Communication method and related product

Abstract

A communication method and a related product. The method comprises: a network device sending first DCI to a UE, wherein the first DCI is used for indicating a first receiving parameter of first downlink information; and the UE receiving the first downlink information on the basis of the first receiving parameter. By means of the solution, the receiving parameter of the first downlink information is indicated by means of the first DCI, so that the proportion of invalid PDCCH monitoring during wake-up is reduced, and the power consumption of the UE is reduced; moreover, the UE can be woken up in a timely manner when there is a service, so that a relatively low scheduling delay can be ensured.

Description

Communication methods and related products

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202410957484.2, filed on July 16, 2024, entitled "Communication Method and Related Products", the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0002] This application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method and related products. Background Technology

[0003] In wireless communication systems, network devices can schedule downlink data reception and / or uplink data transmission for terminal devices at any time. Therefore, even for time slots with no data transmission, terminal devices need to monitor the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). This situation of monitoring the PDCCH but failing to detect it is called invalid PDCCH monitoring, which results in unnecessary power consumption for the terminal device.

[0004] In existing technologies, terminal devices can use a connected-discontinuous reception (C-DRX) mechanism to monitor the PDCCH. Under this mechanism, the terminal device has two states: sleep state and non-sleep state, or respectively referred to as inactive state and active state. However, when the terminal device is in sleep state, the C-DRX period is usually set to a longer value, which increases scheduling latency; when the terminal device is in non-sleep state, the timer duration for continuing to receive the PDCCH is set to a longer value, which is not conducive to saving power consumption of the terminal device.

[0005] Additionally, a C-DRX mechanism based on wake-up signals is provided. The advantage of wake-up signals is that if no service arrives, it can indicate that subsequent PDCCH monitoring time windows will not be opened. However, once a service arrives and triggers the time window, since the arrival of the service is sudden, it cannot be guaranteed that the time window will be in an active state. The terminal device will be scheduled at all times, that is, during the active period of PDCCH monitoring, there will still be a certain amount of invalid PDCCH monitoring.

[0006] Therefore, how to minimize invalid PDCCH monitoring, save power consumption of terminal devices, and not affect service scheduling latency is an urgent problem to be solved. Summary of the Invention

[0007] This application provides a communication method and related products to minimize invalid PDCCH monitoring, save power consumption of terminal equipment, and not affect service scheduling delay.

[0008] Firstly, a communication method is provided. Exemplarily, this method can be applied to a terminal device. For example, the method can be executed by the terminal device or by a module (e.g., processor, chip, chip system, circuit, etc.) within the terminal device. This module can be a communication module within the terminal device, or a circuit or chip within the terminal device responsible for communication functions, such as a modem chip (also known as a baseband chip), or a system-on-a-chip (SoC) chip containing a modem core, or a system-in-package (SIP) chip.

[0009] The method includes: receiving first downlink control information (DCI), the first DCI being used to indicate first reception parameters of the first downlink information; and receiving the first downlink information based on the first reception parameters.

[0010] Using this method, the terminal device receives a first DCI, which indicates the reception parameters of the first downlink information. This reduces the proportion of invalid PDCCH monitoring during the wake-up period, saves the power consumption of the terminal device, and can wake up the terminal device in time when there is service, ensuring low scheduling latency.

[0011] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible design, the first DCI employs a switching-type modulation signal.

[0012] This design achieves receiver power consumption at least one order of magnitude lower than that of a typical orthogonal frequency division multiplexing receiver. The switching modulation signal can be, for example, an on-off keying (OOK) or frequency-shift keying (FSK) modulation signal.

[0013] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, receiving the first DCI includes: receiving the first DCI using a sequence receiver; and / or receiving the first DCI using a first number of antennas and receiving the first downlink information using a second number of antennas, wherein the first number of antennas is less than the second number of antennas; and / or receiving the first DCI using a first number of spatial layers and receiving the first downlink information using a second number of spatial layers, wherein the first number of spatial layers is less than the second number of spatial layers.

[0014] This design enables low-power reception of the first DCI.

[0015] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, the first DCI is carried on a first bandwidth, the first downlink information is carried on a second bandwidth, and the first bandwidth is less than the second bandwidth; and / or the first DCI carries a first amount of information, the first downlink information carries a second amount of information, and the first amount of information is less than the second amount of information.

[0016] This design enables low-power reception of the first DCI.

[0017] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, the first downlink information includes a second DCI, and the first receive parameter includes at least one of the following: indication information for whether to start monitoring of the second DCI; frequency resource information corresponding to the second DCI; spatial configuration information corresponding to the second DCI; control resource set corresponding to the second DCI; search space corresponding to the second DCI; control channel element level corresponding to the second DCI; candidate position of PDCCH corresponding to the second DCI; format of the second DCI; and time domain resource information corresponding to the second DCI.

[0018] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, the first downlink information further includes first downlink data, and the second DCI is used to indicate at least one of the following: frequency resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; spatial configuration information corresponding to the first downlink data; time domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; and code domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data.

[0019] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, the first downlink information includes first downlink data, and the first receiving parameters include at least one of the following: frequency resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; spatial configuration information corresponding to the first downlink data; time domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; and code domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data.

[0020] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, the receiver receiving the first DCI is different from the receiver receiving the second DCI.

[0021] This design enables low-power reception of the first DCI.

[0022] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, the first receiving parameter is the currently active receiving parameter among a plurality of first candidate receiving parameters associated with a first frequency unit.

[0023] By adopting this design, the limitation of binding the above-mentioned receiving parameters with the configuration of a channel unit can be broken. That is, within a first frequency unit, the switching of receiving parameters can be flexibly realized, which can save the power consumption of terminal equipment and ensure low switching latency to maintain the continuity of service scheduling.

[0024] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, the first frequency unit includes a plurality of sub-frequency units, and the plurality of first candidate reception parameters respectively correspond to the plurality of sub-frequency units, wherein the first reception parameters include configuration parameters of the first sub-frequency unit among the plurality of sub-frequency units.

[0025] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, the plurality of sub-frequency units further includes a second sub-frequency unit, wherein the delay of switching from the first sub-frequency unit to the second sub-frequency unit is less than the delay of switching from the first frequency unit to the second frequency unit.

[0026] With this design, the switching delay of the receiving parameters corresponding to the sub-frequency unit is less than the switching delay of the receiving parameters corresponding to the frequency unit, which can save the power consumption of the terminal equipment and maintain the continuity of service scheduling.

[0027] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, the method further includes: receiving a third DCI, the third DCI being used to indicate monitoring of the first DCI and / or the second DCI.

[0028] With this design, the terminal device can receive a third DCI before receiving the first DCI and / or the second DCI. The third DCI is used to indicate the monitoring of the first DCI and / or the second DCI, which can avoid the monitoring of invalid PDCCH and further reduce the power consumption of the terminal device.

[0029] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, the first time between the time when the third DCI is detected and the time when the first DCI is started is greater than the second time between the time when the first DCI is detected and the time when the second DCI is started; and / or, the third time between the time when the third DCI is detected and the time when the second DCI is started is greater than the second time between the time when the first DCI is detected and the time when the second DCI is started.

[0030] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, the method further includes: monitoring the first DCI based on first time-domain configuration information; and, if the first DCI is detected, monitoring the first DCI based on second time-domain configuration information.

[0031] With this design, after the second DCI is detected, the device can return to the first or third DCI for low-power reception, thereby saving power consumption of the terminal device.

[0032] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, after monitoring the first DCI based on the second time-domain configuration information, the method further includes: monitoring the first DCI again, wherein the first DCI further includes first indication information, the first indication information being used to indicate that after monitoring the first DCI again, the first DCI should be monitored based on the first time-domain configuration information.

[0033] With this design, the terminal device monitors the first DCI based on the second time domain configuration information until the first DCI is detected again and the first indication information in the first DCI is received. Then, it falls back to monitoring the first DCI based on the first time domain configuration information to save the power consumption of the terminal device.

[0034] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, after monitoring the first DCI based on the second time-domain configuration information, the method further includes: monitoring the first DCI again, wherein the first DCI further includes third indication information, the third indication information being used to indicate a fallback to the state of monitoring the third DCI.

