systems, Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X), systems utilizing other communication methods, and next-generation systems based on and extending these methods. Furthermore, a combination of multiple systems (e.g., a combination of LTE or LTE-A with 5G) may also be employed.

[0059] Optionally, the following terminals are usually used in the above-mentioned ranging or SL positioning process:

[0060] A target UE is a terminal whose distance, direction and / or position is obtained based on SL measurement in ranging or SL service with the support of one or more SL reference terminals.

[0061] SL Reference UE is a terminal that supports positioning of a target terminal, for example, by using SL to send and / or receive reference signals for positioning, provide positioning-related information, etc.

[0062] A located UE is a SL reference terminal whose location is known or can be determined using positioning based on the Uu interface. The located UE can be used to determine the location of a target terminal using SL positioning.

[0063] SL Positioning Client UE refers to a third-party terminal other than the SL reference terminal, target terminal, positioning terminal, etc. It initiates ranging or SL positioning service requests on behalf of the applications residing on it.

[0064] The SL Positioning Server UE (SL Positioning Server UE) is a terminal that provides method determination, assistance data distribution, and / or position calculation functions for SL positioning and ranging services. It interacts with other UEs via the PC5 interface when necessary to determine ranging / SL positioning methods, distribute assistance data, and calculate the location of the target UE. A target terminal or SL reference terminal that supports these functions can act as an SL Positioning Server Terminal.

[0065] Optionally, the above-mentioned ranging or SL positioning results may include: absolute position, relative position, distance and direction, among which the specific ones include depend on the service requirements. If the target terminal decides to start the Sindlink-Mobile Originated-Location Request (SL-MO-LR) process, the target terminal may include information of one or more SL reference terminals and / or positioning terminals in the service request message. If the Location Services Client (LCS Client) or the Application Function (AF) network element decides to obtain the ranging or SL positioning results of a group of n terminals (n≥2), namely terminal 1, terminal 2, ..., terminal n, the Gateway Mobile Location Centre (GMLC) will specify the target terminal from the n terminals, and specify one or more SL reference terminals and / or positioning terminals, and then the Sindlink-Mobile Terminated Location Request (SL-MT-LR) process may be applied.

[0066] Optionally, in the SL-MT-LR or SL-MO-LR process, only one terminal (for example, for a non-access stratum (NAS) connection case, the terminal may be a target terminal) is directly connected to a location management function (LMF), and the target terminal may include information in a Sidelink Positioning Protocol (SLPP) message received from other terminals (for example, other terminals participating in ranging or SL positioning processes, such as positioning terminals) in a supplementary service message and send it to the LMF, or send it directly to the LMF.

[0067] Optionally, an SLPP session is typically used between terminals, or between a location server and a terminal, so that location-related measurements, location estimates, or assistance data based on NR PC5 radio signals can be obtained. A single SLPP session can be used to support a single positioning request (e.g., for a single SL-MT-LR, or SL-MO-LR). For operations involving LMF, a session ID is assigned by the target terminal and included in the SLPP message used for communication between terminals. The session ID may also be included in the SLPP message used for communication between the target terminal and the LMF.

[0068] In some embodiments, SLPP supports the exchange of ranging / SL positioning capabilities, the exchange of ranging / SL positioning assistance data, and the exchange of ranging / SL positioning measurement data / results using the following message types:

[0069] request capabilities;

[0070] Provide capabilities;

[0071] Request auxiliary data;

[0072] Provide auxiliary data;

[0073] Request location information;

[0074] Provide location information;

[0075] abort;

[0076] mistake.

[0077] Therefore, the SLPP message corresponding to the target terminal connected to the LMF and / or the SLPP message corresponding to the terminal other than the target terminal is transmitted between the LMF and the target terminal through N1.

[0078] Optionally, currently defined in the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) TS 23.273, in the process of supporting ranging and SL positioning, such as the SL-MO-LR process of the SL-MT-LR process, the LMF directly uses SLPP messages or uses supplementary service messages with embedded SLPP messages to exchange information with the target terminal (i.e., the terminal connected to the LMF) and / or other terminals other than the target terminal, wherein, for the SLPP messages or embedded SLPP messages communicated between the LMF and the other terminals, the relevant application layer identifiers (Identifier, ID) of the other terminals can be included in the SLPP container to distinguish them from the "SLPP messages or embedded SLPP messages communicated between the LMF and the target terminal".

[0079] Optionally, one of the terminals other than the target terminal may be connected to the LMF.

[0080] The terminal and LMF connection mentioned here means that the terminal can establish a NAS connection with the network and interact with the LMF of the service terminal through AMF. Except for the terminal that establishes a NAS connection, other terminals interact with the network through "terminals that establish NAS with the network."

[0081] However, when adding an application layer ID to an SLPP container of an SLPP message or an embedded SLPP message for communication between an LMF and other terminals, how to specifically process the SLPP message or the embedded SLPP message has not yet been defined.

[0082] FIG2A is an interactive diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG2A , the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a communication method for use in a communication system 100, the method comprising:

[0083] Step 2101: A first network element communicates a first message and / or at least one second message with a first terminal.

[0084] Optionally, the first network element may be an LMF, and the first terminal may be a terminal that has established a communication connection with a core network device (such as the first network element) through a second network element. For example, the first terminal may interact with the first network element through the second network element, and the second network element may be an AMF. The first network element and the second network element may be understood as service network elements of the first terminal. In addition, the second terminal may be a terminal different from the first terminal, for example, the second terminal may be a terminal other than the first terminal. Optionally, in some embodiments, when in a ranging service or a SL positioning service, the first terminal may be, for example, a target terminal (target UE) connected to the LMF, and the second terminal may be, for example, a terminal other than the target terminal in the SL positioning process, for example, a positioned terminal (Located UE) or a SL reference terminal (SL Reference UE). Optionally, the first terminal may be, for example, a terminal other than the target terminal (target UE) connected to the network, such as a positioning terminal (Located UE) or an SL reference terminal (SL Reference UE), and the second terminal may be, for example, a terminal other than the target terminal in the SL positioning process, for example, a positioning terminal (Located UE) or an SL reference terminal (SL Reference UE) or a target terminal (target UE).

