Communication method and related apparatus

Abstract

Provided are a communication method and a related apparatus. The method comprises: receiving a plurality of parameter sets from a ground station, wherein the plurality of parameter sets are carried in a broadcast message of a same cell, the plurality of parameter sets comprising parameters corresponding to a plurality of communication apparatuses and used for determining a TA, and apparatus types of the plurality of communication apparatuses comprising relay apparatus and / or terminal apparatus; and determining a TA on the basis of at least one parameter set among the plurality of parameter sets. Broadcasting in a broadcast message of a same cell a plurality of parameter sets corresponding to a plurality of communication apparatuses helps to reduce resource waste.

Description

A communication method and related device

[0001] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the China Patent Office on January 29, 2024, with application number 202410126207.7 and application name “A Communication Method and Related Devices”, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

[0002] The present application relates to the field of communications, and in particular to a communication method and related devices. Background Art

[0003] Terminals in a satellite system forward data to ground stations (also called gateways) via intersatellite links. Therefore, satellites closer to ground stations require more data to be forwarded, placing greater pressure on intersatellite forwarding. Furthermore, due to satellite movement, different satellites become closer to ground stations, so most satellites must support maximum-capacity intersatellite forwarding, which results in higher satellite hardware costs. To reduce intersatellite forwarding pressure and satellite hardware costs, a satellite-to-ground forwarding network can be adopted. In other words, signals transmitted between terminals and ground stations can be forwarded via satellites and devices deployed on the ground. Both satellites and devices deployed on the ground can be considered forwarding nodes, such as network-controlled transparent nodes (NCTNs) or network-controlled regenerative nodes (NCRNs). NCTNs perform amplification and forwarding relay functions, while NCRNs perform decoding and forwarding relay functions.

[0004] In a satellite-to-ground relay network, the satellites and ground-based devices are collectively referred to as relays, which relay signals between terminals and ground stations (or base stations). To achieve uplink synchronization, ground stations can broadcast parameters such as ephemeris, common timing advance (TA), common TA drift, common TA drift rate, and timing advance (TA) offset, allowing terminals or relays to determine TA based on these parameters.

[0005] Currently, in satellite-to-ground forwarding networks, each relay device needs to determine its own TA when accessing a ground station as a terminal. Since each relay device may access different cells (for example, each relay device has different coverage areas, with each coverage area corresponding to a cell), the parameters used to determine the TA may vary. Consequently, the ground station needs to use different time-frequency resources to broadcast the parameters for each cell, which can lead to resource waste. Summary of the Invention

[0006] The present application provides a communication method and related devices to reduce resource waste.

[0007] In the first aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which can be executed by a communication device. The communication device can be a first communication device, or a component configured in the first communication device (such as a chip, a chip system, etc.), or a logic module or software that can realize all or part of the functions of the first communication device. The present application does not limit this.

[0008] Exemplarily, the method includes: receiving multiple parameter sets from a ground station, the multiple parameter sets being carried in a broadcast message of the same cell, the multiple parameter sets including parameters corresponding to multiple communication devices for determining TA, the device types of the above-mentioned multiple communication devices including relay devices and / or terminal devices; determining TA based on at least one parameter set in the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets.

[0009] Among them, the first communication device is any one of the above-mentioned multiple communication devices, and the device types of the above-mentioned multiple communication devices include relay devices and / or terminal devices (also referred to as terminals). The relay device is used to forward signals between the ground station and the terminal device. The terminal device can serve as the destination of the signal, and the ground station can serve as the source of the signal. For example, the above-mentioned multiple communication devices are all relay devices, and the first communication device can be any one of the multiple relay devices. For another example, the above-mentioned multiple communication devices are all terminal devices, and the first communication device can be any one of the multiple terminal devices. For another example, the above-mentioned multiple communication devices include at least one relay device and at least one terminal device. The first communication device can be any one of the above-mentioned at least one terminal device, or any one of the above-mentioned at least one relay device.

[0010] In this application, a cell can be understood as an area provided by a relay device or an area provided by a ground station. The above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets are carried in the broadcast message of the same cell. In other words, a broadcast message of a cell can carry multiple sets of parameter sets. It should be noted that the number of cells broadcasting the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets can be one or more, but the number of cells broadcasting the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets is less than the total number of areas provided by the relay device and the ground station.

[0011] In the present application, the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets include parameters corresponding to multiple communication devices for determining TA. It can be understood that: the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to the above-mentioned multiple communication devices, and each parameter set includes parameters for the corresponding communication device to determine TA.

[0012] In the above technical solution, multiple groups of parameter sets corresponding to the above-mentioned multiple communication devices are carried in the broadcast message of the same cell. That is to say, multiple groups of parameter sets can be broadcast in the broadcast message of the same cell. These multiple groups of parameter sets correspond to multiple communication devices. These multiple groups of parameter sets are broadcast through the time-frequency resources corresponding to the above-mentioned cells. The ground station does not need to occupy different time-frequency resources for each communication device to broadcast the corresponding parameter set, which is conducive to reducing resource waste.

[0013] On the second aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which can be executed by a communication device. The communication device can be a ground station, or a component configured in the ground station (such as a chip, chip system, etc.), or it can also be a logic module or software that can realize all or part of the ground station functions. The present application does not limit this.

[0014] Exemplarily, the method includes: generating multiple groups of parameter sets, which include parameters corresponding to multiple communication devices for determining TA, and the device types of the above-mentioned multiple communication devices include relay devices and / or terminal devices; sending the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets, and the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets are carried in the broadcast message of the same cell.

[0015] In the above technical solution, the ground station can broadcast multiple groups of parameter sets corresponding to multiple communication devices based on the broadcast messages of the same cell. That is to say, the ground station can broadcast the above multiple groups of parameter sets based on the time-frequency resources corresponding to the above-mentioned cell, without having to occupy different time-frequency resources for each communication device to broadcast their corresponding parameter sets, which is conducive to reducing resource waste.

[0016] In combination with the first and second aspects, in certain possible implementations, the multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to multiple reference locations, and the multiple reference locations are located within the coverage area of ​​the relay device and the ground station. In other words, each parameter set in the multiple parameter sets corresponds to a reference location, and the multiple parameter sets are distinguished by using multiple reference locations. The method provided in this application is more universal. For example, it can be applied not only to scenarios with a small number of parameter sets, but also to scenarios with a large number of parameter sets. Even if the number of parameter sets is large, they can still be distinguished based on different reference locations.

[0017] In the case where the multiple parameter sets correspond to the multiple reference positions on a one-to-one basis, the at least one parameter set may be determined based on the multiple reference positions.

[0018] That is, the first communication device may determine at least one parameter set based on the multiple reference positions, and further determine the TA based on the at least one parameter set.

[0019] In one possible implementation, the at least one parameter set includes a parameter set corresponding to the reference location closest to the first communication device among the multiple reference locations. In other words, for any one of the multiple communication devices, the at least one parameter set used to determine the TA includes a parameter set corresponding to the reference location closest to the first communication device among the multiple reference locations. This allows for more accurate TA determination.

[0020] In one example, the first communication device determines TA based on a certain parameter set (which can be recorded as a target parameter set) among the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets. The above-mentioned target parameter set can be a parameter set corresponding to the reference position closest to the first communication device among the above-mentioned multiple reference positions.

[0021] In another example, the first communication device determines TA based on m groups of parameter sets among the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets, where m is an integer greater than 1 and the value of m is less than or equal to the number of the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets. The above-mentioned m groups of parameter sets may include a parameter set corresponding to the reference position closest to the first communication device among the above-mentioned multiple reference positions and a parameter set including the position of the second communication device, where the second communication device is a ground station or a relay device between the first communication device and the ground station / base station.

[0022] In combination with the first and second aspects, in certain possible implementations, the multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to identifiers of multiple communication device types. In other words, each parameter set in the multiple parameter sets corresponds to an identifier of a communication device type, and the multiple parameter sets are distinguished by the identifiers of the multiple communication device types.

[0023] The above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets and the identifiers of multiple communication device types correspond one-to-one, so as to reduce the functional requirements for the first communication device (any one of the above-mentioned multiple communication devices). For example, even if the first communication device does not have a positioning function, that is, the first communication device cannot determine its own position, the corresponding parameter set can be determined based on the type of the communication device.

[0024] In the case where the multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to the identifiers of multiple communication device types, at least one parameter set includes a parameter set corresponding to the identifier of the device type of the first communication device. In other words, for any one of the multiple communication devices, at least one parameter set used to determine the TA includes a parameter set corresponding to the identifier of the device type of the first communication device.

[0025] In one example, the first communication device determines the TA based on a parameter set (which may be recorded as a target parameter set) among the multiple parameter sets. The target parameter set may be a parameter set corresponding to an identifier of the device type of the first communication device.

[0026] In another example, the first communication device determines TA based on m groups of parameter sets among the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets, where m is an integer greater than 1 and the value of m is less than or equal to the number of the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets. The above-mentioned m groups of parameter sets may include a parameter set corresponding to the identifier of the device type of the first communication device and a parameter set including the location of the second communication device, where the second communication device is a ground station or a relay device between the first communication device and the ground station.

[0027] In combination with the first and second aspects, in some possible implementations, each parameter set of the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets includes the location of the ground station and / or the location of the relay device, which is used to forward signals between the ground station and the terminal device.

[0028] Each of the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets includes the location of the ground station and / or the location of the relay device. That is to say, the TA can be determined based on the location of the ground station and the location of the relay device, which is conducive to saving the parameters carried in the parameter set and thus reducing signaling overhead.

[0029] In combination with the first aspect and the second aspect, in some possible implementations, each of the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets also includes one or more of the following: a common timing advance, a rate of change of the common timing advance, a rate of change of the rate of change of the common timing advance, a scheduling offset, or an effective timing offset.

[0030] Each parameter set may further include a common timing advance, a rate of change of the common timing advance, and a rate of change of the rate of change of the common timing advance. That is, the TA may be determined based on the above parameters, thereby reducing the computational complexity of the first communication device (any one of the above multiple communication devices). For example, the first communication device may directly calculate the delay compensation between the relay device and the ground station based on the common timing advance, the rate of change of the common timing advance, and the rate of change of the rate of change of the common timing advance, thereby reducing the computational complexity of the first communication device.

[0031] In combination with the first aspect, in certain possible implementations of the first aspect, when a scheduling offset is included in each parameter set, the first communication device can also determine the scheduling offset; and / or, when an effective timing offset is included in each parameter set, the first communication device can also determine the effective timing offset.

[0032] In combination with the first aspect, in some possible implementations of the first aspect, after determining the TA, the method further includes: performing uplink transmission with the ground station according to the TA.

[0033] On the third aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which can be executed by a communication device. The communication device can be a first communication device, or a component configured in the first communication device (such as a chip, chip system, etc.), or it can also be a logic module or software that can realize all or part of the functions of the first communication device. The present application does not limit this.

[0034] Exemplarily, the method includes: receiving multiple parameter sets from a ground station, the multiple parameter sets being carried in a broadcast message of the same cell, the multiple parameter sets including parameters corresponding to multiple communication devices for determining an offset, the device types of the multiple communication devices including relay devices and / or terminal devices; determining an offset based on at least one parameter set in the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets, the offset including a scheduling offset and / or an effective timing offset.

[0035] In the present application, the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets include parameters corresponding to multiple communication devices for determining the offset. It can be understood that: the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to the above-mentioned multiple communication devices, and each parameter set includes parameters for determining the offset for the corresponding communication device.

[0036] In the above technical solution, multiple groups of parameter sets corresponding to the above-mentioned multiple communication devices are carried in the broadcast message of the same cell. That is to say, multiple groups of parameter sets can be broadcast in the broadcast message of the same cell. The multiple groups of parameter sets correspond to multiple communication devices. The multiple groups of parameter sets are broadcast through the time-frequency resources corresponding to the above-mentioned cells. The ground station does not need to occupy different time-frequency resources for each communication device to broadcast the corresponding parameter set, which is conducive to reducing resource waste.

[0037] Fourthly, the present application provides a communication method, which can be executed by a communication device. The communication device can be a ground station, or a component configured in the ground station (such as a chip, chip system, etc.), or it can also be a logic module or software that can realize all or part of the ground station functions. The present application does not limit this.

[0038] Exemplarily, the method includes: generating multiple groups of parameter sets, the multiple groups of parameter sets containing parameters corresponding to multiple communication devices for determining the offset, the device types of the multiple communication devices including relay devices and / or terminal devices, the offset including the scheduling offset and / or the effective timing offset; sending the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets, the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets are carried in the broadcast message of the same cell.

[0039] In the above technical solution, the ground station can broadcast multiple groups of parameter sets corresponding to multiple communication devices based on the broadcast messages of the same cell. The multiple groups of parameter sets correspond to multiple communication devices. That is to say, the ground station can broadcast the above multiple groups of parameter sets based on the time-frequency resources corresponding to the above-mentioned cell, without having to occupy different time-frequency resources for each communication device to broadcast their corresponding parameter sets, which is conducive to reducing resource waste.

[0040] In conjunction with the third and fourth aspects, in certain possible implementations, the multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to multiple reference locations, and the multiple reference locations are located within the coverage area of ​​the relay device and the ground station. In other words, each parameter set in the multiple parameter sets corresponds to a reference location, and the multiple parameter sets are distinguished by using multiple reference locations. The method provided in this application is more universal. For example, it can be applied not only to scenarios with a small number of parameter sets, but also to scenarios with a large number of parameter sets. Even if the number of parameter sets is large, they can still be distinguished based on different reference locations.

[0041] In the case where the multiple parameter sets correspond to the multiple reference positions on a one-to-one basis, the at least one parameter set may be determined based on the multiple reference positions.

[0042] That is, the first communication device may determine at least one parameter set based on the multiple reference positions, and further determine the offset based on the at least one parameter set.

[0043] In one possible implementation, the at least one parameter set includes a parameter set corresponding to the reference location closest to the first communication device among the multiple reference locations. In other words, for any one of the multiple communication devices, the at least one parameter set used to determine the offset includes a parameter set corresponding to the reference location closest to the first communication device among the multiple reference locations. This increases the accuracy of the offset determination.