[0035] With this design, if the UE detects the first DCI again and receives the third indication information in the first DCI, based on the first time domain configuration information or the second time domain configuration information, the third indication information is used to indicate the state of falling back to the state of monitoring the third DCI, that is, entering the monitoring state of the third DCI in deep sleep mode, so as to save the power consumption of the terminal device.

[0036] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, the method further includes: starting a first timer when the first DCI is detected; and monitoring the first DCI based on the first time domain configuration information after the first timer has reached a first duration and the first DCI has not yet been received.

[0037] With this design, when the first DCI is detected, the first timer is started. If the first timer reaches the first duration and the first DCI is still not received, the system will fall back to monitoring the first DCI based on the first time domain configuration information, so as to save the power consumption of the terminal device.

[0038] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, the method further includes: if the first timer reaches a second duration and the first DCI is still not received, monitoring the third DCI based on third time-domain configuration information, wherein the second duration is longer than the first duration.

[0039] With this design, if the first DCI is not received after the second duration of the first timer, it will fall back to the third DCI monitoring mode, such as monitoring the third DCI based on the third time domain configuration information, that is, entering the third DCI monitoring state in deep sleep mode, so as to save the power consumption of the terminal device.

[0040] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, the method further includes: starting a second timer upon detecting the first DCI; and monitoring the second DCI before the duration of the second timer reaches a third duration.

[0041] With this design, the terminal device monitors the first DCI based on a first time-domain configuration information, which includes a monitoring period and a monitoring time window or activation time window within each monitoring period. Once the first DCI is detected (i.e., when the first DCI is detected), and this first DCI is used to trigger the monitoring of the second DCI, or to indicate the first reception parameters of the second DCI and / or the first downlink data, the UE needs to break the above monitoring rules and start a second timer. Before the second timer expires, the terminal device needs to monitor the second DCI.

[0042] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, if the second timer reaches the third duration and the second DCI is still not received, the first DCI is monitored based on the first time domain configuration information.

[0043] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, the second DCI includes second indication information, which indicates that the first DCI is monitored based on the first time-domain configuration information, and the second DCI is no longer monitored.

[0044] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, the method further includes: if the second timer reaches a fourth duration and the first DCI or the second DCI has not been received, monitoring the third DCI based on third time-domain configuration information, wherein the fourth duration is longer than the third duration.

[0045] With this design, if the second timer reaches its fourth duration and the first or second DCI is still not received, it will fall back to the third DCI monitoring mode, such as monitoring the third DCI based on the third time domain configuration information, in order to save power consumption of the terminal device.

[0046] In conjunction with the first aspect, in another possible design, the second DCI also includes fourth indication information, which is used to indicate monitoring of the third DCI based on third time-domain configuration information.

[0047] With this design, when the terminal device detects the fourth indication information in the second DCI, the terminal device will fall back to the state of monitoring the third DCI, that is, enter the monitoring state of the third DCI in deep sleep mode, so as to save the power consumption of the terminal device.

[0048] Secondly, a communication method is provided. Exemplarily, this method can be applied to a network device. For example, the method can be executed by the network device itself, or by a module (e.g., processor, chip, chip system, circuit, etc.) within the network device. This module can be a communication module within the network device, or a circuit or chip within the network device responsible for communication functions, such as a modem chip (also known as a baseband chip), or a SOC chip or SIP chip containing a modem core.

[0049] The method includes: sending a first DCI, the first DCI being used to indicate first reception parameters of first downlink information; and sending the first downlink information.

[0050] Using this method, the network device reduces the proportion of invalid PDCCH monitoring during the wake-up period by indicating the receiving parameters of the first downlink information through the first DCI, thus saving the power consumption of the terminal device. At the same time, the terminal device can be woken up in time when there is service, ensuring low scheduling latency.

[0051] In conjunction with the second aspect, in one possible implementation, the first DCI employs a switching-type modulation signal.

[0052] In conjunction with the second aspect, in another possible implementation, the first DCI is carried on a first bandwidth, the first downlink information is carried on a second bandwidth, and the first bandwidth is less than the second bandwidth; and / or the first DCI carries a first amount of information, the first downlink information carries a second amount of information, and the first amount of information is less than the second amount of information.

[0053] In conjunction with the second aspect, in another possible implementation, the first downlink information includes a second DCI, and the first receiving parameters include at least one of the following: indication information for whether to initiate monitoring of the second DCI; frequency resource information corresponding to the second DCI; spatial configuration information corresponding to the second DCI; control resource set corresponding to the second DCI; search space corresponding to the second DCI; control channel element level corresponding to the second DCI; candidate position of physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) corresponding to the second DCI; format of the second DCI; and time domain resource information corresponding to the second DCI.

[0054] In conjunction with the second aspect, in another possible implementation, the first downlink information further includes first downlink data, and the second DCI is used to indicate at least one of the following: frequency resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; spatial configuration information corresponding to the first downlink data; time domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; and code domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data.

[0055] In conjunction with the second aspect, in another possible implementation, the first downlink information includes first downlink data, and the first receiving parameter includes at least one of the following: frequency resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; spatial configuration information corresponding to the first downlink data; time domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; and code domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data.

[0056] In conjunction with the second aspect, in another possible implementation, the first receiving parameter is the currently active receiving parameter among a plurality of first candidate receiving parameters, which are associated with a first frequency unit.

[0057] In conjunction with the second aspect, in another possible implementation, the first frequency unit includes a plurality of sub-frequency units, and the plurality of first candidate reception parameters respectively correspond to the plurality of sub-frequency units, wherein the first reception parameters include configuration parameters of the first sub-frequency unit among the plurality of sub-frequency units.

[0058] In conjunction with the second aspect, in another possible implementation, the plurality of sub-frequency units further includes a second sub-frequency unit, wherein the delay in switching from the first sub-frequency unit to the second sub-frequency unit is less than the delay in switching from the first frequency unit to the second frequency unit.

[0059] In conjunction with the second aspect, in yet another possible implementation, the method further includes: sending a third DCI, the third DCI being used to indicate monitoring of the first DCI and / or the second DCI.

[0060] In conjunction with the second aspect, in yet another possible implementation, the first time between the time of sending the third DCI and the time of sending the first DCI is greater than the second time between the time of sending the first DCI and the time of sending the second DCI; and / or, the third time between the time of sending the third DCI and the time of sending the second DCI is greater than the second time between the time of sending the first DCI and the time of sending the second DCI.

[0061] In conjunction with the second aspect, in another possible implementation, the method further includes: sending the first DCI based on first time-domain configuration information; and after sending the first DCI, sending the first DCI based on second time-domain configuration information.

[0062] In conjunction with the second aspect, in another possible implementation, after sending the first DCI based on the first time-domain configuration information, the first DCI is sent again. The first DCI further includes first indication information, which is used to indicate that the first DCI should be monitored again based on the first time-domain configuration information after the first DCI is detected again.

[0063] In conjunction with the second aspect, in another possible implementation, after sending the first DCI based on the second time-domain configuration information, the method further includes: sending the first DCI again, wherein the first DCI further includes third indication information, the third indication information being used to indicate a fallback to the state of monitoring the third DCI.

[0064] In conjunction with the second aspect, in another possible implementation, the method further includes: starting a first timer when sending the first DCI; and sending the first DCI based on the first time domain configuration information after the first timer has reached a first duration and the first DCI has not yet been sent.

[0065] In conjunction with the second aspect, in another possible implementation, the method further includes: if the first timer reaches a second duration and the first DCI has not yet been sent, the third DCI is sent based on third time-domain configuration information, wherein the second duration is longer than the first duration.

[0066] In conjunction with the second aspect, in another possible implementation, the method further includes: starting a second timer when sending the second DCI; and sending the second DCI before the duration of the second timer reaches a third duration.

[0067] In conjunction with the second aspect, in another possible implementation, if the second timer reaches the third duration but the second DCI has not yet been sent, the first DCI is sent based on the first time domain configuration information.