[0085] Optionally, in some embodiments, the above-mentioned first message may be a message related to the first terminal. For example, the first message may be a message related to the first terminal sent by the first network element to the first terminal, or the first message may be a message related to the first terminal sent by the first terminal to the first network element.

[0086] Furthermore, the aforementioned second message may be a message related to the second terminal, wherein one second message may correspond to one second terminal. When there are multiple second messages, different second messages may correspond to different second terminals. Specifically, in some embodiments, the aforementioned second message may be a message related to the second terminal in communication between the first network element and the first terminal; for example, the second message may be a message related to the second terminal sent by the first network element to the first terminal, so that the first terminal can communicate with the second terminal based on the second message to perform related message exchange; or, the second message may be a message related to the second terminal sent by the first terminal to the first network element. Optionally, the first terminal may send relevant information about its interaction with the second terminal as the second message to the first network element. Alternatively, in some further embodiments, the second message may be a message forwarded by the first terminal during communication between the first network element and the second terminal. For example, the first network element may first send the second message to the first terminal, which may then be forwarded by the first terminal to the second terminal, or the second terminal may first send the second message to the first terminal, which may then be forwarded by the first terminal to the first network element. In addition, it should be noted that the message communication between the first network element and the first terminal is realized through the second network element. For example, the first network element can first send the message sent to the first terminal to the second network element, and then the second network element sends it to the first terminal, and vice versa, that is, the first terminal first sends the message sent to the first network element to the second network element, and then the second network element sends it to the first network element.

[0087] Optionally, in some embodiments, the above-mentioned first message and second message may be one or more SLPP messages. Furthermore, the first message may include at least one SLPP message related to the first terminal, and the second message may include at least one SLPP message related to the second terminal. The SLPP message may be service information of the current service (such as ranging or SL positioning service), and at least one SLPP message constitutes the above-mentioned message (ie, the first message or the second message). Specifically, as can be seen from the description before Figure 2A, the SLPP message can be used to request capabilities, provide capabilities, request auxiliary data, provide auxiliary data, request location information, provide location information, etc.

[0088] Optionally, in some embodiments, the above-mentioned first message may also include a first numerical value, which can be used to indicate the number of SLPP messages included in the first message, and the above-mentioned second message may also include a second numerical value, which can be used to indicate the number of SLPP messages included in the second message.

[0089] Furthermore, in some embodiments, the first message and the second message may be received or sent separately in a container encapsulation manner or in a message embedded manner. This part is described in detail below:

[0090] In some embodiments, the first message and the second message may be encapsulated in a payload container for transmission; in this case, the first message and the second message may be encapsulated in different containers so as to be distinguishable.

[0091] Specifically, in some embodiments, a first message may be encapsulated by a first payload container, and at least one second message may be encapsulated by a second payload container. The payload container type of the first payload container is different from the payload container type of the second payload container. For example, the payload container type of the first payload container may be a "SLPP message container," and the payload container type of the second payload container may be a "SLPP message container for a related terminal." Furthermore, the payload container contents of the second payload container may include a first identifier corresponding to at least one second message. The first identifier may be used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message. The "second terminal corresponding to the second message" may be understood, for example, as the second terminal that receives the second message or the second terminal that sends the second message. Furthermore, the first identifier may be the application layer ID of the second terminal corresponding to the second message. Optionally, when the second payload container is used to encapsulate multiple second messages, the payload container contents of the second payload container may further include a third value. The third value may be used to indicate the number of second messages included in the payload container contents of the second payload container, or the number of second terminals communicating with the first network element. It should also be noted that in some embodiments, the payload container content of the first payload container may include or not include a second identifier, and the second identifier may be used to indicate the first terminal. For example, the second identifier may be the terminal ID of the first terminal, such as the application layer ID of the first terminal or the Subscriber Permanent Identifier (SUPI) or the Subscription Concealed Identifier (SUCI) or the Generic Public Subscription Identifier (GPSI).

[0092] In other embodiments, the first message is encapsulated by a first payload container, and the second message is encapsulated by a second payload container. The payload container type of the first payload container is different from the payload container type of the second payload container. Furthermore, the second payload container may include a first identifier corresponding to the second message, and the first identifier is not located in the payload container content of the second payload container. The first identifier is used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message. In this case, the second payload container can be used to encapsulate a second message. Furthermore, in some embodiments, the payload container of the first payload container may or may not include the second identifier. When the payload container of the first payload container includes the second identifier, the second identifier is not located in the payload container content of the first payload container.

[0093] In some further embodiments, the first message and at least one second message are both encapsulated by a third payload container; that is, the third payload container can be used to encapsulate the first message, or the third payload container can be used to encapsulate at least one second message. Furthermore, the payload container content of the third payload container may include first indication information, which is used to indicate whether the third payload container encapsulates the first message or the second message. The first indication information may, for example, be an N-bit value, where N is a positive integer. When the first indication information is a first value (e.g., 0), it indicates that the third payload container encapsulates the first message; when the first indication information is a second value (e.g., 1), it indicates that the third payload container encapsulates the second message. Optionally, when the first indication information indicates that the third payload container encapsulates the second message, the payload container content of the third payload container may also include a first identifier corresponding to at least one second message; the first identifier is used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message. Optionally, when the third payload container is used to encapsulate multiple second messages, the payload container content of the third payload container may also include the aforementioned third numerical value. For information regarding the third numerical value, please refer to the above description. It should also be noted that, in some embodiments, when the first indication information indicates that the third payload container encapsulates the first message, the payload container content of the third payload container may also include the above-mentioned second identifier; the second identifier may be used to indicate the first terminal, for example, the second identifier may be the terminal ID of the first terminal, such as the application layer ID of the first terminal or SUPI or SUCI or GPSI.