[0044] In one example, the first communication device determines the offset based on a parameter set among the multiple parameter sets (which can be recorded as a target parameter set). The target parameter set can be the parameter set corresponding to the reference position closest to the first communication device among the multiple reference positions.

[0045] In another example, the first communications device determines the offset based on m parameter sets among the plurality of parameter sets, where m is an integer greater than 1 and the value of m is less than or equal to the number of the plurality of parameter sets. For example, after the first communications device determines the parameter set corresponding to the reference location closest to the first communications device, if the offset in the parameter set is a relative value, such as a difference between the offset in the parameter set and the offset in another parameter set, the first communications device may determine the offset corresponding to the first communications device based on the parameter set and the other parameter set.

[0046] In conjunction with the third and fourth aspects, in certain possible implementations, the multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to identifiers of multiple communication device types. In other words, each parameter set in the multiple parameter sets corresponds to an identifier of a device type, and the multiple parameter sets are distinguished by the identifiers of the multiple communication device types.

[0047] The above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets and the identifiers of multiple communication device types correspond one-to-one, so as to reduce the functional requirements for the first communication device (any one of the above-mentioned multiple communication devices). For example, even if the first communication device does not have a positioning function, that is, the first communication device cannot determine its own position, the corresponding parameter set can be determined based on the type of the communication device.

[0048] In the case where the multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to the identifiers of multiple communication device types, at least one of the parameter sets includes a parameter set corresponding to the identifier of the device type of the first communication device. In other words, for any one of the multiple communication devices, at least one parameter set used to determine the offset includes a parameter set corresponding to the identifier of its device type.

[0049] In one example, the first communication device determines the offset based on a parameter set (which may be referred to as a target parameter set) among the plurality of parameter sets. The target parameter set may be a parameter set corresponding to an identifier of the device type of the first communication device.

[0050] In another example, the first communication device determines the offset based on m parameter sets among the multiple parameter sets, where m is an integer greater than 1, and the value of m is less than or equal to the number of the multiple parameter sets.

[0051] In combination with the third aspect and the fourth aspect, in some possible implementations, each of the multiple parameter sets includes an offset.

[0052] In combination with the third aspect and the fourth aspect, in some possible implementations, each of the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets also includes one or more of the following: the location of the relay device, the location of the ground station, the common timing advance, the rate of change of the common timing advance, or the rate of change of the rate of change of the common timing advance.

[0053] In a fifth aspect, the present application provides a communication device that can implement the methods described in aspects 1 to 4 and any possible implementation of aspects 1 to 4. The communication device includes corresponding modules for executing the above methods. The modules included in the communication device can be implemented in software and / or hardware.

[0054] In a sixth aspect, the present application provides a communication device comprising a processor, which can be used to execute a computer program in a memory to implement the method described in the first to fourth aspects and any possible implementation of the first to fourth aspects.

[0055] Optionally, the communication device further includes a communication interface, and the processor is coupled to the communication interface. The communication interface is configured to receive signals from a communication device other than the communication device and transmit them to the processor, or to transmit signals from the processor to a communication device other than the communication device. Exemplarily, the communication interface may be a transceiver, circuit, bus, module, pin, or other type of communication interface.

[0056] Optionally, the communication device further includes a memory, and the processor is coupled to the memory. The memory is used to store program instructions and data. The memory is coupled to the processor, and when the processor executes instructions stored in the memory, the methods described in the above aspects can be implemented.

[0057] In a seventh aspect, the present application provides a communication device comprising at least one processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is configured to receive signals from other communication devices outside the communication device and transmit them to the processor, or to send signals from the processor to other communication devices outside the communication device, wherein the processor implements the communication method described in any possible implementation of the first to fourth aspects and the first to fourth aspects through a logic circuit or by executing code instructions. Exemplarily, the communication interface may be a transceiver, circuit, bus, module, pin, or other type of communication interface.

[0058] Optionally, the communication device further includes a memory for storing instructions and data. The memory may be coupled to the processor, and when the processor executes the instructions stored in the memory, the communication method described in any one of the first to fourth aspects and any possible implementation of the first to fourth aspects is implemented.

[0059] In an eighth aspect, the present application provides a communication device comprising at least one processor and at least one memory, wherein the memory is used to store instructions and data. When the processor executes the instructions stored in the memory, it can implement the communication method described in the first to fourth aspects and any possible implementation method of the first to fourth aspects.

[0060] Optionally, the communication device further includes a communication interface, which is used for the communication device to communicate with other communication devices. Exemplarily, the communication interface may be a transceiver, circuit, bus, module, pin or other type of communication interface.

[0061] In the ninth aspect, the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores a computer program or instructions. When the computer program or instructions are executed, the method described in the first to fourth aspects and any possible implementation method of the first to fourth aspects is implemented.

[0062] In a tenth aspect, the present application provides a computer program product comprising instructions, which, when executed, implement the method described in the first to fourth aspects and any possible implementation of the first to fourth aspects.

[0063] In the eleventh aspect, the present application provides a chip system comprising at least one processor for supporting the functions involved in the implementation of the first to fourth aspects and any possible implementation of the first to fourth aspects, such as receiving or processing the data involved in the above method.

[0064] In one possible design, the chip system further includes a memory, which is used to store program instructions and data, and the memory is located inside or outside the processor.

[0065] In one possible design, the chip system further includes an interface circuit and / or a power supply circuit, where the interface circuit is used to transmit data and the power supply circuit is used to supply power to the chip system.

[0066] The chip system can be composed of chips, or can include chips and other discrete devices.

[0067] In the twelfth aspect, the present application provides a communication system, which includes a first communication device and a ground station, the first communication device is used to implement the method described in the first aspect and any possible implementation of the first aspect, and the ground station is used to implement the method described in the second aspect and any possible implementation of the second aspect; or, the first communication device is used to implement the method described in the third aspect and any possible implementation of the third aspect, and the ground station is used to implement the method described in the fourth aspect and any possible implementation of the fourth aspect.

[0068] It should be understood that the fifth to twelfth aspects of the present application correspond to the technical solutions of the first to fourth aspects of the present application, and the beneficial effects achieved by each aspect and the corresponding feasible implementation methods are similar and will not be repeated here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0069] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of an intersatellite forwarding network provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0070] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of a satellite-to-ground forwarding network provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0071] FIG3 is another schematic diagram of a satellite-to-ground forwarding network provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0072] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a satellite-to-ground forwarding network provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0073] FIG5 is another schematic diagram of the architecture of a satellite-to-ground forwarding network provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0074] FIG6 is another schematic diagram of the architecture of a satellite-to-ground forwarding network provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0075] FIG7 is another schematic diagram of the architecture of the satellite-to-ground forwarding network provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0076] FIG8 is a schematic diagram of an uplink data frame and a downlink data frame provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0077] FIG9 is another schematic diagram of an uplink data frame and a downlink data frame provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0078] FIG10 is a schematic diagram of an applicable scenario of a scheduling offset provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0079] FIG11 is a schematic diagram of another applicable scenario of the scheduling offset provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0080] FIG12 is a schematic diagram of an applicable scenario of an effective timing offset provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0081] FIG13 is a schematic diagram of parameters broadcast by each cell for determining a TA according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0082] FIG14 is a schematic diagram of an air-to-ground (ATG) communication scenario provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0083] FIG15 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0084] FIG16 is a schematic diagram of the coverage area where the relay device and the terminal device are located according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0085] FIG17 is a schematic diagram of broadcasting multiple parameter sets provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0086] FIG18 is a schematic flow chart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0087] FIG19 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0088] FIG20 is another schematic block diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0089] Figure 21 is another schematic block diagram of the communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0090] The technical solution in this application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0091] To facilitate understanding of the technical solution provided by this application, the following points are first explained:

[0092] First, in this application, the terms "including" and "having" and any variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions. For example, a communication device includes a series of modules, modules or units, but the communication device is not limited to including only these modules, modules or units. It may also include other modules, modules or units that are not listed.

[0093] Second, in this application, indications include explicit indications (also called direct indications) and implicit indications (also called indirect indications). Specifically, explicit indication of information A refers to including information A; implicit indication of information A refers to indicating information A through the correspondence between information A and information B and directly indicating information B; or, it may refer to indicating information A through information B and a preset rule.

[0094] Third, in this application, information C is used to determine information D, which includes both information D being determined based solely on information C and information D being determined based on information C and other information.

[0095] Fourth, in this application, "at least one" means one or more, and "more" means two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone. The character " / " generally indicates that the previous and next associated objects are in an "or" relationship, but it does not exclude the situation where the previous and next associated objects are in an "and" relationship. The specific meaning can be understood in conjunction with the context. "At least one of the following items" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single items or plural items.

[0096] Fifth, in this application, "sending" and "receiving" indicate the direction of signal transmission. For example, "sending information to a terminal device" can be understood as the destination end of the information being the terminal device, which can include direct sending through the air interface, and also includes indirect sending through the air interface by other units or modules. "Receiving information from a ground station" can be understood as the source end of the information being the ground station, which can include direct receiving from the ground station through the air interface, and also includes indirect receiving from the ground station through the air interface from other units or modules. "Sending" can also be understood as the "output" of the chip interface, and "receiving" can also be understood as the "input" of the chip interface.

[0097] In other words, sending and receiving can be performed between devices, for example, between a ground station and a terminal device; or it can be performed within a device, for example, sending or receiving between components, modules, chips, software modules or hardware modules within the device through a bus, wiring or interface.

[0098] Sixth, the correspondences shown in the tables of this application 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 this application. When configuring the correspondences between information and parameters, it is not necessarily required to configure all the correspondences illustrated in each table. For example, in the tables of this application, the correspondences shown in certain rows may not be configured. For another example, appropriate modifications and 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 use other names that can be understood by the communication device, and the values ​​or representations of the parameters may also use 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.

[0099] Seventh, in this application, terminal devices may also be referred to as terminals, terminal equipment, user equipment (UE), mobile stations, mobile terminals, etc. Terminals may include but are not limited to: mobile phones, tablet computers, computers with wireless transceiver functions, virtual reality (VR) devices, augmented reality (AR) devices, mixed reality (MR) devices, extended reality (XR) devices, wireless terminals in industrial control, vehicle-mounted devices, wireless terminals in unmanned driving, wireless terminals in remote medical, wireless terminals in smart grids, wireless terminals in transportation safety, wireless terminals in smart cities, wireless terminals in smart homes, wearable devices, video players, full-range projectors, etc. This application does not limit the specific form of the terminal.

[0100] Eighth, in this application, it is mentioned that the ground station needs to occupy different time-frequency resources for different cells to broadcast the parameters corresponding to each cell for determining the TA. Different time-frequency resources may refer to different time domain resources, or different frequency domain resources, or both time domain resources and frequency domain resources. This application does not limit this.

[0101] In non-terrestrial networks (NTN), the ground station can also be called a gateway station. The method provided in this application can be applied to NTN systems or to terrestrial communication systems, and this application does not limit this. When the method provided in this application is applied to a terrestrial communication system, the ground station can also be replaced by a network device, which can be a base station (base station), an evolved nodeB (eNodeB), an access point (AP), a transmission reception point (TRP), a next generation NodeB (gNB), a base station in a future communication system, or an access node in a wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) system, etc. This application does not limit the type of network device.

[0102] In order to better understand the method provided by this application, the terms involved in this application are briefly explained below.

[0103] 1. NTN: This can be considered a supplement to the terrestrial communication network, or a standalone communication system that provides users with global high-speed network access. An NTN system can include devices such as terminals, ground stations, base stations, and satellites.

[0104] 2. Intersatellite forwarding network: The terminal forwards data to the ground station via intersatellite links (links between satellites). The following is a detailed description of intersatellite forwarding with reference to Figure 1.

[0105] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of an intersatellite forwarding network provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0106] As shown in Figure 1, the terminal forwards data to the ground station via intersatellite links. For example, data from the terminal passes through satellite 1, satellite 2, satellite 3, satellite 4, and satellite 5 in sequence before being forwarded to the ground station. As can be seen from Figure 1, satellites closer to the ground station require more data to be forwarded. For example, satellite 5 is closer to the ground station than satellite 4, so satellite 5 forwards more data than satellite 4, placing greater pressure on intersatellite forwarding. Furthermore, due to satellite movement, different satellites become closer to the ground station in turn, so most satellites must support maximum-capacity intersatellite forwarding, which results in higher satellite hardware costs.

[0107] 3. Satellite-to-ground forwarding network: To reduce inter-satellite forwarding pressure and satellite hardware costs, satellite-to-ground forwarding can be used. That is, signals transmitted between terminals and ground stations / base stations can be forwarded via satellites and devices deployed on the ground. Satellite-to-ground forwarding is described in detail below with reference to Figure 2.

[0108] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of a satellite-to-ground forwarding network provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0109] As shown in Figure 2, the signal transmitted between the terminal and the ground station can be forwarded by satellites and devices deployed on the ground, wherein both the satellites and the devices deployed on the ground can be regarded as forwarding nodes, such as NCTN or NCRN, wherein the NCTN has the function of amplify and forward (AF) relay, wherein after the amplify and forward relay receives the signal, it does not decode or encode the signal, and directly forwards the received signal to the next hop node. The NCRN (also known as a digital forwarding node) has the function of decode and forward (DF) relay, wherein after the decode and forward relay receives the signal, it decodes the signal, then re-encodes the decoding result, and forwards the re-encoded signal to the next hop node. Exemplarily, as shown in Figure 2, data from the terminal device can pass through satellite 1, device 1, satellite 8, device 2, and satellite 5 in sequence, and finally be forwarded to the ground station.

[0110] In this application, the above-mentioned satellites and devices deployed on the ground can be collectively referred to as relay devices, which are used to forward signals between terminal devices and ground stations.

[0111] Figure 3 is another schematic diagram of a satellite-to-ground relay network provided by an embodiment of the present application. In the satellite-to-ground relay network shown in Figure 3, three relay devices are deployed between a terminal device and a ground station, but this should not constitute any limitation on the present application. For example, a greater or lesser number of relay devices may be deployed between a terminal device and a ground station.