[0068] In conjunction with the second aspect, in another possible implementation, the second DCI includes second indication information, which indicates that the first DCI is monitored based on the first time-domain configuration information, and the second DCI is no longer monitored.

[0069] In conjunction with the second aspect, in another possible implementation, the method further includes: when the second timer reaches a fourth duration and the first DCI or the second DCI has not yet been sent, the third DCI is sent based on third time-domain configuration information, wherein the fourth duration is longer than the third duration.

[0070] In conjunction with the second aspect, in another possible implementation, the second DCI further includes fourth indication information, which is used to indicate monitoring of the third DCI based on third time-domain configuration information.

[0071] Thirdly, a communication device is provided for implementing the communication method described in the first aspect or any implementation thereof. This device may be a terminal device, a module applied to a terminal device (e.g., a processor, chip, chip system, circuit, etc.), or a logic node, logic module, or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the terminal device.

[0072] Fourthly, a communication device is provided for implementing the communication method described in the second aspect or any implementation thereof. This device may be a network device, a module applied to a network device (e.g., a processor, chip, chip system, circuit, etc.), or a logical node, logical module, or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of a network device.

[0073] In one possible implementation, the communication apparatus in the third to fourth aspects includes units, modules, or means for respectively executing the methods in any one of the first to second aspects or any implementation thereof. Specifically, the units, modules, or means may be implemented in software, in hardware, or in a combination of software and hardware.

[0074] In another possible implementation, the communication device in the third to fourth aspects above includes a processor; the processor is configured to implement the corresponding functions of the communication method described above.

[0075] Optionally, the processor may be coupled to a memory for storing necessary programs (instructions) and / or data of the device. Optionally, the communication device may also include a communication interface for enabling communication between the device and other network elements. Optionally, the memory may be located internally or externally to the communication device.

[0076] Optionally, the communication device may further include a transceiver unit, with the processor coupled to the transceiver unit. The processor executes computer programs or instructions to control the transceiver unit to receive and send information. When the processor executes the computer programs or instructions, it is also used to implement the above method through logic circuits or executed code instructions. The transceiver unit may be a transceiver, transceiver circuit, or input / output interface, used 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. When the communication device is a chip, the transceiver unit is a transceiver circuit or an input / output interface.

[0077] When the communication device in the third to fourth aspects above is a chip, the transmitting unit can be an output unit, such as an output circuit or a communication interface; the receiving unit can be an input unit, such as an input circuit or a communication interface. When the communication device is a terminal device, the transmitting unit can be a transmitter or a receiver; the receiving unit can be a receiver or a receiver.

[0078] Fifthly, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, wherein a computer program or instructions are stored therein, which, when executed, implement the methods described in the above aspects.

[0079] In a sixth aspect, a computer program product containing instructions is provided, which, when executed on a communication device, cause the communication device to perform the methods described in the above aspects. Attached Figure Description

[0080] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a possible, non-limiting communication system;

[0081] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the terminal C-DRX mechanism;

[0082] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the UE wake-up mechanism;

[0083] Figure 4 is a flowchart illustrating a communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0084] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating the first DCI indicating the second DCI and / or the first downlink data in an embodiment of this application.

[0085] Figures 6 and 7 are schematic diagrams illustrating the combination of a third DCI with an example of an embodiment of this application;

[0086] Figures 8 and 9 are schematic diagrams of the fallback mechanism in the embodiments of this application;

[0087] Figures 10 and 11 are schematic diagrams of the communication device provided in the embodiments of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0088] The scheme of this application will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0089] The technical solution provided in this application can be applied to various communication systems, such as fifth-generation (5G) communication systems. th This technology can be applied to various scenarios, including 5G mobile communication systems, future evolution systems, and converged communication systems, as well as existing communication systems. The application scenarios of the technical solutions provided in this application can include multiple areas, such as machine-to-machine (M2M), macro-micro communication, enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable and low-latency communication (uRLLC), and massive machine-type communication (mMTC). These scenarios may include, but are not limited to, communication between terminal devices, communication between network devices, and communication between network devices and terminal devices. Network devices include access network devices and core network devices. The following descriptions use examples of communication between network devices and terminal devices.

[0090] Figure 1 illustrates a possible, non-limiting communication system. As shown in Figure 1, the communication system 1000 includes a radio access network (RAN) 100 and a core network (CN) 200. The communication system 1000 may also include an Internet 300. RAN 100 includes at least one RAN node (110a and 110b in Figure 1, collectively referred to as 110) and at least one terminal device (120a-120j in Figure 1, collectively referred to as 120). RAN 100 may also include other RAN nodes, such as wireless relay devices and / or wireless backhaul devices (not shown in Figure 1). Terminal device 120 is wirelessly connected to RAN node 110. RAN node 110 is wirelessly or wired connected to core network 200. The core network devices in core network 200 and RAN node 110 in RAN 100 can be different physical devices, or they can be the same physical device integrating core network logical functions and radio access network logical functions.

[0091] RAN 100 can be a cellular system related to the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), such as 4G, 5G mobile communication systems, or future communication networks (or future-oriented evolution systems, such as 6G mobile communication systems). RAN 100 can also be an open radio access network (O-RAN or ORAN), a cloud radio access network (CRAN), or a wireless fidelity (WiFi) system. RAN 100 can also be a communication system that integrates two or more of the above systems.

[0092] RAN node 110, also known as network equipment, access network equipment, RAN entity, or access node, constitutes part of the communication system and assists terminal equipment in achieving wireless access. Multiple RAN nodes 110 in the communication system 1000 can be of the same type or different types. In some scenarios, the roles of RAN node 110 and terminal equipment 120 are relative. For example, network element 120i in Figure 1 can be a helicopter or drone, which can be configured as a mobile base station. For terminal equipment 120j accessing RAN 100 through network element 120i, network element 120i is a base station; however, for base station 110a, network element 120i is a terminal equipment. RAN node 110 and terminal equipment 120 are sometimes referred to as communication devices. For example, network elements 110a and 110b in Figure 1 can be understood as communication devices with base station functions, and network elements 120a-120j can be understood as communication devices with terminal equipment functions.

[0093] In one possible scenario, a RAN node can be a base station, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), an access point (AP), a transmission reception point (TRP), a next-generation NodeB (gNB), a next-generation base station in a 6th-generation (6G) mobile communication system, a base station in a future mobile communication system, or an access node in a WiFi system. A RAN node can be a macro base station (as shown in Figure 1, 110a), a micro base station or indoor station (as shown in Figure 1, 110b), a relay node or donor node, or a radio controller in a CRAN scenario. Optionally, a RAN node can also be a server, wearable device, vehicle, or in-vehicle equipment. For example, network equipment in vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technology can be a roadside unit (RSU).

[0094] In another possible scenario, multiple RAN nodes assist terminal devices in achieving wireless access, with different RAN nodes each implementing some of the base station's functions. For example, RAN nodes can be central units (CUs), distributed units (DUs), central unit-control planes (CU-CPs), central unit-user planes (CU-UPs), or radio units (RUs), etc. CUs and DUs can be set up separately or included in the same network element, such as a baseband unit (BBU). RUs can be included in radio equipment or radio units, such as remote radio units (RRUs), active antenna units (AAUs), or remote radio heads (RRHs).

[0095] In different systems, CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU, or RU may have different names, but those skilled in the art will understand their meaning. For example, in an ORAN system, CU can also be called an open-centralized unit (O-CU), DU can also be called an open-distributed unit (O-DU), CU-CP can also be called an open-centralized unit-control plane (O-CU-CP), CU-UP can also be called an open-centralized unit-user plane (O-CU-UP), and RU can also be called an open-radio unit (O-RU). For ease of description, this application uses CU, CU-CP, CU-UP, DU, and RU as examples. Any of the units among CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU, and RU in this application can be implemented through software modules, hardware modules, or a combination of software and hardware modules.