[0094] In some further embodiments, both the first message and the second message are encapsulated by a third payload container; optionally, the third payload container can be used to encapsulate the first message, or the third payload container can be used to encapsulate a second message. Furthermore, the container-related description information corresponding to the third payload container can include at least one of the following: first indication information and / or a terminal identifier, where the terminal identifier can be used to indicate the terminal corresponding to the first message or the second message carried by the third payload container.

[0095] Optionally, in some embodiments, when the third payload container encapsulates a second message, the first indication information included in the container-related description information can be used to indicate that the third payload container encapsulates the second message. In this case, the container-related description information corresponding to the third payload container may also include the terminal identifier corresponding to the second message (i.e., the aforementioned first identifier). Alternatively, in some embodiments, when the third payload container encapsulates a second message, the container-related description information corresponding to the third payload container may include the terminal identifier corresponding to the second message, but not include the first indication information. Optionally, in other embodiments, when the third payload container encapsulates a first message, the first indication information included in the container-related description information can be used to indicate that the third payload container encapsulates the first message. In this case, the container-related description information corresponding to the third payload container may also include or not include the terminal identifier corresponding to the first message (i.e., the aforementioned second identifier). Alternatively, in some embodiments, when the third payload container encapsulates a first message, the container-related description information corresponding to the third payload container may include the terminal identifier corresponding to the first message, but not include the first indication information. When the container-related description information corresponding to the third payload container includes a terminal identifier but does not include the first indication information, the first terminal can determine whether the third payload container encapsulates the first message or the second message by matching the terminal identifier.

[0096] Optionally, the container-related description information corresponding to the third payload container may include one or more of a payload container information element, at least one first container-related description information, and at least one second container-related description information. The first container-related description information may be a new parameter different from the payload container information element, and the second container-related description information may be a new parameter different from the payload container information element and the first container-related description information. Furthermore, in some embodiments, the above-mentioned first indication information may be included in the payload container information information element or included in the first container-related description information, and the above-mentioned terminal identifier may also be included in the payload container information information element or included in the first container-related description information or included in the second container-related description information; wherein, when the container-related description information corresponding to the third payload container includes both the first indication information and the terminal identifier, the first indication information and the terminal identifier may be located in the same or different container-related description information, for example, the first indication information may be located in the payload container information information element, and the terminal identifier may be located in the first container-related description information; or, the first indication information and the terminal identifier may be located in the same first container-related description information, or, the first indication information may be located in the first container-related description information, and the terminal identifier may be located in the second container-related description information.

[0097] In some further embodiments, a first message may be encapsulated by a first payload container entry, and a second message may be encapsulated by a second payload container entry, wherein different second messages are encapsulated by different second payload container entries, and the first payload container entry and / or at least one second payload container entry are encapsulated together in a fourth payload container; wherein the second payload container entry may further include second indication information and / or a first identifier corresponding to the second message, the second indication information being used to indicate that the second payload container entry encapsulates the second message, and the first identifier being used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message. The first payload container entry may further include third indication information and / or a second identifier, the third indication information being used to indicate that the first payload container entry encapsulates the first message, and the second identifier being used to indicate the first terminal.

[0098] Furthermore, in some other embodiments, the first message and the second message may be embedded in a third message (eg, a supplementary service message) for transmission; in this case, the first message and the second message may be embedded in different ways so as to be distinguishable.

[0099] Specifically, in some embodiments, both the first message and the second message are carried by a first parameter type. When the first parameter type carries the second message, the first parameter type may also carry a first identifier corresponding to the second message, where the first identifier is used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message. Furthermore, when the first parameter type carries the first message, the first parameter type may or may not carry a second identifier corresponding to the first message, where the first identifier is used to indicate the first terminal.

[0100] In other embodiments, the first message is carried by the second parameter type, and the second message is carried by the third parameter type. The second parameter type is different from the third parameter type. The third parameter type can also carry the first identifier corresponding to the second message, and the first identifier is used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message. The second parameter type can also carry or not carry the second identifier corresponding to the first message, and the first identifier is used to indicate the first terminal.

[0101] Step 2102: At least one second message is communicated between the first terminal and the second terminal.

[0102] For a detailed introduction to the second message, please refer to the above description.

[0103] In some embodiments, communicating the second message between the first terminal and the second terminal may, for example, include: the first terminal forwarding the second message received by the first terminal from the first network element to the second terminal, or the first terminal receiving the second message sent by the second terminal to the first network element.

[0104] In some embodiments, a first terminal and a second terminal communicate based on a second message. For example, the first terminal receives a second message (i.e., a message related to the second terminal) sent by a first network element, and the first terminal interacts with the second terminal based on the received second message; or the first terminal interacts with the second terminal based on information related to the second message, and the first terminal encapsulates the information related to the received second message into a second message and sends it to the first network element.

[0105] It can be seen from the above embodiments that this embodiment distinguishes between the first message communicated between the first network element and the first terminal and the second message communicated between the first network element and the second terminal, so that the first terminal can clearly understand which messages are first messages sent to itself and which messages are second messages that need to be forwarded between the first network element and the second terminal, thereby ensuring the successful transmission of the first message and the second message, ensuring the successful communication between the first network element and the first terminal, and also ensuring the successful communication between the first network element and the second terminal, thereby ensuring the stability of communication.

[0106] The communication method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps 2101 and 2102. For example, step 2101 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 2102 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 2103 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and step 2101+step 2102 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0107] In this embodiment or example, unless there is any contradiction, each step can be independent, arbitrarily combined or exchanged in order, the optional methods or optional examples can be arbitrarily combined, and can be arbitrarily combined with any steps of other embodiments or other examples.