[0112] As shown in Figure 3, the signal between the terminal device and the ground station can be forwarded through three relay devices (e.g., relay device 1, relay device 2, and relay device 3), wherein the three relay devices include satellites and devices deployed on the ground. The relay device shown in Figure 3 can be an amplify-and-forward relay or a decode-and-forward relay, which is not limited in this application.

[0113] The architecture of the satellite-to-ground forwarding network shown in Figure 3 will be described in detail below in conjunction with Figures 4 to 7. In the satellite-to-ground forwarding networks shown in Figures 4 and 6, the multiple forwarding nodes between the ground station and the terminal device are exemplified by the NCTN. In the satellite-to-ground forwarding networks shown in Figures 5 and 7, the multiple forwarding nodes between the ground station and the terminal device include both the NCTN and the NCRN.

[0114] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of the satellite-to-ground forwarding network provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0115] As shown in Figure 4, the satellite-to-ground forwarding network includes the fifth-generation core network (5GC), the next-generation (NG) radio access network (RAN), and terminals. The NG-RAN includes ground stations (using gNBs as an example) and one or more (three in the figure as an example) NCTNs. These one or more NCTNs have the function of amplifying and forwarding relaying. That is, after receiving a signal, the one or more forwarding nodes do not decode or encode the signal but directly forward the received signal to the next hop node.

[0116] The gNB is connected to a gNB-donor. The gNB-donor consists of a gNB-donor centralized unit (CU) and one or more gNB-donor distributed units (DU).

[0117] Each NCTN consists of an NCTN mobile terminal (MT), an NCTN DU, and a forwarding module. The MT functions similarly to a UE, communicating with the parent node over the Uu interface and providing data backhaul. The NCTN DU functions similarly to the DU in a gNB, communicating with child nodes and providing access services. The forwarding module amplifies and forwards uplink and downlink RF signals (also known as transparent forwarding).

[0118] The NCTN-MT can be connected to the DU or NCTN-DU of its parent node as a normal UE, or it can be used as a control link to send control backhaul, control link / access link (control link / access link) beam direction information, switch forwarding transmission signaling information, or routing related information. The NCTN-DU can provide access to the lower-level NCTN-MT / NCRN-MT and establish a lower-level control link. The NCTN is connected to the previous hop NCTN or gNB-host-DU via the mobile terminal function of the NR Uu port. The NCTN provides wireless backhaul to the next hop NCTN and terminal through the DU function of the NR Uu port. In the figure, NG, NR Uu, Xn-C and F1 are all logical interfaces, and the functions of each interface are not detailed here.

[0119] FIG5 is another schematic diagram of the architecture of the satellite-to-ground forwarding network provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0120] As shown in Figure 5, the difference from Figure 4 is that the forwarding nodes used for signal forwarding between the ground station and the terminal device include NCTN and NCRN. The difference between NCRN and NCTN is that NCRN includes NCRN-MT and NCRN-DU, while NCTN includes NCTN-MT, NCTN-DU, and a forwarding module. Among them, NCRN does not have a backhaul adaptation protocol (BAP) layer, for example, the media access control (MAC) layer carries routing information. NCRN-MT can be connected to the DU / NCTN-DU / NCRN-DU of its parent node as an ordinary UE, or it can be used as a control link and wireless backhaul link (providing digital forwarding function and supporting radio link control (RLC) layer forwarding). NCRN-DU can provide access to the lower-level NCTN-MT / NCRN-MT / UE. For a detailed description of the satellite-to-ground forwarding network in Figure 5, please refer to Figure 4 and will not be repeated here.

[0121] FIG6 is another schematic diagram of the architecture of the satellite-to-ground forwarding network provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0122] As shown in Figure 6, the difference from Figure 4 is that NCTN has fewer functions (such as no NCTN-DU function), that is, NCTN includes NCTN-MT and forwarding module. For a detailed description of the satellite-to-ground forwarding network in Figure 6, please refer to Figure 4 and will not be repeated here.

[0123] FIG7 is another schematic diagram of the architecture of the satellite-to-ground forwarding network provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0124] As shown in Figure 7, the difference from Figure 5 is that NCTN has fewer functions (such as no NCTN-DU function), that is, NCTN includes NCTN-MT and forwarding module. For a detailed description of the satellite-to-ground forwarding network in Figure 7, please refer to Figure 4 and will not be repeated here.

[0125] 4. TA and common TA: TA refers to the time that the terminal sends the uplink data frame in advance of the corresponding downlink data frame. Due to the certain distance between the terminal and the base station (an example of a network device), the uplink data frame sent by the terminal has a delay when it reaches the base station. In order to keep the uplink data frame of the terminal synchronized with the downlink data frame of the base station at the base station or to ensure that the uplink data frames sent by multiple terminals are synchronized at the base station, the base station needs to indicate the TA-related parameters to the terminal. The terminal sends uplink data according to the TA. The TA reflects the round-trip signal transmission delay between the terminal and the base station (which can be referred to as the round-trip delay). TA will be explained in detail below in conjunction with Figures 8 and 9.

[0126] FIG8 is a schematic diagram of an uplink data frame and a downlink data frame provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0127] As shown in a) of Figure 8 , the link between the satellite and the terminal is called a service link, and the link between the satellite and the ground station is called a feeder link. A) of Figure 8 shows a scenario where the reference point is at the ground station. The round-trip delay between the reference point and the ground station is compensated by the ground station, while the round-trip delay between the reference point and the satellite and the round-trip delay between the satellite and the terminal are compensated by the terminal. That is, the TA corresponding to the terminal can be the sum of the round-trip delay between the reference point and the satellite and the round-trip delay between the satellite and the terminal. The distance between the reference point and the satellite is the common transmission distance for all terminals within the satellite's coverage area. Accordingly, a common round-trip transmission delay is generated during round-trip transmission over this common transmission distance, which is recorded as a common TA. That is, the common TA for multiple terminals within the same coverage area can be the same. This common TA may be related to the type of satellite communication system and the distance between the satellite or ground station and the reference point.

[0128] As shown in Figure 8 (b), the uplink data frame sent by the terminal is transmitted before the corresponding downlink data frame. The time the uplink data frame is transmitted before the downlink data frame is recorded as TA, which reflects the round-trip signal transmission delay between the terminal and the ground station. In this way, when the ground station receives the uplink data frame, the boundary of the uplink data frame is exactly aligned with the boundary of the downlink data frame. In this way, the TA can be used to synchronize the terminal's uplink data frame with the ground station's downlink data frame at the base station.

[0129] FIG9 is another schematic diagram of an uplink data frame and a downlink data frame provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0130] As shown in Figure 9(a), unlike Figure 8(a), the reference point is between the satellite and the ground station. That is, the reference point is located on the feeder link. The round-trip delay between the reference point and the ground station is compensated by the ground station, while the round-trip delay between the reference point and the satellite and the round-trip delay between the satellite and the terminal are compensated by the terminal. For a description of the public TA, refer to the explanation of Figure 8(a) and will not be repeated here.

[0131] As shown in b) in Figure 9, the uplink data frame sent by the terminal is transmitted before the downlink data frame corresponding to the terminal. The time when the uplink data frame is transmitted earlier than the downlink data frame is recorded as TA. Since the round-trip delay between the reference point and the ground station is compensated by the ground station, that is, for the ground station, the arrival time of the uplink data frame is later than the sending time of the downlink data frame (same frame number), wherein the time difference between the arrival time of the uplink data frame and the sending time of the downlink data frame (that is, the effective timing offset in the figure) is indicated by the ground station. Therefore, the TA corresponding to the terminal is less than the round-trip transmission delay of the signal between the terminal and the ground station.

[0132] 5. Scheduling offset (denoted as Koffset): The scheduling offset is configured by the base station (an example of network equipment) for the terminal. The scheduling offset can be carried in a broadcast message (such as the system information block (SIB) 19). In network communications, there may be problems such as insufficient scheduling delay for uplink data from the base station or insufficient feedback delay configured by the base station to the terminal. Therefore, the scheduling offset can be introduced. The following briefly describes possible scenarios where the scheduling offset is applicable. For a more detailed explanation, please refer to the protocol 3GPP 38.331 and will not be detailed here.

[0133] Scenario 1: The base station sends physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) data (data carried on the PDSCH). The terminal receives the PDSCH data and, after receiving the PDSCH data, provides an acknowledgment (ACK) or negative acknowledgment (NACK). The ACK can be, for example, a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ)-ACK, and the NACK can be, for example, a HARQ-NACK.

[0134] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram of an applicable scenario of a scheduling offset provided in an embodiment of the present application. In Figure 10 , the terminal feedback HARQ-ACK is taken as an example, but this should not constitute any limitation to the present application. For example, the terminal may also feedback HARQ-NACK.

[0135] As shown in a) of Figure 10, after the terminal receives the PDSCH data sent by the base station, it needs to send HARQ-ACK or HARQ-NACK to feedback whether the PDSCH data was successfully decoded (the figure uses HARQ-ACK feedback as an example). Assuming that the terminal receives PDSCH data in downlink time slot (slot) n, the terminal needs to feedback HARQ-ACK in uplink time slot n+K1. The maximum timing advance adjustment that the terminal can make is K1-1 time slot length. Currently, the maximum value of K1 is 15. When the subcarrier spacing (SCS) is 15 kilohertz (KHz), the length of a time slot is 1 millisecond (ms), so the maximum timing advance adjustment that the terminal can make is 14ms. In NTN, the round-trip delay between the ground station and the terminal is usually greater than 14ms, which means that the terminal needs to make a timing advance adjustment of more than 14ms for the uplink data. As can be seen from a) of Figure 10, the timing advance adjustment amount for the uplink data sent by the terminal is greater than K1-1 time slot length. Therefore, the K1-1 time slot length cannot provide a sufficient time length for the terminal to make timing advance adjustment, and cannot meet the terminal's demand for round-trip delay compensation in the NTN scenario.

[0136] Therefore, a scheduling offset can be introduced to ensure that there is enough time between the terminal receiving PDSCH data and the terminal sending HARQ-ACK to make timing advance adjustment.

[0137] As shown in Figure 10 (b), the terminal sends HARQ-ACK in time slot n+K1+Koffset. Correspondingly, the base station receives HARQ-ACK in uplink time slot n+K1+Koffset. By introducing Koffset, the time slot occupied by the terminal's HARQ-ACK transmission is adjusted, increasing the scheduling delay for the terminal's HARQ-ACK feedback, thereby providing the terminal with sufficient time to make timing advance adjustments.

[0138] Scenario 2: Scenario in which physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) data is scheduled based on downlink control information (DCI).

[0139] FIG11 is a schematic diagram of another applicable scenario of the scheduling offset provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0140] As shown in a) of Figure 11, after the terminal receives the DCI in the downlink time slot n, it needs to Send PUSCH data. PUSCH Related to the subcarrier spacing corresponding to PUSCH, μPDCCH Related to the subcarrier spacing corresponding to the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). For example, PDCCH corresponds to The maximum value of the timing advance adjustment that the terminal can make is K2-1 time slot length. Currently, the value range of K2 is 0 to 32. When the uplink subcarrier spacing is different, the length of K2 time slots will also be different. As shown in Table 1, when SCS = 15KHz, the maximum value of K2 time slot length is 32ms. Based on the above analysis, the maximum value of the timing advance adjustment that the terminal can make when sending DCI-scheduled PUSCH data is 32ms. For the geostationary earth orbit (GEO) scenario, the maximum round-trip delay between the ground station and the terminal is 541.46ms. The K2-1 time slot length cannot provide enough time for the terminal to make timing advance adjustment. Similarly, for the low earth orbit (LEO)-1200 scenario, when the subcarrier spacing is 30 kHz, the maximum value of the K2 time slot length is 16 ms, and the maximum round-trip delay between the ground station and the terminal in the LEO-1200 scenario is greater than 20 ms. Therefore, the K2-1 time slot length cannot provide sufficient time for the terminal to make timing advance adjustment.

[0141] Table 1

[0142] Therefore, Koffset can be introduced to ensure that there is sufficient time between the terminal receiving downlink DCI and PUSCH data, so that the terminal has enough time to make timing advance adjustment.

[0143] As shown in b) of Figure 11, the terminal is in the uplink time slot Send PUSCH data. Correspondingly, the base station sends PUSCH data in the uplink time slot. By introducing Koffset, the time slot occupied by the terminal to send PUSCH data is adjusted, the scheduling delay of the terminal to send PUSCH data is increased, and thus sufficient time is given to the terminal to make timing advance adjustment.

[0144] Optionally, if the terminal receives DCI in downlink time slot n, it can send DCI in uplink time slot n. Send PUSCH data. and is adjusted due to the different time units. PUSCH and μ PDCCHIt is related to the subcarrier spacing of PUSCH and PDCCH, that is,

[0145] Scenario 3: A scenario in which PUSCH data is scheduled based on a configured grant (eg, configured grant type 2).

[0146] When a terminal receives an uplink grant message configured by the base station, it uses Koffset when sending PUSCH data on the corresponding resource. For example, the terminal sends PUSCH data at the first PUSCH transmission opportunity after the time length corresponding to Koffset after receiving the uplink grant message. For example, if the terminal receives an uplink grant message in time slot n, the terminal can send PUSCH data at the first PUSCH transmission opportunity after the uplink time slot n + Koffset.

[0147] Scenario 4: Random access response (RAR) authorization scheduling of PUSCH data.

[0148] In the four-step random access process, if the terminal receives the RAR message in the downlink time slot n, the terminal can u Koffset sends PUSCH data (i.e., message 3 (Msg3)). u The time length represented by Koffset is converted due to the different time slot lengths of downlink and uplink (such as the difference in subcarrier spacing). The time unit used by Koffset defined in the standard is based on the time slot length of subcarrier spacing = 15Khz (i.e. 1ms). Therefore, u is related to the subcarrier spacing of the uplink signal, such as the subcarrier spacing of the uplink signal = 2 u *15KHz. Δ is predefined by the protocol.