[0096] Terminal devices can also be referred to as terminals, user equipment (UE), mobile stations, mobile terminal devices, etc. Terminal devices can be widely used in various scenarios, such as device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, machine-type communication (MTC), Internet of Things (IoT), virtual reality, augmented reality, industrial control, autonomous driving, telemedicine, smart grids, smart furniture, smart offices, smart wearables, smart transportation, smart cities, etc. Terminal devices can be mobile phones, tablets, computers with wireless transceiver capabilities, wearable devices, vehicles, drones, helicopters, airplanes, ships, robots, robotic arms, smart home devices, etc. The embodiments of this application do not limit the device form of the terminal device.

[0097] Communication between network devices and terminal devices follows a specific protocol layer structure. This protocol layer may include a control plane protocol layer and a user plane protocol layer. The control plane protocol layer may include at least one of the following: radio resource control (RRC) layer, packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, radio link control (RLC) layer, media access control (MAC) layer, or physical (PHY) layer, etc. The user plane protocol layer may include at least one of the following: service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) layer, PDCP layer, RLC layer, MAC layer, or physical layer, etc.

[0098] Base stations and terminal equipment can be fixed or mobile. They can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; they can also be deployed on water; and they can be deployed on aircraft, balloons, and satellites. The embodiments of this application do not limit the application scenarios of the base stations and terminal equipment.

[0099] The roles of base stations and terminal devices can be relative. For example, the helicopter or drone 120i in Figure 1 can be configured as a mobile base station. For terminal devices 120j that access the wireless access network 100 through 120i, terminal device 120i is a base station; however, for base station 110a, 120i is a terminal device, meaning that 110a and 120i communicate via a wireless air interface protocol. Of course, 110a and 120i can also communicate via a base station-to-base station interface protocol. In this case, relative to 110a, 120i is also a base station. Therefore, both base stations and terminal devices can be collectively referred to as communication devices. 110a and 110b in Figure 1 can be called communication devices with base station functions, and 120a-120j in Figure 1 can be called communication devices with terminal device functions.

[0100] In this embodiment, the base station is also referred to as a network device. The apparatus for implementing the functions of the network device can be a network device itself; it can also be an apparatus capable of supporting the network device in implementing those functions, such as a chip system, hardware circuit, software module, or a hardware circuit plus a software module. This apparatus can be installed in the network device or used in conjunction with the network device. In this embodiment, the example of a network device being used to implement the functions of the network device is used only and does not constitute a limitation on the solutions of this embodiment.

[0101] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the UE is also referred to as a terminal device. The apparatus for implementing the functions of the terminal device can be the terminal device itself; it can also be an apparatus capable of supporting the terminal device in implementing those functions, such as a chip system, hardware circuit, software module, or a hardware circuit plus a software module. This apparatus can be installed in the terminal device or used in conjunction with the terminal device. In this embodiment, only the apparatus for implementing the functions of the terminal device is described as a terminal device, and this does not constitute a limitation on the solutions of this embodiment.

[0102] It should be understood that the number and type of each device in the communication system shown in Figure 1 are for illustrative purposes only, and this application is not limited thereto. In actual applications, the communication system may include more terminal devices, more access network devices, and other network elements, such as core network devices and / or network elements used to implement artificial intelligence functions.

[0103] It is understandable that all or part of the functions implemented by one or more of the terminal devices, access network devices, core network devices, or network elements used to implement artificial intelligence functions can be virtualized, that is, implemented through one or more of dedicated or general-purpose processors and corresponding software modules. Among these, the terminal devices and access network devices involve air interface transmission, and the transmit and receive functions of this interface can be implemented in hardware. Core network devices, such as operation administration and maintenance (OAM) network elements, can also be virtualized. Optionally, one or more of the functions of the virtualized terminal devices, access network devices, core network devices, or network elements used to implement artificial intelligence functions can be implemented by cloud devices, such as cloud devices in over-the-top (OTT) systems.

[0104] This application involves PDCCH monitoring. The specific methods for UE to perform PDCCH monitoring are described below:

[0105] The PDCCH carries downlink control information (DCI), which is the control information for scheduling the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) or physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH), such as modulation and coding scheme (MCS), time-frequency domain resource allocation information, timing information, etc.

[0106] Since the UE doesn't know when the base station will schedule it, blind PDCCH detection needs to be performed within a given range. The main configuration information involved in blind detection includes the search space (SS) and the control resource set (CORESET). The configurations of CORESET and SS are both within the current bandwidth part (BWP), i.e., associated with the current BWP. A BWP is a frequency range within a cell or carrier; multiple BWPs can be configured for each cell or carrier of the UE, and the configuration information for each BWP can be configured independently. The specific concepts related to PDCCH blind detection are introduced below:

[0107] Search space: The search space defines the temporal resource range for blind detection. Generally, it includes the period, slot offset, and symbol position in the slot, that is, the UE can determine which symbols in which slot to perform PDCCH blind detection.

[0108] CORESET: CORESET defines a segment of resource blocks (RBs) within a BWP. These RBs occupy N consecutive symbols, where N is typically 1, 2, or 3. Generally, these N symbols start from the beginning symbol of the time slot.

[0109] Control Channel Element (CCE) and PDCCH Candidates: Having determined the SS and CORESET mentioned above, the UE determines the approximate time-frequency resource pool for blind detection PDCCH, i.e., the RBs and symbols where the CORESETs reside in certain time slots. This resource pool is further divided into CCEs, which are the basic units that make up a PDCCH. A PDCCH can consist of 1 / 2 / 4 / 8 / 16 CCEs, i.e., CCE levels. PDCCH candidates are the detection locations under a specific CCE level. For example, the positions of two CCEs in the resource pool above constitute a PDCCH candidate position for CCE level 2. The positions of the sub-resource pools corresponding to each CCE level in the resource pool are independently defined, and can be pre-configured or determined based on the UE identifier. The number of PDCCH candidates in the sub-resource pool for each CCE level represents the number of blind detections the UE needs to perform for that CCE level. For example, in the CCE level 2 sub-resource pool, the UE needs to blindly detect 6 PDCCH candidate positions for CCE level 2, meaning the number of blind detections for CCE level 2 is 6. The number of blind detections for each CCE level can be configured independently. Furthermore, if the UE needs to detect PDCCHs of multiple DCI formats, then independent blind detections of each DCI format's PDCCH are performed based on the above blind detection rules. Generally, the number of payloads corresponding to different DCI formats is different, i.e., the original number of bits; alternatively, the number of payloads corresponding to different DCI formats can be the same, distinguished only by different cyclic redundancy check (CRC) masks or format-differentiating bits in the payload.

[0110] 5G compared to 4th generation (4G) th 4G wireless communication has greater bandwidth and more antennas, resulting in higher power consumption for UEs. Furthermore, future communication networks will inevitably have the same or even higher requirements for bandwidth and antennas. Therefore, power saving for UEs is crucial.

[0111] One significant issue with high UE power consumption is that the UE needs to monitor the PDCCH even during time slots with no data transmission. This failure to detect the PDCCH is called invalid PDCCH monitoring, which results in unnecessary power consumption for the UE.

[0112] Therefore, minimizing the aforementioned invalid PDCCH monitoring is an urgent problem to be solved in order to save UE energy.

[0113] Two commonly used energy-saving methods are as follows:

[0114] (1) Terminal C-DRX mechanism:

[0115] C-DRX is a fundamental feature for UE energy saving. The main configuration information involved in the C-DRX mechanism includes periodic activation windows (including the window period, start time, and window length) and timers for returning to inactive periods. This configuration information can be configured via RRC proprietary signaling and takes effect immediately upon configuration, primarily affecting the PDCCH for data scheduling.

[0116] Figure 2 illustrates the principle of the terminal C-DRX mechanism. The UE receives PDCCH based on a periodic active window. If no PDCCH is received within the active window, the UE returns to the inactive period. During the inactive period, the UE does not receive PDCCH. If a PDCCH is received within the active window, a timer is started. The UE continues to receive PDCCH until the timer expires. The timer is restarted every time a PDCCH is received, until no PDCCH is received, causing the timer to expire (generally, the timer reaches zero), at which point the UE returns to the inactive period.