[0108] Figure 3A is an interactive diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 3A, the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a communication method for a first network element or a first terminal, the method comprising:

[0109] Step 3101: Receive or send a first message.

[0110] Step 3102: Receive or send at least one second message.

[0111] The first message is a message related to a first terminal, and the second message is a message related to a different second terminal; the first terminal is a terminal that has established a communication connection with the first network element through the second network element, and the second terminal is a terminal different from the first terminal; and the first message and the second message are distinguished by being received or sent in a container-encapsulated manner or embedded in messages.

[0112] For a detailed description of steps 3101 - 3102 , please refer to the above embodiment description.

[0113] The communication method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps 3101 to 3102. For example, step 3101 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 3102 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and step 3101+S3102 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0114] In this embodiment or example, unless there is any contradiction, each step can be independent, arbitrarily combined or exchanged in order, the optional methods or optional examples can be arbitrarily combined, and can be arbitrarily combined with any steps of other embodiments or other examples.

[0115] The following is an exemplary description of the method disclosed herein:

[0116] The present disclosure provides a solution to improve SLPP message transmission, including: how LMF encapsulates SLPP messages sent to the first terminal, i.e., the target terminal (i.e., the terminal with which the LMF has established a communication connection through the AMF) and other terminals (i.e., terminals other than the target terminal) and embedded SLPP messages embedded in supplementary service messages.

[0117] In some embodiments, the SLPP message for the target terminal and the SLPP messages related to other terminals use containers of different payload container types;

[0118] In some embodiments, the SLPP message for the target terminal and the SLPP messages related to other terminals use containers of the same payload container type;

[0119] In some embodiments, multiple payload containers, wherein multiple SLPP messages can be contained in different payload containers, and support is provided for SLPP messages for a target terminal and SLPP messages associated with other UEs using containers of different or same payload container types as the target terminal.

[0120] In some embodiments, the SLPP message may be included in the supplementary service message as an embedded message parameter, and support a method of including the SLPP message for the target terminal and SLPP messages related to other UEs using different or the same embedded message parameters as the target terminal.

[0121] Optionally, this method can be applied to all SLPP messages exchanged between the target terminal, other terminals, and the LMF, including the SLPP messages listed in the following table or any other SLPP messages:

[0122] When sending an SLPP message like the one above or any other SLPP message to the LMF, it can be sent from UEx to UE1 and then transparently transmitted to the LMF through UE1. Alternatively, it can be sent to UE1 and then UE1 generates a corresponding message based on the relevant information and sends it to the LMF. When sending an SLPP message from the LMF, it can be sent from the LMF to UE1 and then transparently transmitted to UEx through UE1. Alternatively, it can be sent to UE1 and then UE1 generates a corresponding message based on the relevant information and sends it to UEx. UE1 is the terminal that establishes a connection with the network and exchanges messages with the LMF through the AMF. Other UEs can be labeled as UEx, meaning the other UEs in the service other than UE1.

[0123] The following describes a method for defining the information format of SLPP messages related to UE1 (ie, target terminal) and other UEs (ie, UEx, other terminals).

[0124] In order to distinguish the SLPP messages of UE1 and other UEs, the SLPP messages exchanged between UE1 and LMF can be defined in the following ways:

[0125] In some embodiments, the container containing the SLPP message for UE1 has its payload container type set to "SLPP message container" and the content of the payload container is set to SLPP message payload; and a new container type is used to indicate the container type containing the SLPP message related to UEx, as follows:

[0126] The SLPP message of UEx and the ID of the related UEx are included in the content of the container of the new container type;

[0127] Also, in some embodiments, the SLPP message of UE1 is included in the content of the SLPP message container, and the ID of UE1 may be optionally included or not included in the content of the SLPP message container;

[0128] The following table gives an example of how to define a container containing the SLPP message of UE1 and the SLPP message of UEx, as well as the UE identity related to UEx.

[0129] Payload container content with payload container type "SLPP message container"

[0130] Payload container content with payload container type "SLPP message container"

[0131] Payload container content with payload container type "SLPP message container for related UE"

[0132] Payload container content with payload container type "SLPP message container for related UE"

[0133] Payload container content with payload container type "SLPP message container for related UE"

[0134] In some other embodiments, the SLPP message of UEx is included in the content of the container, and the ID of UEx may not be included as part of the container content; and the SLPP message of UE1 is included in the content of the container, and the ID of UE1 is not included as part of the container content, or the ID of UE1 is not included. For example, the payload container content with a payload container type of "SLPP message container" or "SLPP message container for associated UE" is defined as shown in the following table, and when the container type is "SLPP message container", the content of the container includes the SLPP message for UE1, and when the container type is "SLPP message container for associated UE", the content of the container includes the SLPP message for UEx, and the UE ID (e.g., the application layer ID of UEx) is included in the message transmitting the SLPP message, but is not included in the container content, such as in the container-related description information.

[0135] Payload container content of payload container type "SLPP message container" or "SLPP message container for associated UE"

[0136] Payload container content of payload container type "SLPP message container" or "SLPP message container for associated UE"

[0137] Optionally, in some embodiments, the payload container type is set to a SLPP container of "SLPP message container", and the content of the payload container is set to a SLPP message payload; and optionally includes relevant information or UE ID in the following manner:

[0138] An optional sub-information element that serves as the content of the payload container; for example, it includes indication information to indicate whether the content of the container is for UE1 or UEx. For example, the indication information is RSLPP (Related SLPP). When the indication information indicates that the SLPP message is for UEx, it includes a UE ID, such as the application layer ID of UEx for which the SLPP message is intended. Otherwise, the SLPP message is for UE1 and may optionally include or exclude the UE ID of UE1, such as the application layer ID, SUPI, SUCI, or GPSI of UE1. Furthermore, it may support the inclusion of only one or multiple SLPP messages in a container.