[0149] During two-step random access, the terminal sends message A (MsgA) to the base station. If the base station does not successfully decode the entire message A (for example, only the preamble), the base station sends a fallback RAR message to the terminal. After receiving the fallback RAR message, the terminal sends Msg3, the random access scheduled by the fallback RAR message, on the PUSCH. The timeslot occupied by Msg3 can also include a K offset.

[0150] Scenario 5: Scenario of transmitting channel state information (CSI) on PUSCH.

[0151] When a terminal receives DCI (used to request CSI) in downlink time slot n, it can send CSI in uplink time slot n+K+Koffset, and the CSI is transmitted on the PUSCH, where K is determined based on the DCI.

[0152] Scenario 6: A scenario in which network equipment is configured with resources for carrying CSI.

[0153] If the terminal wants to send a CSI measurement report in uplink time slot n', the base station needs to send a CSI measurement report in downlink time slot nn CSI_ref -Koffset configures the terminal with resources for carrying CSI. n CSI_ref is predefined by the protocol, n CSI_ref Depends on the type of CSI measurement report.

[0154] Scenario 7: A scenario in which the terminal sends aperiodic sounding reference signals (SRS).

[0155] After the terminal receives the DCI triggering the aperiodic SRS in the downlink time slot n, it can Send SRS. Where k is configured by the base station, μ SRS The subcarrier spacing between SRS transmission, μ PDCCH Related to the PDCCH subcarrier spacing 。

[0156] Scenario 8: A scenario in which a random access process is triggered by a command carried on a PDCCH (PDCCH command for short).

[0157] The base station indicates / configures the random access opportunity to the terminal through the PDCCH command, and the terminal determines the next available random access opportunity based on the instruction. The terminal sends a random access signal (e.g., a random access preamble) at the next available random access opportunity after a time length corresponding to Koffset after receiving the last symbol of the PDCCH command (if the unit is the uplink time slot length, then it is Koffset time slot lengths later).

[0158] It should be noted that in this application, the time unit of Koffset is explained using the (uplink / downlink) time slot length as an example, but this should not constitute any limitation to this application. Koffset can also use other units (such as ms). If Koffset uses other units, the relevant descriptions of Koffset in the above scenarios also need to be adaptively modified. If Koffset uses other units, it is only necessary to convert Koffset into the corresponding time slot length unit. Alternatively, other parameters representing the time slot length can be converted into the same time unit as Koffset.

[0159] 6. Effective timing offset (denoted as Kmac): The effective timing offset represents the offset between the downlink frame and uplink frame timing of the ground station. The following will describe in detail the scenarios in which Kmac is applicable with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0160] FIG12 is a schematic diagram of an applicable scenario of the effective timing offset provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0161] As shown in a) of Figure 12, the ground station receives HARQ-ACK in the uplink time slot n, which is feedback to the PDSCH carrying the media access control (MAC) control element (CE). The above MAC CE is used to configure the downlink signal, and for the configuration of the downlink signal, it is assumed that the terminal is in the downlink time slot The first time slot after that takes effect, such as in the time slot Of which, The subcarrier spacing is 2 μ *At 15KHz, the number of time slots in a subframe, X is a non-negative integer agreed in the protocol or configured through parameters. In Figure 12, X=3 is used as an example. When the timing compensation of the ground station for uplink data is greater than or equal to When the HARQ-ACK or HARQ-NACK received by the ground station from the terminal is not earlier than the effective time of the downlink signal configuration, that is, later than or equal to the effective time of the downlink signal configuration. In this way, the ground station will not be able to know whether the terminal has correctly decoded the MAC CE in time. In other words, when the MAC CE configuration of the downlink signal takes effect, the ground station has not received the HARQ-ACK or HARQ-NACK fed back by the terminal. After the terminal sends HARQ-ACK or HARQ-NACK in time slot n, it will be considered that the terminal has received the HARQ-ACK or HARQ-NACK from the downlink time slot. The configuration of the downlink signal starts to take effect. This will cause different understandings of the effective time between the terminal and the ground station, resulting in communication conflicts.

[0162] Therefore, Kmac can be introduced. As shown in b) of Figure 12, it is assumed that the configuration of the terminal for the downlink signal takes effect in the downlink time slot. The first time slot after Time slot. As can be seen, when Kmac is used, the downlink signal configuration takes effect after the ground station receives the HARQ-ACK or HARQ-NACK sent by the terminal. By extending the downlink signal configuration validity period, the downlink signal configuration is ensured to take effect only after the ground station receives the HARQ-ACK or HARQ-NACK.

[0163] Currently, ground stations broadcast parameters used to calculate TA, such as ephemeris (indicating satellite positions), common TA, rate of change of common TA, rate of change of rate of change of common TA, or TA offset. The terminal determines its corresponding TA based on its own position and the received TA-related parameters, and the terminal can perform uplink transmission based on the TA. TA satisfies the following formula: Among them, N TA Refers to the timing advance adjustment amount sent by the ground station or base station to the terminal. N is the initial access TA = 0. N TA,offset It refers to the TA offset configured from the ground station to the terminal. It is determined by the terminal based on the public TA configured by the ground station, the rate of change of the public TA, and the rate of change of the rate of change of the public TA. It is determined by the terminal based on its own location and the ephemeris broadcast by the base station. C Indicates the time unit, T C =1 / (Δf max ·N f ), Δf max =480×10 3 Hz, N f =4096.

[0164] In a satellite-to-ground relay network, each relay device needs to determine its corresponding TA when accessing a ground station or base station as a terminal. However, each relay device may access different cells. For example, each relay device is located in different coverage areas, with each coverage area corresponding to a cell. Therefore, the parameters used to determine the TA may vary. Consequently, the ground station needs to use different time-frequency resources to broadcast the parameters corresponding to each cell, which can lead to resource waste.

[0165] Figure 13 is a schematic diagram of the parameters broadcast by each cell for determining TA provided by an embodiment of the present application. In Figure 13, taking the system shown in Figure 3 as an example, the relay device for forwarding signals between the ground station and the terminal device includes, for example, relay device 1, relay device 2, relay device 3, and terminal device access different cells. For example, relay device 1, relay device 2, relay device 3, and terminal device are located in different coverage areas, and one coverage area corresponds to one cell. Therefore, the parameters received by each relay device and terminal device for determining TA may be different, such as the common timing advance, the location parameters of the network equipment providing services to the relay device or terminal device (different coordinate information or ephemeris information). Similarly, Koffset and Kmac may also be different.

[0166] As shown in Figure 13, it is assumed that relay device 1 accesses cell 1 (the area served by the ground station), relay device 2 accesses cell 2 (the area served by the forwarding signal of relay device 1), relay device 3 accesses cell 3 (the area served by the forwarding signal of relay device 2), and the terminal device accesses cell 4 (the area served by the forwarding signal of relay device 3). For example, as shown in a) in Figure 16, cell 1 corresponds to coverage area 1, relay device 1 is located in coverage area 1, cell 2 corresponds to coverage area 2, relay device 2 is located in coverage area 2, cell 3 corresponds to coverage area 3, relay device 3 is located in coverage area 3, cell 4 corresponds to coverage area 4, and the terminal device is located in coverage area 4. Here, different coverage areas can be different cells. The ground station occupies different time-frequency resources for different cells to broadcast the parameters corresponding to each cell for determining TA. More specifically, the parameters corresponding to cell 1 include the location of the ground station and public TA 0, the parameters corresponding to cell 2 include the location of relay device 1 and public TA 1, the parameters corresponding to cell 3 include the location of relay device 2 and public TA 2, and the parameters corresponding to cell 4 include the location of relay device 3 and public TA 3. The ground station needs to occupy different time-frequency resources for different cells to broadcast the parameters used to determine the TA for each cell, which can easily result in resource waste.

[0167] In order to reduce the waste of resources, the present application provides a communication method, in which multiple groups of parameter sets corresponding to multiple communication devices are carried in the broadcast message of the same cell. That is to say, multiple groups of parameter sets can be broadcast in the broadcast message of the same cell. These multiple groups of parameter sets are broadcast through the time-frequency resources corresponding to the above-mentioned cells. The ground station does not need to occupy different time-frequency resources for each communication device to broadcast the corresponding parameter set, which is conducive to reducing resource waste.

[0168] It should be noted that in the present application, when the satellite operates in transparent mode, the satellite has the function of a relay device for transparent forwarding. When the ground station (or gateway station) has the function of a base station or partial base station function, the gateway station or ground station can be regarded as a base station. Alternatively, the base station can be deployed separately from the gateway station, then the delay of the feeder link includes two parts: the delay from the satellite to the gateway station and the delay from the gateway station to the base station. The following takes the case where the gateway station and the base station are deployed together or located close to each other as an example. For the case where the gateway station is far away from the base station, the feeder link delay is the sum of the delay from the satellite to the gateway station and the delay from the gateway station to the base station. When the satellite operates in regenerative mode, the satellite has data processing capabilities, the function of a base station or partial base station function, and the satellite can be regarded as a base station. In addition, the base station is connected to the core network. Alternatively, the satellite has a decoding and forwarding function.

[0169] FIG14 is a schematic diagram of an air-to-ground communication scenario provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0170] As shown in FIG14 , the present application can also be applied to air-to-ground (ATG) communication scenarios, where network equipment includes ground base stations, and user terminals include high-altitude aircraft, onboard handheld terminals, and the like.

[0171] It should be understood that the scenarios shown in this application are only examples and should not constitute any limitation to this application.

[0172] The communication method provided by the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Figure 15 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method 1500 provided in an embodiment of the present application. Figure 15 only describes the method by taking the interaction between the ground station and the first communication device as an example, and should not constitute any limitation to the present application. The ground station in Figure 15 can also be replaced by a component configured in the ground station (such as a chip, a chip system, a processor, etc.), or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the ground station. The first communication device can be replaced by a component configured in the first communication device (such as a chip, a chip system, a processor, etc.), or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the first communication device.

[0173] The method 1500 shown in Figure 15 includes steps 1510 to 1530. Each step in the method 1500 is described in detail below.

[0174] In step 1510, the ground station generates multiple parameter sets, each of which includes parameters corresponding to multiple communication devices and used to determine TA.

[0175] The device types of the above-mentioned multiple communication devices include relay devices and / or terminal devices. The relay device is used to forward signals between the ground station and the terminal device. For example, the above-mentioned multiple communication devices are all relay devices. For another example, the above-mentioned multiple communication devices are all terminal devices. For another example, the above-mentioned multiple communication devices include at least one relay device and at least one terminal device. In addition, in the present application, the relay device can be an amplification and forwarding relay or a decoding and forwarding relay, and the present application does not limit the type of relay device. Exemplarily, the above-mentioned multiple communication devices can be the relay device 1, relay device 2, relay device 3 and terminal device shown in Figure 3.

[0176] In the present application, the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets include parameters corresponding to multiple communication devices for determining TA. It can be understood that: the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to the above-mentioned multiple communication devices, and each parameter set includes parameters for the corresponding device to determine TA.

[0177] Exemplarily, the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets include parameter set 1, parameter set 2, parameter set 3 and parameter set 4. The above-mentioned four groups of parameter sets are parameter sets corresponding to four communication devices (such as communication device 1, communication device 2, communication device 3 and communication device 4) for determining TA. For example, parameter set 1 includes parameters for communication device 1 to determine TA, parameter set 2 includes parameters for communication device 2 to determine TA, parameter set 3 includes parameters for communication device 3 to determine TA, and parameter set 4 includes parameters for communication device 4 to determine TA.

[0178] In step 1520, the ground station sends the multiple parameter sets mentioned above, which are carried in a broadcast message of the same cell. Correspondingly, the first communication device receives the multiple parameter sets mentioned above.

[0179] Among them, the first communication device is any one of the above-mentioned multiple communication devices, and the device types of the above-mentioned multiple communication devices include relay devices and / or terminal devices. The relay device is used to forward the signal between the ground station and the terminal device. The terminal device can serve as the destination end (or receiving device) of the signal, and the ground station can serve as the source end of the signal. For example, the above-mentioned multiple communication devices are all relay devices, and the first communication device can be any one of the multiple relay devices. For another example, the above-mentioned multiple communication devices are all terminal devices, and the first communication device can be any one of the multiple terminal devices. For another example, the above-mentioned multiple communication devices include at least one relay device and at least one terminal device. The first communication device can be any one of the above-mentioned at least one terminal device, or any one of the above-mentioned at least one relay device.

[0180] In this application, a cell can be understood as an area served by a relay device or an area served by a ground station. The above-mentioned multiple parameter sets are carried in the broadcast message of the same cell, that is, a broadcast message of a cell can carry multiple parameter sets. It should be noted that the number of cells broadcasting the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets can be one or more. As long as the number of cells broadcasting the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets is less than the total number of areas served by the relay device and the ground station, compared to each cell broadcasting its own corresponding parameter set, it can reduce resource waste to a certain extent.

[0181] Exemplarily, in the communication system shown in Figure 3, the above-mentioned multiple communication devices include a terminal and three relay devices between the ground station and the terminal device. It is assumed that the coverage areas where the above-mentioned three relay devices are located are coverage area 1, coverage area 2, and coverage area 3, respectively, and the coverage area where the terminal device is located is coverage area 4. The above-mentioned four coverage areas can be logically regarded as a cell. The ground station can send a broadcast message based on the time-frequency resources corresponding to the above-mentioned cell, and the broadcast message carries the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets.

[0182] It should be understood that the above-mentioned four coverage areas are regarded as one cell for the purpose of example only and should not constitute any limitation to the embodiments of the present application. For example, the above-mentioned four coverage areas can also be divided into two cells (for example, coverage area 1 and coverage area 2 constitute a cell 1, and coverage area 3 and coverage area 4 constitute a cell 2). The ground station can broadcast the parameter sets corresponding to coverage area 1 and coverage area 2 based on the time-frequency resources corresponding to cell 1, and broadcast the parameter sets corresponding to the above-mentioned coverage area 3 and coverage area 4 based on the time-frequency resources corresponding to cell 2. This application does not limit this.