[0117] (2) Terminal C-DRX mechanism based on wake-up signal:

[0118] The PDCCH monitoring wake-up mechanism is another UE power-saving feature. Figure 3 illustrates the principle of the UE wake-up mechanism. Based on the aforementioned UEC-DRX mechanism, the timing of receiving the wake-up signal can be set before the periodic activation window. If the UE receives the wake-up signal and wakes up the subsequent activation window, then the UE receives the PDCCH for data transmission scheduling within the corresponding subsequent activation window; otherwise, it skips the activation window of that period, i.e., it does not receive the PDCCH for data transmission scheduling within the activation window of that period.

[0119] Analysis of the two energy-saving methods above reveals that, firstly, the C-DRX cycle is generally configured to be relatively long, such as 80 / 160 / 320ms, which introduces scheduling latency. For example, if a service arrives just after missing the activation window of the current cycle, it needs to wait for the next activation window to be scheduled.

[0120] Secondly, the advantage of the wake-up signal is that if no service arrives, it can indicate that the subsequent PDCCH monitoring time window will not be opened. However, once a service arrives and triggers the time window, since the arrival of the service is sudden, it cannot be guaranteed that the time window will be in an active state. The UE will be scheduled at all times, that is, during the active period of PDCCH monitoring, there will still be a certain amount of invalid PDCCH monitoring.

[0121] Furthermore, for a typical wake-up mechanism, the wake-up signal is a regular communication signal, such as the PDCCH. Therefore, the UE consumes a certain amount of power when receiving this typical wake-up signal. Consequently, the configuration period for the wake-up signal and the corresponding subsequent reception time window under this mechanism is relatively long, typically on the order of tens to hundreds of milliseconds.

[0122] Therefore, it can be seen that the above-mentioned UE energy-saving methods still have a certain percentage of invalid PDCCH monitoring, which wastes UE receiving power consumption; in addition, if the PDCCH monitoring time window is configured for a long period, it will also affect the scheduling latency of services.

[0123] In view of this, this application provides a communication scheme that reduces the proportion of invalid PDCCH monitoring during the wake-up period by indicating the receiving parameters of the first downlink information through the first DCI, thereby saving the power consumption of the UE. At the same time, the UE can be woken up in time when there is a service, ensuring a low scheduling latency.

[0124] Figure 4 shows a flowchart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of this application. Exemplarily, the method may include the following steps:

[0125] S401. The network device sends the first DCI.

[0126] Accordingly, the UE receives the first DCI.

[0127] The first DCI is used to indicate the first reception parameters of the first downlink information.

[0128] For example, the UE uses a first receiver to receive the first DCI. The power of the first receiver is less than or equal to a first threshold. That is, the UE can use a low-power receiver to receive the first DCI. For example, the power of a normal receiver for PDCCH reception is approximately in the range of tens to hundreds of milliwatts, while the power of a low-power receiver is approximately in the range of hundreds of microwatts, a few milliwatts, or tens of milliwatts, which is even an order of magnitude lower than that of a normal receiver.

[0129] The first DCI supports low-power reception, and correspondingly, the first DCI may have at least one of the following features:

[0130] (1) The first DCI uses a switching modulation signal. Switching modulation signals include, for example, on-off keying (OOK) or frequency-shift keying (FSK) modulation signals. Taking OOK modulation as an example, its receiving principle is as follows: on a given time-frequency resource, the presence or absence of energy is detected to carry the original bit information of the first DCI. Therefore, low-power receivers can be used to receive OOK signals, such as envelope detection, which can achieve at least one order of magnitude lower receiving power consumption than normal orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) receivers. Furthermore, FSK involves energy detection on two separate frequency resources to carry information; the other principles are similar to OOK.

[0131] (2) The first DCI is received using a sequence receiver. That is, the original information bits of the first DCI are carried through the detection of multiple candidate sequences. For example, given N time-frequency resources, where M sequences can be used for transmission on each time-frequency resource, a maximum of N*log2M original bit information can be carried, where N and M are positive integers. The UE determines the aforementioned original bit information by blindly detecting each candidate sequence on each time-frequency resource. The sequence receiver can achieve low-power reception because sequence detection can be implemented through low-power related operations, which is much simpler than the complex channel estimation and encoding / decoding operations of traditional receivers.

[0132] (3) The first DCI is carried on the first bandwidth, and the first downlink information is carried on the second bandwidth. The first bandwidth is smaller than the second bandwidth. That is, the first DCI is carried on a smaller bandwidth and occupies less resources.

[0133] (4) The first DCI carries a first amount of information, and the first downlink information carries a second amount of information. The first amount of information is less than the second amount of information. That is, the first DCI carries fewer raw bits. Furthermore, the length of the cyclic redundancy check (CRC) of the first DCI can also be less than the length of the CRC of the first downlink information.

[0134] (5) The first DCI is received using the first number of antennas, and the first downlink information is received using the second number of antennas. The first number of antennas is less than the second number of antennas. That is, the first DCI can be received using fewer antennas.

[0135] (6) The first DCI is received using the first spatial layer and the first downlink information is received using the second spatial layer, where the first spatial layer is less than the second spatial layer. That is, the first DCI can be received using fewer spatial layers.

[0136] The first DCI is used to indicate the first receive parameters of the first downlink information.

[0137] The first downlink information includes the second DCI.

[0138] The first receiving parameter includes receiving parameters for receiving the second DCI. For example, the first receiving parameter includes at least one of the following:

[0139] (1) Indication information on whether to initiate the monitoring of the second DCI. For example, this indication information can be 1 bit. If the 1 bit has a first value, the monitoring of the second DCI is initiated; if the 1 bit has a second value, the monitoring of the second DCI is not initiated. Alternatively, if energy or sequence 1 is detected on a resource, the monitoring of the second DCI is initiated; if no energy or sequence 2 is detected on a resource, the monitoring of the second DCI is not initiated. The above indication method also applies to the indication of other information as follows.

[0140] (2) Frequency resource information corresponding to the second DCI. For example, the frequency resources include the carrier where the second DCI is located, the bandwidth part (BWP), the receive subband, etc.

[0141] (3) Spatial configuration information corresponding to the second DCI. For example, the control spatial configuration information includes at least one of the following: the number of receiving layers or layer index, the number of receiving antenna ports or antenna port index, the number of receiving antennas or antenna index, and the number of receiving channels or channel index of the second DCI.

[0142] (4) The control resource set corresponding to the second DCI.

[0143] (5) The search space corresponding to the second DCI.

[0144] (6) The CCE level corresponding to the second DCI.

[0145] (7) Candidate position of PDCCH corresponding to the second DCI.

[0146] (8) The format of the second DCI.

[0147] (9) Temporal resource information corresponding to the second DCI. For example, this temporal resource information includes the detection window length of the second DCI. The detection window length of the second DCI can be N time units, where N is a positive integer. The time unit can be a unit with temporal granularity such as millisecond, time slot, subframe, or symbol. During the duration of the detection window of the second DCI, the UE continuously monitors the second DCI without monitoring the first DCI, thus avoiding the increased power consumption caused by monitoring two DCIs during continuous scheduling.

[0148] For example, the receiver receiving the second DCI is different from the receiver receiving the first DCI. For instance, receiving the first DCI may be done with an OOK receiver or a sequence receiver (low-power receiver), while receiving the second DCI may be done with a main receiver, i.e., a conventional receiver that requires operations such as OFDM demodulation and fast Fourier transform (FFT).

[0149] Furthermore, the first downlink information also includes first downlink data. The receiving parameters of the first downlink data include at least one of the following:

[0150] (1) Frequency resource information corresponding to the first downlink data. For example, the frequency resource information corresponding to the first downlink data includes the carrier, BWP, and receive subband where the first downlink data is located. The frequency resource information corresponding to the first downlink data (referred to as "first frequency resource information") can be the same as the frequency resource information corresponding to the second DCI (referred to as "second frequency resource information"), or it can be independently indicated, such as different BWPs in the same carrier or different subbands in the same BWP. If the frequency resource information corresponding to the first downlink data is independently indicated, that is, the first frequency resource information is different from the second frequency resource information, then a certain gap should be reserved between the first frequency resource and the second frequency resource to allow the UE to have time-varying receive bandwidth, etc. This gap is generally one or a few symbols.