[0139] Payload container content with payload container type "SLPP message container"

[0140] Payload container content with payload container type "SLPP message container"

[0141] Alternatively, in some other embodiments, the aforementioned indication information is not included as part of the payload container IE content. For example, it is included as an extension within the payload container information, indicating whether the container contains a payload for UE1 or UEx. The UE ID of UEx can be included as an additional new IE. For example, the payload container content definition for a payload container type of "SLPP message container" is shown in the following table. If the payload of the container is indicated to be for a UE other than UE1, the UE ID of the relevant UEx is included. Otherwise, if the payload of the container is indicated to be for UE1, the UE ID of UE1 is not required, and the ID of UE1 connected to the LMF may be optionally included or not. The indication of whether the container payload is for UE1 or UEx can be implemented as an extension of the payload container information IE. For example, the aforementioned "indication information" can be located in the payload container information element (i.e., the element containing the container information) or a new IE. The UE ID of UEx can be located in the same IE as the aforementioned indication information or in a different IE. For example, in some embodiments, the indication information may be located in the payload container information element, and the "UE ID" may be located in a new IE; in other embodiments, the indication information may be located in a new IE parameter, and the "UE ID" may be located in the new IE parameter, or the "UE ID" may be located in another different new IE parameter. Alternatively, in still other embodiments, when the payload is for UEx, the payload may only contain the "UE ID" in the payload.

[0142] The UE ID of UEx is included without including the above indication information.

[0143] Payload container content with payload container type "SLPP message container"

[0144] Payload Container Information Information Element

[0145] Payload Container Information Information Element

[0146] Optionally, in some embodiments, when the payload includes a UE ID, for example, the UE's application ID, it indicates that the SLPP message is for the indicated UE, otherwise it is for UE1. Alternatively, in other embodiments, the SLPP message for UE1 may also include its own application layer ID.

[0147] Optionally, in some embodiments, a single NAS message between UE1 and the AMF may include zero or one SLPP messages for UE1, and zero or one SLPP messages for UEx. When multiple SLPP messages for UE1 and / or UEx need to be included, this can be achieved by including multiple container contents with a payload container type of "multiple payloads." The SLPP message may be included together with the UE ID of the relevant UE, and the UE ID of the relevant UE may be included as an optional IE in the payload container entry of the payload container content with a payload container type of "multiple payloads," or as part of the content of each payload container entry. As an example, the following table provides the following example: When the indication of the payload container information extension is used to indicate that the payload of the container is for UEx, the UE ID of the relevant UE is included, and the SLPP message of the relevant UE is included as the content of one of the multiple container contents in the container of the "multiple payloads" type. When the indication of the payload container information extension is used to indicate that the payload of the container is for UE1, the UE ID of UE1 can be optionally included or not included, and the SLPP message of UE1 is included in the "multiple payloads" type container as the payload container entry content of one of the payload container entries.

[0148] Payload container contents for payload container type "multiple payloads"

[0149] Payload container entry

[0150] Optionally, in some embodiments, during ranging and SL procedures, such as the SL-MO-LR procedure of the SL-MT-LR procedure, the LMF uses supplementary service messages (or SLPP messages) embedded with SLPP containers or SLPP messages to exchange information with UE1 and / or UE2 to n (i.e., other terminals) through the AMF. The method for defining a container containing SLPP messages described above can be applied to transmitting SLPP messages for UE1 only, as well as transmitting SLPP messages related to UEx, or both. In the supplementary service message, the SLPP message can be a message embedded in the supplementary service message as part of the supplementary service message exchanged between UE1 and the LMF.

[0151] In some embodiments, for the embedded SLPP messages for UE1 and UEx in the supplementary service message, they may use the same or different parameter types.

[0152] Here are some examples:

[0153] Optionally, the embedded SLPP messages for UE1 and UEx are encapsulated using the same parameter type, where the ID of the relevant UE is an optional parameter. Optionally, the embedded SLPP messages for UE1 and UEx are encapsulated using different parameter types, where the parameter type of the embedded SLPP message of UEx includes the ID of the relevant UE and the parameter type of the embedded SLPP message of UE1 does not include the ID of the relevant UE:

[0154] Alt1

[0155] Alt2:

[0156] Optionally, in the above Alt1, the SLPP for UE1 and the SLPP for UxE are carried by the same parameter type (RangingSlPosProtocolPDU), and when the parameter type (RangingSlPosProtocolPDU) carries the SLPP for UEx, the parameter type (RangingSlPosProtocolPDU) also carries the application laverID (application layer ID) of UEx; optionally, when the parameter type (RangingSlPosProtocolPDU) carries the SLPP for UE1, the parameter type (RangingSlPosProtocolPDU) may also optionally carry or not carry the application laverID (application layer ID) of UE1.

[0157] Optionally, in the above Alt2, the SLPP for UE1 is carried by the parameter type "SlPosProtocolPDU", which may optionally carry or not carry the application laverID (application layer ID) of UE1; and, the SLPP for UEx is carried by the parameter type "RelatedRangingSlPosProtocolPDU", and the parameter type "RelatedRangingSlPosProtocolPDU" also carries the application laverID (application layer ID) of UEx.

[0158] The embodiments of the present disclosure further provide an apparatus for implementing any of the above methods. For example, an apparatus is provided, comprising units or modules for implementing each step performed by a terminal in any of the above methods. For another example, another apparatus is provided, comprising units or modules for implementing each step performed by a network device (e.g., an access network device, a core network function node, a core network device, etc.) in any of the above methods.