[0183] It should also be understood that in the present application, the broadcast message carrying the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets may be SIB 19, or other types of broadcast messages such as other system information (OSI), master system information block (MIB), physical broadcast channel (physical broadcast channel) message, etc. The ground station may send the signal in the form of broadcast or multicast, which is not limited in the present application. The ground station sending the above signaling by broadcast or multicast is beneficial to avoid scheduling different resources for different terminals in order to send the above signaling, saving the signaling overhead of scheduling resources, and reducing the complexity of system scheduling.

[0184] In addition, if sent during the radio resource control (RRC) connection establishment phase and subsequent communication process, the ground station may send the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets through at least one of RRC signaling (such as RRC setup signaling, RRC reconfiguration signaling, or RRC resume signaling, etc.), DCI, group DCI, and MAC CE. Alternatively, the above signaling / parameter values ​​are indicated to the relay device or terminal device in a table format, or are unicast or multicast to the relay device or terminal device along with data transmission or in a separately allocated PDSCH bearer. Sending the above signaling to the relay device or terminal device individually or in groups is conducive to flexible control of the parameter values ​​of each / each group of relay devices or terminal devices, and configuring different parameter values ​​to the relay device or terminal device according to the different locations or different areas where the relay device or terminal device is located, so as to achieve the purpose of optimizing system parameters and optimizing terminal communication performance / system communication performance. For example, different uplink synchronization and timing parameter values ​​can be configured for relay devices or terminal devices according to their different locations to optimize the scheduling delay of each / each group of relay devices or terminal devices and improve the communication efficiency of the terminal devices and the system.

[0185] It should also be understood that when the first communication device is the next hop node of the ground station, the first communication device can directly receive multiple sets of parameter sets from the ground station. For example, taking Figure 3 as an example, the first communication device is relay device 1, the ground station sends the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets, and relay device 1 receives the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets. When there is a relay device between the first communication device and the ground station, in other words, the first communication device is not the next hop node of the ground station, the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets can be forwarded to the first communication device by the relay device. For example, taking Figure 3 as an example, assuming that the first communication device is relay device 2, the ground station sends the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets, relay device 1 receives the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets, and forwards the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets, and relay device 2 receives the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets forwarded by relay device 1. It should be noted that relay device 1 can be an amplification and forwarding relay or a decoding and forwarding relay, and this application does not limit this.

[0186] In step 1530 , the first communications device determines a TA based on at least one parameter set among the plurality of parameter sets.

[0187] After receiving the multiple parameter sets, the first communication device may determine the TA based on at least one of the multiple parameter sets.

[0188] For example, in the communication system shown in FIG3 , relay device 1 receives multiple parameter sets from a ground station and determines the TA based on at least one of the multiple parameter sets. Furthermore, relay device 1 may forward the multiple parameter sets, and relay device 2, upon receiving the multiple parameter sets, may also determine the TA based on at least one of the multiple parameter sets.

[0189] Optionally, after determining the TA, the first communication device may also perform uplink transmission with the ground station according to the TA.

[0190] Exemplarily, after the terminal device determines the TA, it can perform uplink transmission with the ground station according to the TA.

[0191] The following describes in detail the possible designs of the above multiple parameter sets.

[0192] A first possible design for the multiple parameter sets is to have a one-to-one correspondence between the multiple parameter sets and multiple reference locations, where the multiple reference locations are located within the coverage area of ​​the relay device and the ground station. In other words, each parameter set in the multiple parameter sets corresponds to a reference location, and the multiple reference locations are used to distinguish the multiple parameter sets.

[0193] FIG16 is a schematic diagram of the coverage area where the relay device and the terminal device are located according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0194] Exemplarily, as shown in a) in Figure 16, the above-mentioned multiple communication devices include a terminal and three relay devices between the ground station and the terminal. It is assumed that the above-mentioned three relay devices are respectively located in coverage area 1 (the area served by the ground station), coverage area 2 (the area served by the forwarding signal of relay device 1), and coverage area 3 (the area served by the forwarding signal of relay device 2), and the area where the terminal is located is coverage area 4 (the area served by the forwarding signal of relay device 3). In the existing technology, as shown in Figure 13, logically, the above-mentioned four coverage areas can be different cells, such as coverage area 1 is cell 1, coverage area 2 is cell 2, coverage area 3 is cell 3, and coverage area 4 is cell 4. The ground station broadcasts the parameters used to determine TA for different cells. In the method provided in this application, the ground station broadcasts multiple parameter sets, which are carried in broadcast messages of the same cell. These multiple parameter sets can correspond one-to-one to multiple reference locations, as shown in b) of Figure 16. The multiple reference locations include reference location 1 to reference location 4. For example, reference location 1 is located in coverage area 1, reference location 2 is located in coverage area 2, reference location 3 is located in coverage area 3, and reference location 4 is located in coverage area 4. Reference location 1 corresponds to parameter set 1, reference location 2 corresponds to parameter set 2, reference location 3 corresponds to parameter set 3, and reference location 4 corresponds to parameter set 4. These multiple parameter sets can be used by devices in the above four coverage areas to determine TA. Logically, the above four coverage areas are one cell (e.g., denoted as cell 1). The resources occupied by these multiple parameter sets can be the time-frequency resources of the above one cell. This will be explained in detail below in conjunction with Figure 17.

[0195] FIG17 is a schematic diagram of broadcasting multiple parameter sets provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0196] As shown in Figure 17, the ground station broadcasts multiple groups of parameter sets and corresponding reference positions based on the time-frequency resources corresponding to cell 1. That is to say, the multiple coverage areas corresponding to these multiple groups of parameter sets can be logically regarded as a cell (recorded as cell 1). The ground station can broadcast multiple groups of parameter sets based on the time-frequency resources of the cell to reduce resource waste.

[0197] In the case where the multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to the multiple reference locations, the at least one parameter set is determined based on the multiple reference locations. In other words, the first communication device may determine the at least one parameter set based on the multiple reference locations, and determine the TA based on the at least one parameter set.

[0198] In one possible implementation, the at least one parameter set includes a parameter set corresponding to the reference location that is closest to the first communication device among the multiple reference locations. In other words, for any one of the multiple communication devices, the at least one parameter set used to determine the TA includes a parameter set corresponding to the reference location that is closest to the first communication device among the multiple reference locations.

[0199] In one example, the first communication device determines TA based on a certain parameter set (which can be recorded as a target parameter set) among the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets. The above-mentioned target parameter set can be a parameter set corresponding to the reference position closest to the first communication device among the above-mentioned multiple reference positions.

[0200] In another example, the first communication device determines TA based on m groups of parameter sets among the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets, where m is an integer greater than 1 and the value of m is less than or equal to the number of the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets. The above-mentioned m groups of parameter sets may include a parameter set corresponding to the reference position closest to the first communication device among the above-mentioned multiple reference positions and a parameter set including the position of the second communication device, where the second communication device is a ground station or a relay device between the first communication device and the ground station.

[0201] The following will describe in detail the parameters included in each parameter set when the multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to the multiple reference positions.

[0202] One possible implementation is that each of the multiple parameter sets includes the location of the ground station and / or the location of the relay device. In the table shown below, Figure 16 is used as an example for description. The multiple communication devices include relay device 1, relay device 2, relay device 3 and terminal device, reference position 1 is located in coverage area 1, reference position 2 is located in coverage area 2, reference position 3 is located in coverage area 3, reference position 4 is located in coverage area 4, relay device 1 is located in coverage area 1, relay device 2 is located in coverage area 2, relay device 3 is located in coverage area 3, and terminal device is located in coverage area 4. The above four coverage areas can logically be one cell (such as recorded as cell 1).

[0203] Table 2

[0204] As shown in Table 2, the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to multiple reference positions. Parameter set 1 includes the position of the ground station, parameter set 2 includes the position of the ground station and the position of relay device 1, parameter set 3 includes the position of the ground station, the position of relay device 1 and the position of relay device 2, and parameter set 4 includes the position of the ground station, the position of relay device 1, the position of relay device 2, and the position of relay device 3.

[0205] It should be noted that in this application, the parameters shown in Tables 2 to 14 are only examples and should not constitute any limitation on this application. For example, Tables 2 to 14 may include or exclude parameter set indexes, and this application does not limit this.

[0206] After any one of the above-mentioned multiple communication devices (i.e., the first communication device) receives the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets and the above-mentioned multiple reference positions, it can determine the target parameter set based on the above-mentioned multiple reference positions, and determine the TA based on the target parameter set. In one example, the relay device 1 determines that the reference position 1 is the closest reference position based on the above-mentioned multiple reference positions and the position of the relay device 1, then the relay device 1 can determine the TA based on the parameter set 1 corresponding to the reference position 1. For example, the relay device 1 can determine the round-trip delay between the relay device 1 and the ground station based on the position of the relay device 1 and the position of the ground station, and calculate the TA according to the following formula: in, =0 (for example, the base station sends a Or not send Parameters, default ), Determined based on the round-trip delay between the relay device 1 and the ground station, the explanation of other parameters in the formula can be found above and will not be repeated here.

[0207] In another example, the terminal determines that reference position 4 is the closest reference position based on the above multiple reference positions, and the terminal can determine TA based on parameter set 4 corresponding to reference position 4. For example, the terminal can determine the round-trip delay between the terminal and the ground station based on the position of each device in parameter set 4, and determine the round-trip delay based on the above round-trip delay. For example, the round-trip delay between the terminal device and the ground station = the round-trip delay between the ground station and relay device 1 + the round-trip delay between relay device 1 and relay device 2 + the round-trip delay between relay device 2 and relay device 3 + the round-trip delay between relay device 3 and the terminal, and TA is calculated according to the following formula: in, is equal to 0, Determined based on the round trip delay between the terminal device and the ground station, e.g. It is equal to the round-trip delay between the terminal device and the ground station. The explanation of other parameters in the formula can be found above and will not be repeated here.

[0208] In another example, the relay device 3 determines that the reference position 3 is the closest reference position based on the above-mentioned multiple reference positions, and the relay device 3 can determine the TA based on the parameter set 3 corresponding to the reference position 3. For example, the relay device 3 can determine the round-trip delay between the relay device 3 and the ground station based on the position of each device in the parameter set 3, such as the round-trip delay between the relay device 3 and the ground station = the round-trip delay between the ground station and the relay device 1 + the round-trip delay between the relay device 1 and the relay device 2 + the round-trip delay between the relay device 2 and the relay device 3, and calculate the TA according to the following formula: in, is equal to 0, Determined based on the round trip delay between the relay device 3 and the ground station, for example, It is equal to the round trip delay between the relay device 3 and the ground station. The explanation of other parameters in the formula can be found above and will not be repeated here.

[0209] Table 3

[0210] As shown in Table 3, the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to multiple reference locations, with each parameter set including the location of a communication device. Parameter set 1 includes the location of the ground station, parameter set 2 includes the location of relay device 1, parameter set 3 includes the location of relay device 2, and parameter set 4 includes the location of relay device 3.

[0211] One possible implementation manner is that after the terminal device or the relay device determines a parameter set index number, the terminal device or the relay device determines the TA based on parameters in the parameter set that is less than or equal to the index number.

[0212] After any one of the above-mentioned multiple communication devices (i.e., the first communication device) receives the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets and the above-mentioned multiple reference positions, it can determine at least one parameter set based on the above-mentioned multiple reference positions, and determine the TA based on the above-mentioned at least one parameter set.

[0213] In one example, if the terminal device determines, based on the multiple reference locations, that reference location 4 is the reference location closest to the terminal, the terminal device may determine the TA based on parameter set 4 corresponding to reference location 4, as well as the positions of relay device 2, relay device 1, and the ground station. In other words, the at least one set of parameter sets includes a parameter set corresponding to the reference location closest to the first communication device and a parameter set including the position of a second communication device, where the second communication device is a relay device or a ground station between the first communication device and the ground station.

[0214] The terminal device can determine the round-trip delay between the terminal device and the ground station based on the location of each device. For example, the round-trip delay between the terminal device and the ground station = the round-trip delay between the ground station and relay device 1 + the round-trip delay between relay device 1 and relay device 2 + the round-trip delay between relay device 2 and relay device 3 + the round-trip delay between relay device 3 and the terminal device, and calculate TA according to the following formula: in, is equal to 0, Determined based on the round-trip delay between the terminal device and the ground station, the explanation of other parameters in the formula can be found above and will not be repeated here.

[0215] In another example, relay device 3 determines, based on the above-mentioned multiple reference positions, that reference position 3 is the reference position closest to relay device 3. Relay device 3 can then determine TA based on parameter set 3 corresponding to reference position 3 and the positions of relay device 1 and the ground station. For example, relay device 3 can determine the round-trip delay between relay device 3 and the ground station based on the positions of relay device 3, relay device 2, relay device 1, and the ground station, such as the round-trip delay between relay device 3 and the ground station = the round-trip delay between the ground station and relay device 1 + the round-trip delay between relay device 1 and relay device 2 + the round-trip delay between relay device 2 and relay device 3, and calculate TA according to the following formula: in, is equal to 0, Determined based on the round trip delay between the relay device 3 and the ground station, for example It is equal to the round trip delay between the relay device 3 and the ground station. The explanation of other parameters in the formula can be found above and will not be repeated here.

[0216] Optionally, the position of each device and the reference position may also be represented in the form of a difference. The following will take the case where the position of each device is represented in the form of a difference as an example for detailed description.

[0217] Table 4

[0218] As shown in Table 4, the position of relay device 1 in parameter set 2 = the position of the ground station + △ the position of relay device 1, the position of relay device 2 in parameter set 3 = the position of the ground station + △ the position of relay device 2, and the position of relay device 3 in parameter set 4 = the position of the ground station + △ the position of relay device 3; or, the position of relay device 1 in parameter set 2 = the position of the ground station + △ the position of relay device 1, the position of relay device 2 in parameter set 3 = the position of the ground station + △ the position of relay device 1 + △ the position of relay device 2, and the position of relay device 3 in parameter set 4 = the position of the ground station + △ the position of relay device 1 + △ the position of relay device 2 + △ the position of relay device 3.

[0219] Optionally, each parameter set may further include one or more of the following: a common timing advance, a change rate of the common timing advance, a change rate of the change rate of the common timing advance, a scheduling offset, or an effective timing offset.