[0151] (2) Spatial configuration information corresponding to the first downlink data. For example, the spatial configuration information corresponding to the first downlink data includes at least one of the following: number of receiving layers, number of receiving antenna ports, number of receiving antennas, and number of receiving channels. This spatial configuration information corresponding to the first downlink data can be the same as the spatial configuration information corresponding to the second DCI, or it can be indicated independently.

[0152] (3) Time-domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data. For example, the time-domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data includes the timing value of the uplink hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback corresponding to the second DCI. This timing value is the timing value between the first downlink data scheduled by the second DCI and the HARQ feedback corresponding to the first downlink data, which can be time-domain units such as N symbols or time slots. For example, if the time-domain position corresponding to the second DCI is time slot n, and the time-domain position corresponding to the uplink HARQ feedback corresponding to the second DCI is time slot n+k, then the timing value is k. This timing value can also be a special value, such as delayed feedback, that is, the feedback is suspended first, and the timing of feedback needs to be notified later. If this timing value is a large value or the above special value, that is, the feedback timing is relatively generous, then the UE can receive the second DCI and the first downlink data relatively easily, for example, by reducing the frequency and voltage to reduce the receiving power consumption.

[0153] (4) Code domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data. For example, the code domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data includes information related to coding, such as modulation order and coding rate. If the indicated modulation order is low (such as quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK)) and / or the coding rate is low, the UE can also reduce the receiving power consumption by means of frequency reduction and voltage reduction.

[0154] Regarding the receiving parameters of the first downlink data, there are three scenarios: First, the receiving parameters of the first downlink data can be included in the first DCI; second, the receiving parameters of the first downlink data are included in the second DCI; third, some receiving parameters of the first downlink data are included in the first DCI, and other receiving parameters are included in the second DCI. These are described below:

[0155] In the first scenario, the reception parameters of the first downlink data are included in the first DCI, meaning the first DCI directly indicates the reception parameters of the first downlink data, and the existence of a second DCI is unnecessary. For example, suppose there are two sets of candidate reception parameters for the first downlink data. The UE can directly receive the first downlink data based on either set of parameters, and the specific set is indicated by the first DCI; therefore, the existence of a second DCI is unnecessary. In other words, in this implementation, each set of reception parameters can be understood as a predefined or pre-semi-statically configured set of reception parameters, such as time-frequency domain resource allocation and modulation and coding scheme (MCS), so that the UE does not need to obtain other reception parameters of the first downlink data based on a further second DCI.

[0156] The second scenario involves the indication information of the receiving parameters of the first downlink data being included in the second DCI. In other words, the first DCI does not include the indication information of the receiving parameters of the first downlink data. The receiving parameters of the first downlink data indicated by the second DCI include at least one of the following: frequency resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; spatial domain configuration information corresponding to the first downlink data; time domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; and code domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data. The meanings of the above information can be found in the description above.

[0157] The third scenario involves some reception parameters of the first downlink data being included in the first DCI, while other reception parameters are included in the second DCI. For example, the second DCI includes scheduling information for the first downlink data, such as indications of which resource blocks are allocated in the frequency domain (FDRA) within the aforementioned frequency resources, which time slot is assigned, and indications of which time domain symbols within the time slot are allocated in the time domain (TDRA), etc. However, the second DCI does not include the control information included in the first DCI, such as the spatial configuration information and HARQ feedback timing information corresponding to the first downlink data included in the first DCI. In other words, the indication information for the reception parameters of the first downlink data is included in both the first and second DCIs.

[0158] It is understood that the above description is based on the reception of downlink data. In fact, the embodiments of this application also support the transmission of uplink data. That is, the transmission parameters of uplink data can also be indicated by the first DCI and the second DCI, or by the first DCI without the second DCI, or by the second DCI without the first DCI.

[0159] S402. The network device sends the first downlink information.

[0160] Accordingly, the UE receives the first downlink information based on the first receiving parameters.

[0161] After receiving the first DCI, the UE can receive the first downlink information based on the first receiving parameters of the first downlink information indicated by the first DCI.

[0162] For example, the second DCI is received based on the first receiving parameters of the second DCI indicated by the first DCI; or, the first downlink data is received based on the first receiving parameters of the first downlink data indicated by the first DCI (and may further be based on the second receiving parameters of the first downlink data indicated by the second DCI); or, the second DCI and the first downlink data are received based on the second DCI indicated by the first DCI and the first receiving parameters of the first downlink data (and may further be based on the second receiving parameters of the first downlink data indicated by the second DCI).

[0163] Figure 5 illustrates an example of an embodiment of this application where the first DCI indicates the second DCI and / or the first downlink data. The UE receives the PDCCH based on a periodic activation window using the C-DRX mechanism. During inactive periods, the UE does not receive the PDCCH. If the UE receives the PDCCH within an activation window, and the PDCCH carries the first DCI, the UE starts a timer to continue receiving the PDCCH until the timer expires. The timer is restarted each time a PDCCH is received, until no PDCCH is received, causing the timer to expire, at which point the UE returns to the inactive period. The first DCI is used to indicate or trigger the reception of the second DCI and PDSCH. Exemplarily, the UE can use a low-power receiver to receive the first DCI, and after receiving the first DCI, wake up the main receiver to receive the second DCI and PDSCH.

[0164] According to an embodiment of this application, a communication method is provided that reduces the proportion of invalid PDCCH monitoring during the wake-up period by indicating the receiving parameters of the first downlink information through the first DCI, thereby saving the power consumption of the UE. At the same time, the UE can be woken up in time when there is a service, ensuring a low scheduling latency.

[0165] In the current communication mechanism, multiple sets of receive parameters are associated with multiple Base Window (BWP). The switching of receive parameters is achieved through BWP switching; that is, each BWP configuration includes associated receive parameters. For example, adjusting two receive bandwidths is achieved by switching two BWPs, requiring the two BWPs to have different bandwidths, such as one BWP at 100MHz and the other at 20MHz. The spatial domain configuration is similar; for example, two-layer and four-layer receive reception require separate association with their respective BWPs, and then BWP switching is used to achieve two-layer and four-layer reception. Other receive parameters are similar. The switching of receive parameters associated with BWPs is not flexible enough because the maximum number of BWPs a UE can configure in a cell is limited, such as a maximum of four BWPs. This results in insufficient granularity for switching the aforementioned receive parameters, and requires binding multiple receive parameters to BWPs. For example, receive bandwidth and receive layer number need to be bound to a specific BWP; that is, switching BWPs simultaneously switches both receive parameters, making it difficult to change a single dimension of the receive parameter. In addition, the BWP switching latency is relatively large, generally several milliseconds, mainly because it requires re-importing the configuration parameters of the new BWP and also requires a small amount of RF tuning time.

[0166] In the embodiments of this application, the limitation of binding the receiving parameters with the BWP configuration is broken. That is, within a BWP, the receiving parameters can be flexibly switched to save the UE's power consumption and ensure a low switching latency to maintain the continuity of service scheduling.

[0167] For example, the aforementioned first receiving parameter is the currently effective receiving parameter among a plurality of first candidate receiving parameters, and the plurality of first candidate receiving parameters are associated with a first frequency unit. The first frequency unit can refer to a cell, carrier, BWP, etc. When the first frequency unit is not switched, there are a plurality of first candidate receiving parameters. The plurality of first candidate receiving parameters can be pre-configured by RRC or predefined by the standard. Optionally, to reduce the amount of candidate receiving parameter information that the UE needs to maintain, the plurality of first candidate receiving parameters can include common receiving parameters and each set of independently configured candidate receiving parameters. The independently configured candidate receiving parameters are those that need to be flexibly switched, such as different receiving bandwidths, different spatial layer numbers, etc., while other parameters that have little impact on receiving power consumption can be configured or preset as common receiving parameters, such as time-domain resource allocation information, MCS, etc. The first DCI is used to indicate the currently used first receiving parameter from the plurality of first candidate receiving parameters. For example, the first DCI indicates the receiving parameters of the second DCI from the plurality of first candidate receiving parameters, and / or the first DCI indicates the receiving parameters of the first downlink data from the plurality of first candidate receiving parameters. It should be noted that the receiving parameters used for the second DCI and the receiving parameters used for the first downlink data can be the same or can be configured independently (i.e., independently configured to be the same or different, depending on the implementation of the network device).