[0159] It should be understood that the division of the various units or modules in the above device is merely a division of logical functions. In actual implementation, they may be fully or partially integrated into a physical entity, or they may be physically separated. In addition, the units or modules in the device may be implemented in the form of a processor calling software: for example, the device includes a processor, the processor is connected to a memory, and the memory stores instructions. The processor calls the instructions stored in the memory to implement any of the above methods or implement the functions of the various units or modules of the above device, wherein the processor is, for example, a general-purpose processor, such as a central processing unit (CPU) or a microprocessor, and the memory is a memory within the device or a memory outside the device. Alternatively, the units or modules in the device can be implemented in the form of hardware circuits, and the functions of some or all of the units or modules can be realized by designing the hardware circuits. The above-mentioned hardware circuits can be understood as one or more processors; for example, in one implementation, the above-mentioned hardware circuit is an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), which realizes the functions of some or all of the above units or modules by designing the logical relationship of the components in the circuit; for example, in another implementation, the above-mentioned hardware circuit can be realized by a programmable logic device (PLD). Taking a field programmable gate array (FPGA) as an example, it can include a large number of logic gate circuits, and the connection relationship between the logic gate circuits is configured by configuring the configuration file, thereby realizing the functions of some or all of the above units or modules. All units or modules of the above devices can be realized in the form of software called by the processor, or in the form of hardware circuits, or in part by the form of software called by the processor, and the rest by hardware circuits.

[0160] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor is a circuit with signal processing capabilities. In one implementation, the processor can be a circuit with instruction reading and execution capabilities, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a graphics processing unit (GPU) (which can be understood as a microprocessor), or a digital signal processor (DSP). In another implementation, the processor can implement certain functions through the logical relationship of the hardware circuit. The logical relationship of the above-mentioned hardware circuit is fixed or reconfigurable. For example, the processor is a hardware circuit implemented by an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or a programmable logic device (PLD), such as an FPGA. In a reconfigurable hardware circuit, the process of the processor loading a configuration document and implementing the hardware circuit configuration can be understood as the process of the processor loading instructions to implement the functions of some or all of the above units or modules. In addition, it can also be a hardware circuit designed for artificial intelligence, which can be understood as an ASIC, such as a neural network processing unit (NPU), a tensor processing unit (TPU), a deep learning processing unit (DPU), etc.

[0161] FIG4A is a schematic diagram of the structure of the first network element proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG4A , it includes:

[0162] a transceiver module, configured to receive or send a first message;

[0163] The transceiver module is further configured to receive or send at least one second message;

[0164] The first message is a message related to a first terminal, and the second message is a message related to a different second terminal; the first terminal is a terminal that has established a communication connection with the first network element through the second network element, and the second terminal is a terminal different from the first terminal; and the first message and the second message are distinguished by being received or sent in a container-encapsulated manner or embedded in messages.

[0165] Optionally, the first message and the second message are encapsulated in a payload container for transmission; wherein the first message and the second message are encapsulated in different containers.

[0166] Optionally, the first message is encapsulated by a first payload container, the at least one second message is encapsulated by a second payload container, and the payload container type of the first payload container is different from the payload container type of the second payload container; wherein

[0167] The payload container content of the second payload container includes at least one first identifier corresponding to each second message; the first identifier is used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message.

[0168] Optionally, the first message is encapsulated by a first payload container, the second message is encapsulated by a second payload container, and the payload container type of the first payload container is different from the payload container type of the second payload container; wherein

[0169] The second payload container includes a first identifier corresponding to the second message, and the first identifier is not located in the payload container content of the second payload container; the first identifier is used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message.

[0170] Optionally, the second payload container is used to encapsulate a second message.

[0171] Optionally, the first message and the at least one second message are both encapsulated by a third payload container; wherein

[0172] The payload container content of the third payload container includes first indication information, and the first indication information is used to indicate that the third payload container encapsulates the first message or the second message; when the first indication information indicates that the third payload container encapsulates the second message, the payload container content of the third payload container also includes at least one first identifier corresponding to the second message; the first identifier is used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message.

[0173] Optionally, the first message and the second message are both encapsulated by a third payload container; wherein the container-related description information corresponding to the third payload container includes at least one of the following:

[0174] first indication information, where the first indication information is used to indicate whether the third payload container encapsulates the first message or the second message;

[0175] Terminal identifier; the terminal identifier is used to indicate the terminal corresponding to the first message or the second message carried by the third payload container.

[0176] Optionally, the container-related description information corresponding to the third payload container includes one or more of a payload container information information element and / or at least one first container-related description information and at least one second container-related description information, wherein the first container-related description information is a new parameter different from the payload container information information element, and the second container-related description information is a new parameter different from the payload container information information element and the first container-related description information;

[0177] The first indication information is included in the payload container information information element or the first container related description information.

[0178] Optionally, the first indication information and the terminal identifier are located in the same or different container-related description information.

[0179] Optionally, when the third payload container encapsulates the second message, the first indication information is used to indicate that the third payload container encapsulates the second message; when the third payload container encapsulates the first message, the first indication information is used to indicate that the third payload container encapsulates the first message.

[0180] Optionally, when the third payload container encapsulates the second message, the third payload container is used to encapsulate one second message.

[0181] Optionally, the first message is encapsulated by a first payload container entry, the second message is encapsulated by a second payload container entry, and the first payload container entry and / or the second payload container entry are jointly encapsulated in a fourth payload container; wherein

[0182] The second payload container entry also includes second indication information and / or a first identifier corresponding to the second message, the second indication information is used to indicate that the second payload container entry encapsulates the second message, and the first identifier is used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message.

[0183] Optionally, the first message and the second message are embedded in a third message for transmission, wherein the first message and the second message adopt different message embedding methods.

[0184] Optionally, both the first message and the second message are carried by a first parameter type, and when the first parameter type carries the second message, the first parameter type also carries a first identifier corresponding to the second message, and the first identifier is used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message.

[0185] Optionally, both the first message and the second message are carried by a first parameter type, and the first parameter type can also carry a terminal identifier corresponding to the first message or the second message, and the terminal identifier is used to indicate the first terminal corresponding to the first message or the second terminal corresponding to the second message.