[0220] Table 5

[0221] As shown in Table 5, the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets correspond one-to-one to multiple reference positions. Parameter set 1 includes the position of the ground station, public TA 1, the change rate 1 of the public TA, and the change rate 1 of the change rate of the public TA. Parameter set 2 includes the position of the relay device 1, public TA 2, the change rate 2 of the public TA, and the change rate 2 of the change rate of the public TA. Parameter set 3 includes the position of the relay device 2, public TA 3, the change rate 3 of the public TA, and the change rate 3 of the change rate of the public TA. Parameter set 4 includes the position of the relay device 3, public TA 4, the change rate 4 of the public TA, and the change rate 4 of the change rate of the public TA.

[0222] After any one of the above-mentioned multiple communication devices (i.e., the first communication device) receives the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets and the above-mentioned multiple reference positions, it can determine at least one parameter set based on the above-mentioned multiple reference positions, and determine the TA based on the above-mentioned at least one parameter set.

[0223] In one example, the terminal device determines, based on the above multiple reference locations, that reference location 4 is the reference location closest to the terminal device. The terminal device can then determine the TA based on parameter set 4 corresponding to reference location 4. For example, the terminal device can determine the round-trip delay between the terminal device and relay device 3 based on the location of the terminal device and the location of relay device 3, and calculate the TA according to the following formula: in,

[0224] TA common Indicates public TA, TA commonDrift Indicates the rate of change of the public TA, TA commonDriftvariant The rate of change of the public TA, t epoch Indicates the reference time point sent by the ground station to the terminal device. It can be determined based on the round trip delay between the terminal device and the relay device 3, for example is equal to the round-trip delay between the terminal device and the relay device 3. The explanation of other parameters in the formula can be found above and will not be repeated here.

[0225] As mentioned above, each parameter set may also include Koffset and / or Kmac.

[0226] Table 6

[0227] As shown in Table 6, the difference from Table 5 is that each parameter set can also include Koffset and Kmac. When the parameter set includes Koffset, the first communication device can also determine Koffset; and / or, when the parameter set includes Kmac, the first communication device can also determine Kmac.

[0228] It should be understood that the parameters included in each parameter set in Table 2 to Table 4 may also include a scheduling offset and / or an effective timing offset, which are not listed here one by one.

[0229] It should also be understood that each parameter in the parameter set can be expressed in the form of a difference. Table 7 shows the common TA, the change rate of the common TA, the change rate of the change rate of the common TA, Koffset 2, and Kmac 2 expressed in the form of a difference.

[0230] Table 7

[0231] As shown in Table 7, the public TA corresponding to parameter set 2 = public TA 1 + △ public TA 2, the public TA corresponding to parameter set 3 = public TA 1 + △ public TA 3, and the public TA corresponding to parameter set 4 = public TA 1 + △ public TA 4; alternatively, the public TA corresponding to parameter set 2 = public TA 1 + △ public TA 2, the public TA corresponding to parameter set 3 = public TA 1 + △ public TA 2 + △ public TA 3, and the public TA corresponding to parameter set 4 = public TA 1 + △ public TA 2 + △ public TA 3 + △ public TA 4; other parameters are similar and are not further described here.

[0232] It should be noted that, in this application, the position of a device can be the exact position of the device, the reference position of the device relative to a reference object, or the reference position or reference point position information at a distance from the exact position of the device, and this application does not limit this. Furthermore, the position of the device can be indicated by position coordinates or by ephemeris, and this application does not limit this.

[0233] A second possible design for the multiple parameter sets is to provide a one-to-one correspondence between the multiple parameter sets and the identifiers of multiple communication device types. In other words, each parameter set in the multiple parameter sets corresponds to the identifier of a device type, and the multiple communication device type identifiers are used to distinguish the multiple parameter sets.

[0234] Exemplarily, the above-mentioned multiple communication devices include a terminal and two relay devices between the ground station and the terminal device. Assuming that the above-mentioned two relay devices are an amplify-and-forward relay and a decode-and-forward relay, the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets include parameter set 1, parameter set 2 and parameter set 3. The amplify-and-forward relay corresponds to parameter set 1, the decode-and-forward corresponds to parameter set 2, and the terminal device corresponds to parameter set 3.

[0235] In the case where the multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one with the identifiers of multiple communication device types, at least one of the parameter sets includes a parameter set corresponding to the identifier of the device type of the first communication device. That is, for any one of the multiple communication devices, at least one parameter set used to determine the TA includes a parameter set corresponding to the identifier of its own device type. In one example, if the first communication device determines the TA based on a parameter set (which may be referred to as a target parameter set) among the multiple parameter sets, the target parameter set may be a parameter set corresponding to the identifier of the device type of the first communication device.

[0236] In another example, the first communication device determines TA based on m groups of parameter sets among the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets, where m is an integer greater than 1 and the value of m is less than or equal to the number of the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets. The above-mentioned m groups of parameter sets may include a parameter set corresponding to the identifier of the device type of the first communication device and a parameter set including the location of the second communication device, where the second communication device is a ground station or a relay device between the first communication device and the ground station.

[0237] Table 8

[0238] As shown in Table 8, the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets and the identifiers of multiple communication device types correspond one to one. Parameter set 1 includes the location of the ground station, parameter set 2 includes the location of the ground station and the location of relay device 1, and parameter set 3 includes the location of the ground station, the location of relay device 1, and the location of relay device 2.

[0239] Assuming that relay device 1 is an amplify-and-forward relay, relay device 1 determines the calculation of TA based on parameter set 1 according to the device type. For example, relay device 1 can determine the round-trip delay between relay device 1 and the ground station based on the location of relay device 1 and the location of the ground station, and calculate TA according to the following formula: in, is equal to 0, Determined based on the round trip delay between the relay device 1 and the ground station, for example It is equal to the round trip delay between the relay device 1 and the ground station. The explanation of other parameters in the formula can be found above and will not be repeated here.

[0240] Table 9

[0241] As shown in Table 9, the above multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to the identifiers of multiple communication device types. Parameter set 1 includes the location of the ground station, and parameter set 2 includes the location of the ground station and the location of relay device 1.

[0242] Assuming that the first communication device is a terminal, the terminal determines to calculate TA based on parameter set 2 according to the device type. For example, the terminal device can determine the round-trip delay between the terminal device and the ground station according to the locations of the terminal device, relay device 1, and the ground station, and calculate TA according to the following formula: in, is equal to 0, Determined based on the round trip delay between the terminal device and the ground station, e.g. It is equal to the round-trip delay between the terminal device and the ground station. The explanation of other parameters in the formula can be found above and will not be repeated here.

[0243] It should be understood that the parameters included in the parameter sets in Tables 8 and 9 are merely examples and should not limit the embodiments of the present application. The parameter set may also include the parameters included in the parameter sets in Tables 3 to 7, that is, the reference positions in Tables 3 to 7 may be replaced with device type identifiers.

[0244] In addition, when the identifier of the device type corresponds to the parameter set, and each parameter set also includes Koffset, the first communication device can also determine Koffset; and / or, when each parameter set also includes Kmac, the first communication device can also determine Kmac. Each parameter set may also include only Koffset. In this case, the first communication device can determine at least one parameter set based on the above-mentioned multiple reference positions, and then determine Koffset based on the above-mentioned at least one parameter set. Similarly, each parameter set may also include only Kmac. In this case, the first communication device can determine at least one parameter set based on the above-mentioned multiple reference positions, and then determine Kmac based on the above-mentioned at least one parameter set. For a more detailed description, please refer to the relevant description of the one-to-one correspondence between multiple reference positions and multiple parameter sets, which will not be described in detail here.

[0245] In the present application, the first communication device may also decide which method to use to determine the above-mentioned at least one set of parameter sets based on whether it can obtain its own position. Exemplarily, the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets may correspond one-to-one to multiple reference positions, and the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets may correspond one-to-one to multiple communication device type identifiers. That is, the ground station may broadcast the correspondence between the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets and multiple reference positions, and broadcast the correspondence between the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets and multiple communication device type identifiers, so that the first communication device can more flexibly choose the method for determining the above-mentioned at least one set of parameter sets. For example, if the first communication device can determine its own position, the first communication device may determine the above-mentioned at least one set of parameter sets based on the above-mentioned multiple reference positions, or may determine the above-mentioned at least one set of parameter sets based on its own device type; if the first communication device cannot determine its own position, the first communication device may determine the above-mentioned at least one set of parameter sets based on its own device type.

[0246] A third possible design for the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets is that the ground station may not send the reference position and device type identifier, but only send the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets. For example, the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets and parameter set indexes correspond one to one. Under this design, the first communication device can sequentially determine whether its own position is included in each parameter set to determine whether to use the parameter set to determine the TA. For example, the first communication device can determine whether its own position is included in the parameter set starting from the largest parameter set index and working toward smaller index values. If it is included, the parameter set is not used until a parameter set that does not include its own position is found, in which case the parameter set is used.

[0247] Table 10

[0248] As shown in Table 10, relay device 2 starts judging from the maximum parameter set index and determines that its own position is not included in parameter set 2, and can then determine the TA based on parameter set 2. Terminal device starts judging from the maximum parameter set index and determines that its own position is not included in parameter set 4, and can then determine the TA based on parameter set 4.

[0249] Table 11

[0250] As shown in Table 11, the terminal device starts judging from the maximum parameter set index and determines that its own position is not included in parameter set 4, and can then determine the TA based on parameter set 4. The relay device 2 starts judging from the maximum parameter set index and determines that its own position is not included in parameter set 2, and can then determine the TA based on parameter set 2.

[0251] It should be understood that when the distance between the location of the parameter concentration device and the first communication device is less than a threshold, it can be considered to include its own location. The above threshold can be predefined or indicated by the ground station, and this application does not limit this.

[0252] Optionally, each parameter set may also include one or more of the common TA, the rate of change of the common timing advance, the rate of change of the rate of change of the common timing advance, the scheduling offset, or the effective timing offset. For details, please refer to Tables 5 to 7, which will not be described in detail here.

[0253] Figure 18 is a schematic flow chart of another communication method 1800 provided by an embodiment of the present application. Figure 18 only describes the method by taking the interaction between the ground station and the first communication device as an example, and should not constitute any limitation to the present application. The ground station in Figure 18 can also be replaced by a component configured in the ground station (such as a chip, a chip system, a processor, etc.), or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the ground station. The first communication device can be replaced by a component configured in the first communication device (such as a chip, a chip system, a processor, etc.), or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the first communication device.

[0254] The method 1800 shown in Figure 18 includes steps 1810 to 1830. Each step in the method 1800 is described in detail below.

[0255] In step 1810, the ground station generates multiple parameter sets, each of which includes parameters corresponding to multiple communication devices for determining offsets.

[0256] The offset includes a scheduling offset and / or an effective timing offset. For a description of the plurality of communication devices, please refer to step 1810, which will not be described in detail here.

[0257] In the present application, the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets include parameters corresponding to multiple communication devices for determining the offset. It can be understood that: the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to the above-mentioned multiple communication devices, and each parameter set includes parameters for the corresponding device to determine the offset.

[0258] The above offset may be, for example, a scheduling offset or an effective timing offset. For explanations of the scheduling offset and the effective timing offset, please refer to the above text and will not be described in detail here.

[0259] Exemplarily, the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets include parameter set 1, parameter set 2, parameter set 3 and parameter set 4. The above-mentioned four groups of parameter sets are parameter sets corresponding to four communication devices (such as communication device 1, communication device 2, communication device 3 and communication device 4) for determining the offset. For example, parameter set 1 includes parameters for communication device 1 to determine the offset, parameter set 2 includes parameters for communication device 2 to determine the offset, parameter set 3 includes parameters for communication device 3 to determine the offset, and parameter set 4 includes parameters for communication device 4 to determine the offset.

[0260] For example, parameter set 1 includes scheduling offset 1, parameter set 2 includes scheduling offset 2, parameter set 3 includes scheduling offset 3, and parameter set 4 includes scheduling offset 4. For another example, parameter set 1 includes effective timing offset 1, parameter set 2 includes effective timing offset 2, parameter set 3 includes effective timing offset 3, and parameter set 4 includes effective timing offset 4. For another example, parameter set 1 includes scheduling offset 1 and effective timing offset 1, parameter set 2 includes scheduling offset 2 and effective timing offset 2, parameter set 3 includes scheduling offset 3 and effective timing offset 3, and parameter set 4 includes scheduling offset 4 and effective timing offset 4.

[0261] In step 1820, the ground station sends the multiple parameter sets mentioned above, which are carried in a broadcast message of the same cell. Correspondingly, the first communication device receives the multiple parameter sets mentioned above.

[0262] The first communication device is any one of the aforementioned multiple communication devices, where the device types of the multiple communication devices include relay devices and / or terminal devices. The relay device is used to forward signals between the ground station and the terminal device. A description of the first communication device, cell, and broadcast message can be found in step 1820 and will not be further described here.

[0263] Exemplarily, the ground station broadcasts the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets, which are carried in SIB 19. Accordingly, the first communication device among the multiple communication devices receives the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets. For example, taking Figure 3 as an example, assuming that the first communication device is relay device 1, the ground station sends the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets, and relay device 1 receives the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets; assuming that the first communication device is relay device 2, the ground station sends the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets, relay device 1 receives the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets, and forwards the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets, and relay device 2 receives the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets forwarded by relay device 1. Similarly, relay device 3 receives the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets forwarded by relay device 1 and relay device 2, and the terminal device receives the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets forwarded by relay device 1, relay device 2, and relay device 3.

[0264] In step 1830 , the first communications device determines an offset based on at least one parameter set among the plurality of parameter sets.

[0265] After receiving the multiple parameter sets, the first communication device can determine an offset based on at least one of the multiple parameter sets. For example, in the communication system shown in FIG3 , relay device 1 receives multiple parameter sets from a ground station and determines an offset based on at least one of the multiple parameter sets. Alternatively, relay device 1 can forward the multiple parameter sets, and after receiving the multiple parameter sets, relay device 2 can also determine an offset based on at least one of the multiple parameter sets.