[0168] The following are examples illustrating the specific instructions for receiving parameters:

[0169] Example 1: The first frequency unit includes multiple sub-frequency units, and multiple first candidate receiving parameters correspond to multiple sub-frequency units respectively. The first receiving parameters include the configuration parameters of the first sub-frequency unit among the multiple sub-frequency units, that is, the first receiving parameters are associated with the first sub-frequency unit.

[0170] The multiple sub-frequency units also include a second sub-frequency unit, which is any one of the multiple sub-frequency units other than the first sub-frequency unit. The time delay of switching from the first sub-frequency unit to the second sub-frequency unit is less than the time delay of switching from the first frequency unit to the second frequency unit. Therefore, the time delay of switching the receiving parameters corresponding to the sub-frequency unit is less than the time delay of switching the receiving parameters corresponding to the frequency unit, which can save UE power consumption and maintain the continuity of service scheduling.

[0171] For example, the aforementioned sub-frequency unit is a sub-band. There are multiple sub-band configurations, each with a different bandwidth (but the center frequency can be the same or different). The first DCI indicates the currently scheduled actual sub-band from the multiple candidate sub-bands. For example, if the BWP is 100MHz, sub-band 1 is the 100MHz frequency resource of that BWP, sub-band 2 is a 60MHz sub-band within that BWP, and sub-band 3 is a 20MHz sub-band within that BWP. Then, the first DCI can indicate one of these three sub-bands as the currently scheduled actual sub-band. For example, if the current data traffic is low, the network device can indicate the 20MHz sub-band (sub-band 3) to the UE through the first DCI. After receiving the first DCI, the UE sets its receive bandwidth to 20MHz to receive the subsequent second DCI and the first downlink data. At this point, it is assumed that the 20MHz subband corresponding to the second DCI and the first downlink data is the same. That is, the CORESET corresponding to the second DCI needs to be configured within this 20MHz subband, and the first downlink data also needs to undergo frequency domain resource allocation (FDRA) within this 20MHz subband (i.e., allocating which RBs within this 20MHz subband to the currently scheduled first downlink data). Furthermore, to reduce receiving bandwidth and save energy, the second DCI can be frequency-division multiplexed with the first downlink data (occupying different resource blocks). That is, the second DCI does not need to occupy only the first 2 or 3 symbols of the time slot, but can occupy more than 3 or 4 symbols, or even the same symbols within the time slot as the first downlink data. However, the first DCI still needs to be time-division multiplexed with the aforementioned first DCI and first downlink data, i.e., occupying different symbols. Therefore, the receiving parameters for the subsequent second DCI and first downlink data need to be determined based on the indication of the first DCI.

[0172] Example 2 shows multiple receiver layer configurations (similar to other multi-antenna parameters, such as multiple receiver channels, receiver antenna ports, and receiver antennas), such as 1 receive, 2 receive, 4 receive, and 6 receive. The first DCI indicates the currently used layer from these multiple candidate receiver layer configurations. These candidate receiver layers can be configured the same or independently for the second DCI and the first downlink data. It should also be noted that the aforementioned receiver layer can be the actual number of layers scheduled or the maximum number of layers that can be scheduled. For the latter, for example, if the maximum number of layers is 2, the network device can actually schedule 1 or 2 layers, but not more than 2 layers. Normally, the UE needs to use 2 receiver channels to receive data. Similarly, if the maximum number of layers is 4, the network device can actually schedule layers 1 to 4, but not more than 4 layers. Normally, the UE needs to use 4 receiver channels to receive data.

[0173] There are also some receiving parameters that are only for control information, namely the second DCI, such as the CCE level and candidate position in the receiving parameters of the second DCI mentioned above.

[0174] There are also some receiving parameters that are only for the data, namely the first downlink data, such as the modulation order, coding rate, and feedback timing value in the receiving parameters of the first downlink data mentioned above.

[0175] This embodiment breaks the limitation of binding the receiving parameters with the BWP configuration, that is, the receiving parameters can be flexibly switched within a BWP, which can save the UE's power consumption and ensure a low switching latency to maintain the continuity of service scheduling.

[0176] In another embodiment, the network device may also send a third DCI before sending the first DCI and / or the second DCI. This third DCI is used to instruct the UE to monitor the first DCI and / or the second DCI. This third DCI can also be called a low-power-wakeup signal (LP-WUS). The third DCI supports low-power reception, as described above for the first DCI. One implementation is that the power consumption of receiving the third DCI is lower than that of receiving the first DCI; for example, the third DCI uses a switching modulation method such as OOK or FSK, while the first DCI uses a sequence modulation method. Another implementation is that the power consumption of receiving the third DCI and the first DCI is similar, i.e., using the same modulation method, such as OOK or sequence modulation, but the UE's main receiver receives the third DCI and the first DCI in different sleep states. For example, the UE's main receiver receives the third DCI in a deep sleep state, while receiving the first DCI in a light sleep or active state. Obviously, the power consumption of the former is lower than the latter, but the wake-up time of the main receiver in the former is longer than that in the latter, as described in the following embodiments. In the latter implementation, the content of the third DCI and the first DCI can even be completely identical, that is, they are the same DCI, only operating in different sleep states of the master receiver; of course, the third DCI and the first DCI can also be independent DCIs, for example, the third DCI is used to trigger the reception of the first DCI, while the first DCI is used to trigger and / or further indicate the reception parameters of the second DCI or the first downlink data.

[0177] Regarding the instructions for the third DCI, there are two implementation methods:

[0178] One implementation involves using a third DCI to indicate, trigger, or activate the UE's monitoring of the first DCI, while the first DCI indicates the reception parameters of the second DCI and / or the first downlink data. Figure 6 illustrates an example of an embodiment of this application where the third DCI is used for indication. The network device sends the third DCI, which triggers the UE to monitor the first DCI. Then, the network device sends the first DCI again, no longer sending the third DCI. The first DCI is used to trigger the monitoring of the second DCI, or to indicate the reception parameters of the second DCI and / or the first downlink data. Optionally, the time between the network device sending the third DCI and the earliest time it sent the first DCI is denoted as a first time t2; and the time between the network device sending the first DCI and the earliest time it sent the second DCI is denoted as a second time t1. t2 is greater than t1, where t2 and t1 can be time-domain granularities such as time slots or symbols. Correspondingly, the UE can receive the third DCI in a deep sleep state using a low-power receiver, where power consumption is very low. If the UE receives a third DCI and the third DCI triggers the UE to monitor the first DCI, then the UE's primary receiver can transition from deep sleep to light sleep or even active state to monitor the first DCI without needing to monitor the third DCI again. During the monitoring of the first DCI, if the first DCI is detected, then as in the above embodiments, the first DCI is used to trigger the monitoring of the second DCI, or the first DCI is used to indicate the reception parameters of the second DCI and / or the first downlink data; this will not be elaborated further here. Optionally, the time between the UE detecting the third DCI and starting to monitor the first DCI is denoted as the first time t2, i.e., the time from deep sleep to light sleep or active state; while the time between the UE detecting the first DCI and starting to monitor the second DCI is denoted as the second time t1, i.e., the time from light sleep to the normal wake-up state or active state of the primary receiver, or the time t1 between detecting the first DCI and starting to monitor the second DCI while maintaining the active state. The above t2 is greater than t1, where t2 and t1 can be time-domain granularities such as time slots or symbols. It is understandable that there may be an error between the first time the network device sends the third DCI and the earliest time it sends the first DCI, and the first time the UE detects the third DCI and begins detecting the first DCI; similarly, there may be an error between the second time the network device sends the first DCI and the earliest time it sends the second DCI, and the second time the UE detects the first DCI and begins detecting the second DCI. For example, these errors can be ignored.