[0186] Optionally, the first message is carried by a second parameter type, and the second message is carried by a third parameter type. The second parameter type is different from the third parameter type. The third parameter type also carries a first identifier corresponding to the second message, and the first identifier is used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message.

[0187] Optionally, the third message is a supplementary service message.

[0188] Optionally, the terminal identifier or the first identifier includes any one of the following:

[0189] Application layer identification ID;

[0190] Subscriber Permanent Identification (SUPI);

[0191] User hidden identifier SUCI;

[0192] General Public User Identity GPSI.

[0193] Optionally, the first message and the second message are Side Link Positioning Protocol (SLPP) messages.

[0194] Optionally, the first message includes at least one SLPP message related to the first network element; the second message includes at least one SLPP message related to the second terminal.

[0195] Optionally, the first terminal is used to forward the second message between the first network element and the second terminal.

[0196] Figure 5A is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device 5100 proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure. Communication device 5100 can be a network device (e.g., an access network device, a core network device, etc.), a terminal (e.g., a user equipment, etc.), a chip, a chip system, or a processor that supports a network device to implement any of the above methods, or a chip, a chip system, or a processor that supports a terminal to implement any of the above methods. Communication device 5100 can be used to implement the methods described in the above method embodiments. For details, please refer to the description of the above method embodiments.

[0197] As shown in Figure 5A, the communication device 5100 includes one or more processors 5101. The processor 5101 can be a general-purpose processor or a dedicated processor, for example, a baseband processor or a central processing unit. The baseband processor can be used to process communication protocols and communication data, and the central processing unit can be used to control the communication device (such as a base station, baseband chip, terminal device, terminal device chip, DU or CU, etc.), execute programs, and process program data. The processor 5101 is used to call instructions to enable the communication device 5100 to perform any of the above methods.

[0198] In some embodiments, the communication device 5100 further includes one or more memories 5102 for storing instructions. Optionally, all or part of the memories 5102 may be located outside the communication device 5100.

[0199] In some embodiments, the communication device 5100 further includes one or more transceivers 5103. When the communication device 5100 includes one or more transceivers 5103, the communication steps such as sending and receiving in the above method are performed by the transceiver 5103, and the other steps are performed by the processor 5101.

[0200] In some embodiments, a transceiver may include a receiver and a transmitter, which may be separate or integrated. Optionally, the terms transceiver, transceiver unit, transceiver, and transceiver circuit may be used interchangeably; the terms transmitter, transmitting unit, transmitter, and transmitting circuit may be used interchangeably; and the terms receiver, receiving unit, receiver, and receiving circuit may be used interchangeably.

[0201] Optionally, the communication device 5100 further includes one or more interface circuits 5105, which are connected to the memory 5102. The interface circuits 5105 can be used to receive signals from the memory 5102 or other devices, and can be used to send signals to the memory 5102 or other devices. For example, the interface circuit 5105 can read instructions stored in the memory 5102 and send the instructions to the processor 5101.

[0202] The communication device 5100 described in the above embodiment may be a network device or a terminal, but the scope of the communication device 5100 described in the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and the structure of the communication device 5100 may not be limited by FIG. 5a. The communication device may be an independent device or may be part of a larger device. For example, the communication device may be: 1) an independent integrated circuit IC, or a chip, or a chip system or subsystem; (2) a collection of one or more ICs, optionally, the above IC collection may also include a storage component for storing data or programs; (3) an ASIC, such as a modem; (4) a module that can be embedded in other devices; (5) a receiver, a terminal device, an intelligent terminal device, a cellular phone, a wireless device, a handheld device, a mobile unit, an in-vehicle device, a network device, a cloud device, an artificial intelligence device, etc.; (6) others, etc.

[0203] 5B is a schematic diagram of the structure of a chip 5200 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. If the communication device 5100 can be a chip or a chip system, reference can be made to the schematic diagram of the structure of the chip 5200 shown in FIG5B , but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0204] The chip 5200 includes one or more processors 5201 , and the processor 5201 is used to call instructions so that the chip 5200 executes any of the above methods.

[0205] In some embodiments, chip 5200 further includes one or more interface circuits 5202, which are connected to memory 5203. Interface circuits 5202 can be used to receive signals from memory 5203 or other devices, and can be used to send signals to memory 5203 or other devices. For example, interface circuit 5202 can read instructions stored in memory 5203 and send the instructions to processor 5201. Optionally, the terms interface circuit, interface, transceiver pin, and transceiver are interchangeable.

[0206] In some embodiments, the chip 5200 further includes one or more memories 5203 for storing instructions. Alternatively, all or part of the memories 5203 may be located outside the chip 5200.

[0207] The present disclosure also proposes a storage medium having instructions stored thereon, which, when executed on the communication device 5100, causes the communication device 5100 to execute any of the above methods. Optionally, the storage medium is an electronic storage medium. Optionally, the storage medium is a computer-readable storage medium, but is not limited thereto and may also be a storage medium readable by other devices. Optionally, the storage medium may be a non-transitory storage medium, but is not limited thereto and may also be a transient storage medium.

[0208] The present disclosure also provides a program product, which, when executed by the communication device 5100, enables the communication device 5100 to perform any of the above methods. Optionally, the program product is a computer program product.

[0209] The present disclosure also proposes a computer program, which, when executed on a computer, causes the computer to perform any one of the above methods.

[0210] In the above embodiments, all or part of the embodiments can be implemented by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, all or part of the embodiments can be implemented in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer programs. When the computer program is loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present disclosure are generated. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer program can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium. For example, the computer program can be transmitted from one website, computer, server or data center to another website, computer, server or data center via a wired (e.g., coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) method. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server or data center that includes one or more available media integrated therein. The available medium may be a magnetic medium (eg, a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (eg, a high-density digital video disc (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (eg, a solid state disk (SSD)).

[0211] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the units and algorithm steps of each example described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are performed in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professionals and technicians can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this disclosure.