[0266] For example, if each parameter set in the plurality of parameter sets includes a scheduling offset, the first communications device may determine the scheduling offset based on at least one of the plurality of parameter sets. Similarly, if each parameter set in the plurality of parameter sets includes an effective timing offset, the first communications device may determine the effective timing offset based on at least one of the plurality of parameter sets. If each parameter set in the plurality of parameter sets includes both a scheduling offset and an effective timing offset, the first communications device may determine both the scheduling offset and the effective timing offset based on at least one of the plurality of parameter sets.

[0267] The following describes in detail possible designs of parameter sets by taking the example that each parameter set includes a scheduling offset and an effective timing offset.

[0268] One possible design is that the multiple parameter sets correspond to the multiple reference positions in a one-to-one manner. The description of the one-to-one correspondence between the multiple parameter sets and the multiple reference positions can be found in step 1830 and will not be described in detail here.

[0269] In the case where the multiple parameter sets correspond to the multiple reference positions on a one-to-one basis, the at least one parameter set is determined based on the multiple reference positions.

[0270] That is, the first communication device may determine at least one parameter set based on the multiple reference positions, and further determine the offset based on the at least one parameter set.

[0271] In one possible implementation, the at least one parameter set includes a parameter set corresponding to the reference location closest to the first communication device among the multiple reference locations. In other words, for any one of the multiple communication devices, the at least one parameter set used to determine the offset includes a parameter set corresponding to the reference location closest to the first communication device among the multiple reference locations. This increases the accuracy of the offset determination.

[0272] In one example, the first communication device determines the offset based on a parameter set among the multiple parameter sets (which can be recorded as a target parameter set). The target parameter set can be the parameter set corresponding to the reference position closest to the first communication device among the multiple reference positions.

[0273] In another example, the first communications device determines the offset based on m parameter sets among the plurality of parameter sets, where m is an integer greater than 1 and the value of m is less than or equal to the number of the plurality of parameter sets. For example, after the first communications device determines the parameter set corresponding to the reference location closest to the first communications device, if the offset in the parameter set is a relative value, such as a difference between the offset in the parameter set and the offset in another parameter set, the first communications device may determine the offset corresponding to the first communications device based on the parameter set and the other parameter set.

[0274] The following will describe in detail the one-to-one correspondence between the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets and the above-mentioned multiple reference positions in combination with Table 12 and Table 13.

[0275] Table 12

[0276] As shown in Table 12, the above multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to multiple reference positions. Parameter set 1 includes Koffset 1 and Kmac 1, parameter set 2 includes Koffset 2 and Kmac 2, parameter set 3 includes Koffset 3 and Kmac 3, and parameter set 4 includes Koffset 4 and Kmac 4.

[0277] After receiving the multiple parameter sets and the multiple reference positions, any one of the multiple communication devices (i.e., the first communication device) may determine a target parameter set based on the multiple reference positions, and determine an offset based on the target parameter set. In one example, if relay device 1 determines that reference position 1 is the closest reference position based on the multiple reference positions and the position of relay device 1, relay device 1 may determine an offset (e.g., scheduling offset 1 and effective timing offset 1) based on parameter set 1 corresponding to reference position 1.

[0278] Table 13

[0279] As shown in Table 13, the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets correspond one-to-one to multiple reference positions, Koffset corresponding to parameter set 2 is Koffset = Koffset 1 + ΔKoffset2, Koffset corresponding to parameter set 3 is Koffset = Koffset 1 + ΔKoffset 3, and Koffset corresponding to parameter set 4 is Koffset = Koffset 1 + ΔKoffset4; or, Koffset corresponding to parameter set 2 is Koffset = Koffset 1 + ΔKoffset 2, Koffset corresponding to parameter set 3 is Koffset 1 + ΔKoffset 2 + ΔKoffset 3, and Koffset corresponding to parameter set 4 is Koffset = Koffset 1 + ΔKoffset 2 + ΔKoffset 3 + ΔKoffset 4; Kmac is similar and will not be repeated here.

[0280] After any one of the plurality of communication devices (i.e., the first communication device) receives the plurality of parameter sets and the plurality of reference positions, it may determine m parameter sets based on the plurality of reference positions, and determine an offset based on the m parameter sets. In one example, if the relay device 3 determines that the reference position 3 is the closest reference position based on the plurality of reference positions and the position of the relay device 3, the relay device 3 may determine the offset based on parameter set 1 and parameter set 3 corresponding to the reference position 3, for example, Koffset corresponding to the relay device 3 = Koffset 1 + ΔKoffset 3; or, the relay device 3 may determine the offset based on parameter set 3 corresponding to the reference position 3 and parameter set 1 and parameter set 2, for example, Koffset of the relay device 3 = Koffset 1 + ΔKoffset 2 + ΔKoffset 3.

[0281] Another possible design for the multiple parameter sets is to provide a one-to-one correspondence between the multiple parameter sets and identifiers of multiple communication device types. In other words, each parameter set in the multiple parameter sets corresponds to an identifier of a device type, and the multiple parameter sets are distinguished by the identifiers of the multiple communication device types. The detailed process of determining at least one parameter set based on the device type of the first communication device can be found in step 1830 and will not be further described here.

[0282] In the present application, the first communication device may also decide which method to use to determine the above-mentioned at least one set of parameter sets, and then determine the offset, based on whether it can obtain its own position. Exemplarily, the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets may correspond one-to-one to multiple reference positions, and the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets may correspond one-to-one to multiple communication device type identifiers. That is, the ground station may broadcast the correspondence between the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets and multiple reference positions, and broadcast the correspondence between the above-mentioned multiple sets of parameter sets and multiple communication device type identifiers, so that the first communication device can more flexibly choose the method for determining the above-mentioned at least one set of parameter sets. For example, if the first communication device can determine its own position, the first communication device may determine the above-mentioned at least one set of parameter sets based on the above-mentioned multiple reference positions, or may determine the above-mentioned at least one set of parameter sets based on its own device type; if the first communication device cannot determine its own position, the first communication device may determine the above-mentioned at least one set of parameter sets based on its own device type.

[0283] It can be understood that by replacing the reference positions in Table 12 and Table 13 with the identifier of the device type, the possible design of the parameters in each parameter set in the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets and the identifiers of multiple communication device types can be obtained, which will not be repeated here.

[0284] Another possible design for the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets is that the ground station may not send the reference position and device type identifier, but only send the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets. For example, the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets and parameter set indexes correspond one to one. Under this design, the first communication device can sequentially determine whether its own position is included in each parameter set to determine whether to use the parameter set to determine the offset. For example, the first communication device can sequentially determine whether its own position is included in the parameter set starting from the largest parameter set index. If it is included, the first communication device will not use this set of parameters until it finds a parameter set that does not include its own position, that is, it will use this set of parameters.

[0285] Table 14

[0286] As shown in Table 14, relay device 2 starts judging from the maximum parameter set index and determines that its position is not included in parameter set 2, and can then determine the offset (such as Koffset 2, Kmac 2) based on parameter set 2. The terminal starts judging from the maximum parameter set index and determines that its position is not included in parameter set 4, and can then determine the offset (such as Koffset 4, Kmac 4) based on parameter set 4.

[0287] It should be understood that the positions of the various devices included in the parameter set shown in Table 14 are only examples and should not constitute any limitation on the embodiments of the present application. For example, the positions of the various devices in Table 14 can also be replaced with the form in Table 11, which will not be repeated here.

[0288] It should be understood that the above embodiments can be implemented individually or in combination with each other, and this application does not limit this.

[0289] Based on the above technical solution, the multiple parameter sets corresponding to the above multiple communication devices are carried in the broadcast message of the same cell. That is, multiple parameter sets can be broadcast in the broadcast message of the same cell. These multiple parameter sets correspond to multiple communication devices. These multiple parameter sets are broadcast using the time-frequency resources corresponding to the above cell. The ground station does not need to occupy different time-frequency resources for each communication device to broadcast the corresponding parameter set, which is conducive to reducing resource waste. For example, compared with Figure 13, Figure 17 shows that the ground station can carry multiple parameter sets in the broadcast message of a cell, which is conducive to greatly reducing the overhead of time-frequency resources.

[0290] The communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application is described in detail above with reference to the accompanying drawings. Below, the communication device provided by the embodiment of the present application is described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0291] It should be understood that the communication device shown in Figures 19 and 20 can be used to implement the functions of the ground station or the first communication device in the above-mentioned method embodiment, and therefore can also achieve the beneficial effects possessed by the above-mentioned method embodiment. In an embodiment of the present application, the communication device can be the ground station in the method embodiment shown in Figure 15 or Figure 18, or it can be a component configured in the ground station (such as a chip, a chip system, a processor, etc.), or it can be a logic module or software that can implement some or all of the functions of the ground station; or, the device can be the first communication device in the method embodiment shown in Figure 15 or Figure 18, or it can be a component configured in the first communication device (such as a chip, a chip system, a processor, etc.), or it can be a logic module or software that can implement some or all of the functions of the first communication device.

[0292] FIG19 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 1900 provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0293] As shown in Figure 19, the communication device 1900 includes a transceiver module 1910 and a processing module 1920. The communication device 1900 can be used to implement the functions of the ground station or the first communication device in the method embodiment shown in Figure 15 or Figure 18 above.

[0294] When the device 1900 is used to implement the function of the first communication device in the method embodiment shown in Figure 15, the transceiver module 1910 is used to receive multiple parameter sets from the ground station, and the multiple parameter sets are carried in the broadcast message of the same cell. The multiple parameter sets include parameters corresponding to multiple communication devices for determining TA, and the device types of the multiple communication devices include relay devices and / or terminal devices; the processing module 1920 is used to determine TA based on at least one parameter set in the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets.

[0295] When the device 1900 is used to implement the function of the ground station in the method embodiment shown in Figure 15, the processing module 1920 is used to generate multiple groups of parameter sets, which include parameters corresponding to multiple communication devices for determining TA, and the device types of the multiple communication devices include relay devices and / or terminal devices; the transceiver module 1910 is used to send the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets, and the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets are carried in the broadcast message of the same cell.

[0296] Optionally, the multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to multiple reference positions, and the multiple reference positions are located within the coverage area of ​​the relay device and the ground station.

[0297] In the case where the multiple parameter sets correspond to the multiple reference positions on a one-to-one basis, the at least one parameter set is determined based on the multiple reference positions.

[0298] Optionally, the multiple parameter sets correspond to identifiers of multiple communication device types on a one-to-one basis.

[0299] In the case where the plurality of parameter sets correspond one-to-one to the identifiers of the plurality of communication device types, the at least one parameter set includes a parameter set corresponding to the identifier of the device type of the first communication device.

[0300] Optionally, each parameter set of the multiple parameter sets includes the location of the ground station and / or the location of the relay device.

[0301] Optionally, each of the multiple parameter sets further includes one or more of the following: a common timing advance, a change rate of the common timing advance, a change rate of the change rate of the common timing advance, a scheduling offset, or an effective timing offset.

[0302] Optionally, the at least one parameter set includes a parameter set corresponding to a reference position that is closest to the first communication device among the multiple reference positions.

[0303] When the device 1900 is used to implement the function of the first communication device in the method embodiment shown in Figure 18, the transceiver module 1910 is used to receive multiple parameter sets from the ground station, and the multiple parameter sets are carried in the broadcast message of the same cell. The multiple parameter sets include parameters corresponding to multiple communication devices for determining the offset, and the device types of the multiple communication devices include relay devices and / or terminal devices; the processing module 1920 is used to determine the offset based on at least one parameter set in the above-mentioned multiple parameter sets, and the offset includes a scheduling offset and / or an effective timing offset.

[0304] When the device 1900 is used to implement the function of the ground station in the method embodiment shown in Figure 18, the processing module 1920 is used to generate multiple groups of parameter sets, which include parameters corresponding to multiple communication devices for determining the offset, and the device types of the multiple communication devices include relay devices and / or terminal devices. The offset includes a scheduling offset and / or an effective timing offset; the transceiver module 1910 is used to send the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets, and the above-mentioned multiple groups of parameter sets are carried in the broadcast message of the same cell.

[0305] Optionally, the multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to the multiple reference positions, and the multiple reference positions are located within the coverage area of ​​the relay device and the ground station.

[0306] In the case where multiple parameter sets correspond to multiple reference positions on a one-to-one basis, at least one parameter set is determined based on the multiple reference positions.

[0307] Optionally, the multiple parameter sets correspond to the identifiers of the multiple communication device types on a one-to-one basis.

[0308] In the case where multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to multiple identifiers of communication device types, at least one parameter set includes a parameter set corresponding to the identifier of the device type of the first communication device.

[0309] Optionally, each parameter set in the multiple parameter sets includes an offset.

[0310] Optionally, each parameter set in the multiple parameter sets further includes one or more of the following: the location of the relay device, the location of the ground station, the common timing advance, the rate of change of the common timing advance, or the rate of change of the rate of change of the common timing advance.

[0311] Optionally, the at least one parameter set includes a parameter set corresponding to a reference position closest to the first communication device among the multiple reference positions.

[0312] For more detailed descriptions of the above modules, please refer to the relevant descriptions in the method embodiments shown in Figures 15 and 18, and will not be repeated here.

[0313] It should be understood that the division of modules in the embodiments of the present application is illustrative and is merely a logical functional division. In actual implementation, other division methods may be used. Furthermore, the functional modules in the various embodiments of the present application may be integrated into a single processor, or may exist physically as separate modules, or two or more modules may be integrated into a single module. The aforementioned integrated modules may be implemented in the form of hardware or software functional modules.

[0314] FIG20 is another schematic block diagram of a communication device 2000 provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0315] The device 2000 may be a chip system, or may be a device configured with a chip system for implementing the method described in the above method embodiment. In the embodiment of the present application, the chip system may be composed of a chip, or may include a chip and other discrete devices.

[0316] As shown in Figure 20, the device 2000 may include a processor 2010, which can be used to execute computer programs or instructions in the memory to implement the steps performed by the first communication device or the ground station in the method embodiment shown in Figure 15 or Figure 18.

[0317] Optionally, the apparatus 2000 further includes a communication interface 2020. The communication interface 2020 can be used to communicate with other devices via a transmission medium, thereby enabling the apparatus 2000 to communicate with other devices. The communication interface 2020 can be, for example, a transceiver, an interface, a bus, a circuit, or a device capable of transmitting and receiving data. The processor 2010 can utilize the communication interface 2020 to input and output data and implement the methods described in the embodiments corresponding to FIG. 15 or FIG. 18 . Specifically, the apparatus 2000 can be used to implement the functions of the first communication device or ground station in the aforementioned method embodiments.

[0318] Optionally, the device 2000 further includes at least one memory 2030 for storing program instructions and / or data. The memory 2030 is coupled to the processor 2010. Coupling in the embodiments of the present application is an indirect coupling or communication connection between devices, units, or modules, which may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms, and is used for information exchange between the devices, units, or modules. The processor 2010 may operate in conjunction with the memory 2030. The processor 2010 may execute program instructions stored in the memory 2030. At least one of the at least one memory may be included in the processor.

[0319] In the present application, the memory 2030 may be integrated into the processor 2010, or the processor 2010 and the memory 2030 may be separately established, which is not limited in the present application.

[0320] It should be understood that the coupling in the embodiments of the present application is an indirect coupling or communication connection between devices, units or modules, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms, and is used for information exchange between devices, units or modules. The processor 2010 may operate in conjunction with the memory 2030. The specific connection medium between the above-mentioned processor 2010, communication interface 2020 and memory 2030 is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. In Figure 20, the embodiment of the present application shows that the processor 2010, communication interface 2020 and memory 2030 are connected via a bus 2040. The bus 2040 is represented by a bold line in Figure 20, and the connection methods between other components are only for schematic illustration and are not limiting. The bus can be a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus or an extended industry standard architecture (EISA) bus. The bus can be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc. For ease of representation, only one bold line is used in Figure 20, but this does not mean that there is only one bus or one type of bus.

[0321] FIG21 is another schematic diagram of a communication device 2100 provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0322] As shown in Figure 21, the communication device 2100 includes at least one processor 2110. The at least one processor 2110 can be used to execute computer programs or instructions in the memory to implement the steps performed by the first communication device or the ground station in the embodiment shown in Figure 15 or Figure 18.

[0323] Optionally, the communication device 2100 may further include at least one memory 2120 for storing instructions executed by the processor 2110 or storing input data required by the processor 2110 to execute instructions or storing data generated after the processor 2110 executes instructions. The at least one processor 2110 and the at least one memory 2120 may be provided separately. For example, each memory may be connected to one or more processors so that the connected processors can read information from the memory and store and / or write information in the memory. Alternatively, the at least one processor 2110 and the at least one memory 2120 may be integrated together, for example, one or more memories may be integrated into a processor.

[0324] Optionally, the communication device 2100 further includes an interface circuit 2130, which can be used to transmit data and / or signaling. The at least one processor 2110 and the interface circuit 2130 are coupled to each other. It is understood that the interface circuit 2130 can be a transceiver, input / output circuit, bus, module, pin, or other type of communication interface, wherein the input circuit of the input / output circuit can be used for receiving, and the output interface can be used for sending.

[0325] Optionally, the communication device 2100 further includes a power supply circuit 2140 , which can be used to supply power to the communication device 2100 .

[0326] When the communication device 2100 is used to implement the method shown in FIG15 , the processor 2110 is used to execute the functions of the aforementioned processing module, and the interface circuit 2130 is used to execute the functions of the aforementioned transceiver module. Whether the interface circuit 2130 is used for sending or receiving can be determined by whether the communication device 2100 is used to perform a sending action or a receiving action in the scheme being implemented. For example, it can be used to execute step 1520 of the method embodiment shown in FIG15 .

[0327] It is understood that when the communication device 2100 is a communication device, the interface circuit 2130 may be a transceiver, specifically including a transmitter and a receiver, where the transmitter is used to transmit signals and the receiver is used to receive signals. When the communication device 2100 is a chip used in a communication device, the interface circuit 2130 may be an input / output circuit, a bus, a module, a pin, or other type of communication interface, where the input circuit of the input / output circuit can be used for receiving, and the output interface can be used for transmitting.

[0328] It should be understood that in the communication device 2100 shown in FIG. 21 , the processor 2110 may correspond to the processing module 1920 , and the interface circuit 2130 may correspond to the transceiver module 1910 .

[0329] It should also be understood that the coupling in the embodiments of the present application is an indirect coupling or communication connection between devices, units or modules, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms, and is used for information exchange between devices, units or modules. The specific connection medium between the at least one processor 2110, at least one memory 2120, interface circuit 2130 and power supply circuit 2140 is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. In Figure 21, the embodiment of the present application shows that the processor 2110, memory 2120, interface circuit 2130 and power supply circuit 2140 are connected via a bus 2150. The bus 2150 is represented by a bold line in Figure 21, and the connection method between other components is only for schematic illustration and is not limited. The bus can be a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus or an extended industry standard architecture (EISA) bus, etc. The bus can be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc. For ease of representation, only one bold line is used in Figure 21, but it does not mean that there is only one bus or one type of bus.

[0330] The present application also provides a computer program product, which includes: a computer program (also referred to as code, or instructions). When the computer program is executed, it can implement the steps performed by the first communication device or the ground station in the method described in the embodiment shown in Figure 15 or Figure 18.

[0331] The present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program (also referred to as code or instructions). When the computer program is executed, the steps performed by the first communication device or the ground station in the method described in the embodiment shown in FIG. 15 or FIG. 18 can be implemented.

[0332] The present application also provides a chip system, which includes at least one processor for supporting the functions involved in the first communication device or ground station in the embodiment shown in Figure 15 or Figure 18, such as receiving or processing the data involved in the above method.

[0333] In one possible design, the chip system further includes a memory, which is used to store program instructions and data, and the memory is located inside or outside the processor.

[0334] In one possible design, the chip system further includes an interface circuit and / or a power supply circuit, where the interface circuit is used to transmit data and the power supply circuit is used to supply power to the chip system.

[0335] The chip system can be composed of chips, or can include chips and other discrete devices.

[0336] An embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, which includes the first communication device and a ground station as described above.

[0337] It should be understood that the processor in the embodiments of the present application can be an integrated circuit chip with signal processing capabilities. During implementation, each step of the above-mentioned method embodiment can be completed by hardware integrated logic circuits in the processor or by software instructions. The above-mentioned processor can be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, or discrete hardware components. The various methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented or executed. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor or any conventional processor. The steps of the method disclosed in the embodiments of the present application can be directly implemented and executed by a hardware decoding processor, or by a combination of hardware and software modules in the decoding processor. The software module can be located in a storage medium well-known in the art, such as random access memory, flash memory, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory, electrically erasable programmable memory, registers, etc. The storage medium is located in the memory, and the processor reads the information in the memory and, in conjunction with its hardware, completes the steps of the above-mentioned method.

[0338] It should also be understood that the memory in the embodiments of the present application may be a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory, or may include both volatile and non-volatile memories. Among them, the non-volatile memory may be a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable read-only memory (PROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or a flash memory. The volatile memory may be a random access memory (RAM), which is used as an external cache. By way of example and not limitation, many forms of RAM are available, such as static RAM (SRAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), double data rate SDRAM (DDR SDRAM), enhanced SDRAM (ESDRAM), synchronous link DRAM (SLDRAM), and direct RAM bus RAM (DR RAM). It should be noted that the memory of the systems and methods described herein is intended to include, but is not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0339] The terms "unit", "module", etc. used in this specification can be used to refer to computer-related entities, hardware, firmware, a combination of hardware and software, software, or software in execution. The terms "unit" and "module" in the embodiments of this application have the same meaning and can be used interchangeably.

[0340] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the various illustrative logical blocks and steps described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented using 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 may use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this application. In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed devices, equipment, and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are merely illustrative. For example, the division of the units is only a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods, such as multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not performed. In addition, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be through some interface, indirect coupling or communication connection of devices or units, and can be electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0341] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate, and the components shown as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of these units may be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0342] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit.

[0343] In the above embodiments, the functions of each functional unit can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, it can be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions (programs). When the computer program instructions (program) are loaded and executed on a computer, the process or function described in the embodiment of the present application is generated in whole or in part. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions 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 instructions can be transmitted from one website, computer, server or data center to another website, computer, server or data center via wired (e.g., coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) means. 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 digital versatile disc (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (eg, a solid state disk (SSD)).

[0344] If the functions are implemented in the form of software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application, or the part that contributes to the technology or the part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions for enabling a computer device (which can be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the method described in each embodiment of the present application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media that can store program codes, such as a USB flash drive, a mobile hard disk, a ROM, a RAM, a magnetic disk, or an optical disk.

[0345] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of the present application, but the scope of protection of the present application 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 application should be included in the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be based on the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that: include: receiving, from a ground station, a plurality of parameter sets carried in a broadcast message of a same cell, the plurality of parameter sets including parameters for determining a timing advance (TA) corresponding to a plurality of communication devices, where the plurality of communication devices include relay devices and / or terminal devices; A TA is determined according to at least one parameter set among the multiple parameter sets.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein The multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to multiple reference locations, and the multiple reference locations are located within the coverage area of the relay device and the ground station; and the at least one parameter set is determined based on the multiple reference locations.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: The multiple groups of parameter sets correspond one-to-one to the identifiers of multiple communication device types; and the method is applied to a first communication device, which is any one of the multiple communication devices, and the at least one group of parameter sets includes a parameter set corresponding to the identifier of the device type of the first communication device.

4. A communication method, characterized in that: include: generating a plurality of parameter sets, the plurality of parameter sets comprising parameters corresponding to a plurality of communication devices for determining a timing advance TA, wherein the plurality of communication devices may be relay devices and / or terminal devices; The multiple parameter sets are sent, where the multiple parameter sets are carried in a broadcast message of the same cell.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein The multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to a plurality of reference positions, and the multiple reference positions are located within the coverage area of the relay device and the ground station.

6. The method according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that The multiple parameter sets correspond to identifiers of multiple communication device types in a one-to-one manner.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that Each parameter set of the plurality of parameter sets includes a location of a ground station and / or a location of a relay device.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein Each parameter set in the multiple parameter sets further includes one or more of the following: a common timing advance, a change rate of the common timing advance, a change rate of the change rate of the common timing advance, a scheduling offset, or an effective timing offset.

9. The method according to claim 2, wherein The method is applied to a first communication device, which is any one of the multiple communication devices. The at least one parameter set includes a parameter set corresponding to a reference position closest to the first communication device among the multiple reference positions.

10. A communication method, characterized in that: include: receiving, from a ground station, a plurality of parameter sets carried in broadcast messages of the same cell, the plurality of parameter sets including parameters for determining offsets corresponding to a plurality of communication devices, wherein the plurality of communication devices include relay devices and / or terminal devices; An offset is determined according to at least one parameter set among the multiple parameter sets, where the offset includes a scheduling offset and / or an effectiveness timing offset.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein The multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to multiple reference locations, and the multiple reference locations are located within the coverage area of the relay device and the ground station; and the at least one parameter set is determined based on the multiple reference locations.

12. The method according to claim 10 or 11, wherein: The multiple groups of parameter sets correspond one-to-one to the identifiers of multiple communication device types; and the method is applied to a first communication device, which is any one of the multiple communication devices, and the at least one group of parameter sets includes a parameter set corresponding to the identifier of the device type of the first communication device.

13. A communication method, characterized in that: include: Generating multiple parameter sets, the multiple parameter sets including parameters for determining offsets corresponding to multiple communication devices, the multiple communication devices including relay devices and / or terminal devices, the offsets including scheduling offsets and / or effectiveness timing offsets; The multiple parameter sets are sent, where the multiple parameter sets are carried in a broadcast message of the same cell.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein The multiple parameter sets correspond one-to-one to a plurality of reference positions, and the multiple reference positions are located within the coverage area of the relay device and the ground station.

15. The method according to claim 13 or 14, characterized in that The multiple parameter sets correspond to identifiers of multiple communication device types in a one-to-one manner.

16. The method according to any one of claims 10 to 15, characterized in that Each parameter set in the multiple parameter sets includes the offset.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein Each of the multiple parameter sets further includes one or more of the following: The location of the relay device, the location of the ground station, the common timing advance, the rate of change of the common timing advance, or the rate of change of the rate of change of the common timing advance.

18. The method according to claim 11, wherein The method is applied to a first communication device, which is any one of the multiple communication devices. The at least one parameter set includes a parameter set corresponding to a reference position closest to the first communication device among the multiple reference positions.

19. A communication device, characterized in that: comprising a module for implementing the method of claim 1, 2, 3, 8, 9, or claim 7 when referring to claim 1, 2, or 3, or comprising a module for implementing the method of claim 4, 5, 6, 8, or claim 7 when referring to claim 4, 5, or 6; or, comprising a module for implementing the method of claim 10, 11, 12, 17, 18, or claim 16 when referring to claim 10, 11, or 12, or comprising a module for implementing the method of claim 13, 14, 15, 17, or claim 16 when referring to claim 13, 14, or 15.

20. A communication device, characterized in that: comprising a processor and a memory, wherein The memory is used to store computer programs; The processor is used to call the computer program so that the communication device implements the method as claimed in claim 1, 2, 3, 8, 9 or claim 7 when referring to claim 1, 2 or 3, or implements the method as claimed in claim 4, 5, 6, 8 or claim 7 when referring to claim 4, 5 or 6; or, implements the method as claimed in claim 10, 11, 12, 17, 18 or claim 16 when referring to claim 10, 11 or 12, or implements the method as claimed in claim 13, 14, 15, 17 or claim 16 when referring to claim 13, 14 or 15.

21. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that The storage medium stores a computer program or instruction. When the computer program or instruction is executed by a computer, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 18 is implemented.

22. A computer program product, characterized in that The computer program product comprises instructions, and when the instructions are executed by a computer, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 18 is implemented.

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