[0212] Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of description, the specific working processes of the systems, devices and units described above can refer to the corresponding processes in the aforementioned method embodiments and will not be repeated here.

[0213] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of the present disclosure, but the scope of protection of the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions that can be easily conceived by a person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in this disclosure should be included in the scope of protection of the present disclosure. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present disclosure should be based on the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that, Performed by a first network element or a first terminal, the method includes at least one of the following: Receiving or sending a first message; Receiving or sending at least one second message; wherein The first message is a message related to the first terminal, and the different second messages are messages related to different second terminals; the first terminal is a terminal that has established a communication connection with the first network element through a second network element, and the second terminal is a terminal different from the first terminal; and, the first message and the second message are distinguished for reception or transmission in a manner of container encapsulation or embedded message.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein The first message and the second message are encapsulated by a payload container for transmission; wherein, the first message and the second message adopt different container encapsulation methods.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The first message is encapsulated by a first payload container, and the at least one second message is encapsulated by a second payload container, and the payload container type of the first payload container is different from the payload container type of the second payload container; wherein The payload container content of the second payload container includes a first identifier corresponding to each of the at least one second message; the first identifier is used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message.

4. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The first message is encapsulated by a first payload container, and the second message is encapsulated by a second payload container, and the payload container type of the first payload container is different from the payload container type of the second payload container; wherein The second payload container includes the first identifier corresponding to the second message, and the first identifier is not located in the payload container content of the second payload container; the first identifier is used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message.

5. The method according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that, The second payload container is used to encapsulate one second message.

6. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that The first message and the at least one second message are both encapsulated by a third payload container; wherein The payload container content of the third payload container includes first indication information, and the first indication information is used to indicate whether the third payload container encapsulates the first message or the second message; when the first indication information indicates that the third payload container encapsulates the second message, the payload container content of the third payload container further includes a first identifier corresponding to each of the at least one second message; the first identifier is used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message.

7. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The first message and the second message are both encapsulated by a third payload container; wherein, the container-related description information corresponding to the third payload container includes at least one of the following: First indication information, which is used to indicate whether the third payload container encapsulates the first message or the second message; Terminal identifier; the terminal identifier is used to indicate the terminal corresponding to the first message or the second message carried by the third payload container.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein The container-related description information corresponding to the third payload container includes one or more of payload container information information elements, at least one first container-related description information, and at least one second container-related description information. Among them, the first container-related description information is a new parameter different from the payload container information information element, and the second container-related description information is a new parameter different from the payload container information information element and the first container-related description information; The first indication information is included in the payload container information information element or the first container-related description information.

9. The method according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that, The first indication information and the terminal identifier are located in the same or different container-related description information.

10. The method according to any one of claims 7-9, characterized in that When the third payload container encapsulates the second message, the first indication information is used to indicate that the second message is encapsulated in the third payload container; when the third payload container encapsulates the first message, the first indication information is used to indicate that the first message is encapsulated in the third payload container.

11. The method according to any one of claims 7-10, characterized in that, When the third payload container encapsulates the second message, the third payload container is used to encapsulate one second message.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein The first message is encapsulated by a first payload container entry, the second message is encapsulated by a second payload container entry, and the first payload container entry and / or the second payload container entry are jointly encapsulated in a fourth payload container; Wherein The second payload container entry further includes second indication information and / or a first identifier corresponding to the second message. The second indication information is used to indicate that the second message is encapsulated in the second payload container entry, and the first identifier is used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message.

13. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first message and the second message are transmitted by being embedded in a third message, wherein the first message and the second message adopt different ways of embedding the message.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein Both the first message and the second message are carried by a first parameter type, and when the first parameter type carries the second message, the first parameter type also carries a first identifier corresponding to the second message, and the first identifier is used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message.

15. The method according to claim 13, wherein Both the first message and the second message are carried by a first parameter type, and the first parameter type also carries a terminal identifier corresponding to the first message or the second message, and the terminal identifier is used to indicate the first terminal corresponding to the first message or the second terminal corresponding to the second message.

16. The method according to claim 13, wherein The first message is carried by a second parameter type, the second message is carried by a third parameter type, the second parameter type is different from the third parameter type, and the third parameter type also carries a first identifier corresponding to the second message, and the first identifier is used to indicate the second terminal corresponding to the second message.

17. The method according to any one of claims 13-16, characterized in that, The third message is a supplementary service message.

18. The method according to any one of claims 3-17, wherein the terminal identifier or the first identifier includes any one of the following: Application layer identifier ID; Subscribed user permanent identifier SUPI; User-concealed identifier SUCI; Generic public user identity GPSI.

19. The method according to any one of claims 1-18, wherein the first message and the second message are sidelink positioning protocol SLPP messages.

20. The method according to any one of claims 1-19, characterized in that, The first message includes at least one SLPP message related to the first network element; the second message includes at least one SLPP message related to the second terminal.

21. The method according to any one of claims 1-20, characterized in that, The first terminal is used to forward the second message between the first network element and the second terminal.

22. A first network element or a first terminal, characterized in that Comprising: A transceiver module for receiving or sending a first message; The transceiver module is further configured to receive or send at least one second message; Wherein The first message is a message related to the first terminal, and the different second messages are messages related to different second terminals; the first terminal is a terminal that has established a communication connection with the first network element through a second network element, and the second terminal is a terminal different from the first terminal; and, the first message and the second message are distinguished for reception or transmission in a container encapsulation manner or an embedded message manner.

23. A communication device, characterized in that, Comprising: One or more processors; A memory coupled to the processor, and instructions are stored on the memory. When the instructions are executed by the processor, the communication device is caused to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 21.

24. A communication system, characterized in that, Comprising a first network element and a first terminal, wherein the first network element or the first terminal is configured to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 21.

25. A storage medium, the storage medium stores instructions, characterized in that, When the instructions run on the communication device, the communication device is caused to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 21.

Images