[0179] Another implementation involves using both the third DCI and the first DCI to trigger the second DCI, or both to indicate the reception parameters of the second DCI. Figure 7 illustrates another example of incorporating the third DCI for indication, as described above, with the specific triggering mechanism. The network device sends the third DCI, which triggers the UE to monitor the first and second DCIs. Then, the network device sends the first and second DCIs, but no longer sends the third DCI. Optionally, the time between the network device sending the third DCI and the earliest time it sends the second DCI is denoted as the third time t3; the time between the network device sending the first DCI and the earliest time it sends the second DCI is denoted as the second time t1. t3 is greater than t1, where t3 and t1 can be time-domain granularities such as time slots or symbols. Correspondingly, the time between the UE detecting the third DCI and starting to detect the second DCI is denoted as the third time t3, which is the time from deep sleep to wake-up state. The time between the UE detecting the first DCI and starting to detect the second DCI is denoted as the second time t1, which is the time from light sleep to the wake-up state (active state) of the normal master receiver, or the time t1 between detecting the first DCI and starting to detect the second DCI while remaining in the active state. t3 is greater than t1, where t3 and t1 can be time-domain granularities such as time slots or symbols. The function and content of the third DCI and the first DCI can be the same, only t3 and t1 are different; or, the function and content of the third DCI and the first DCI are different, for example, the third DCI is used to trigger the detection of the second DCI, while the first DCI can also indicate the reception parameters of the second DCI and / or the first downlink data, as in the above embodiment. It is understandable that there may be an error between the third time interval from when the network device sends the third DCI to the earliest time interval from when the second DCI is sent, and the third time interval from when the UE detects the third DCI to when it starts detecting the second DCI; similarly, there may be an error between the second time interval from when the network device sends the first DCI to the earliest time interval from when the second DCI is sent, and the second time interval from when the UE detects the first DCI to when it starts detecting the second DCI. For example, the aforementioned errors can be ignored.

[0180] In the above embodiments, the master receiver is triggered to monitor the second DCI by receiving the first or third DCI with low power. Therefore, once the second DCI is detected, a fallback mechanism needs to be established to determine when to revert to monitoring the first or third DCI with low power to conserve UE power:

[0181] The following examples illustrate two fallback mechanisms:

[0182] One fallback mechanism involves determining whether to monitor a third DCI or monitor a first DCI according to the first indication information in the first DCI or the state of the first timer corresponding to the first DCI.

[0183] For example, as shown in Figure 8, which is a schematic diagram of a fallback mechanism exemplified by an embodiment of this application, the UE monitors a first DCI based on first time-domain configuration information. This first time-domain configuration information includes a monitoring period and a monitoring time window or activation time window within each monitoring period. Once the first DCI is detected (i.e., when the first DCI is detected), and this first DCI is used to trigger the monitoring of a second DCI, or to indicate the first reception parameters of the second DCI and / or the first downlink data, the UE needs to break the aforementioned monitoring rules and instead monitor the first DCI based on the second time-domain configuration information. Monitoring the first DCI based on the second time-domain configuration information can be done by continuously monitoring the first DCI without being limited by the aforementioned activation time window, until the first DCI is detected again and a first indication information is received from the first DCI. This first indication information is used to indicate that the first DCI should be monitored again based on the first time-domain configuration information after the first DCI is detected again; or, when the first DCI is detected, a first timer is started. If the first timer reaches a first duration and the first DCI is still not received, then the UE falls back to monitoring the first DCI based on the first time-domain configuration information. Optionally, after starting the first timer, the monitoring of the first DCI is not limited to the aforementioned activation time window, and the monitoring method based on the first timer can be understood as monitoring the first DCI based on the aforementioned second time domain configuration information. Optionally, if the first timer has not expired, i.e., the first duration has not been reached, but the UE receives the aforementioned first indication information, then the UE will also fall back to the monitoring state of monitoring the first DCI based on the first time domain configuration information. It can be understood that since the first time domain configuration information has not started the first timer, monitoring based on the first timer is a type of monitoring based on the second time domain configuration information. Even without configuring the first timer, the second time domain configuration information can continuously monitor the first DCI without being limited to the activation time window, while the first time domain configuration information is limited to the aforementioned activation time window.

[0184] Furthermore, if the first timer reaches its second duration and the first DCI is still not received, the system falls back to the third DCI monitoring mode, such as monitoring the third DCI based on the third time domain configuration information, where the second duration is longer than the first duration. Alternatively, in the monitoring state of monitoring the first DCI based on the first or second time domain configuration information, if the UE detects the first DCI again and receives the third indication information in the first DCI, the third indication information is used to indicate the fallback to the state of monitoring the third DCI, that is, entering the third DCI monitoring state in deep sleep mode.

[0185] Another rollback mechanism is to roll back to the monitoring state of the third DCI or the first DCI based on the second indication information or the state of the second timer in the second DCI. That is, the above-mentioned rollback scheme based on the timer or indication information of the first DCI is also applicable to the second DCI.

[0186] For example, as shown in Figure 9, which illustrates another fallback mechanism in an embodiment of this application, the UE monitors a first DCI based on first time-domain configuration information. This first time-domain configuration information includes a monitoring period and a monitoring time window or activation time window within each monitoring period. Once the first DCI is detected (i.e., when the first DCI is detected), the first DCI is used to trigger the monitoring of a second DCI, or to indicate the first reception parameters of the second DCI and / or the first downlink data. The UE then needs to break the aforementioned monitoring rules and start a second timer. Before the second timer expires, the UE needs to monitor the second DCI, or it may continue monitoring the second DCI without a second timer until the second timer reaches a third duration or expires and the second DCI or the second indication information included in the second DCI is still not received. Then, the UE falls back to monitoring the first DCI based on the first time-domain configuration information, without needing to continue monitoring the second DCI. Further, if the second timer reaches a fourth duration and the first or second DCI is still not received, the UE falls back to a third DCI monitoring mode, such as monitoring the third DCI based on third time-domain configuration information, where the fourth duration is longer than the third duration. Alternatively, when the UE detects the fourth indication information in the second DCI, the UE falls back to the state of monitoring the third DCI, that is, enters the monitoring state of the third DCI in deep sleep.

[0187] It is understandable that the above-described fallback mechanism is primarily based on the UE as the executing entity. Network devices can also respond accordingly based on the UE's actions. For example, before scheduling the first DCI to the UE, the network device needs to send the first DCI based on the first time-domain configuration information. Once the first DCI is scheduled to the UE, the network device needs to schedule either the first or second DCI based on the second time-domain configuration information. If a timer is used, the network device also needs to maintain the timer. Once the timer expires, the network device will fall back to the state of scheduling the first DCI based on the first time-domain configuration information or scheduling the third DCI based on the third configuration information. Alternatively, after sending an indication message indicating the fallback behavior, the network device will also fall back to the state of scheduling the first DCI based on the first time-domain configuration information or scheduling the third DCI. In short, network devices must operate under the same scheduling and monitoring rules as the UE to maintain interoperability.

[0188] It is understood that in the above embodiments, the UE is used as an example for description, and the UE can be replaced by a terminal device. Furthermore, the methods and / or steps implemented by the network device can also be implemented by components (e.g., chips or circuits) that can be used in the network device; the methods and / or steps implemented by the UE can also be implemented by components (e.g., chips or circuits) that can be used in the UE. When implemented by the components described above, receiving / transmitting can be understood as input / output, that is, the component communicates with the network device and other components of the UE. Additionally, the methods implemented by the network device can also be divided into executions by multiple execution entities, for example, by at least one of CU, DU, RU, etc.; the methods implemented by the UE can also be divided into executions by multiple execution entities, for example, by multiple components for the UE. These execution entities can be logically and / or physically separated.

[0189] The above primarily describes the solutions provided in this application from the perspective of interaction between the UE and network devices. Accordingly, this application also provides a communication device for implementing the various methods described above. This communication device can be a network device in the above method embodiments, or a component usable in a network device; alternatively, the communication device can be a UE in the above method embodiments, or a component usable in a UE. It is understood that, in order to achieve the above functions, the communication device includes hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to the execution of each function. Those skilled in the art should readily recognize that, based on the units and algorithm steps of the various examples described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein, this application can be implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed by hardware or by computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

[0190] This application embodiment can divide the communication device into functional modules according to the above method embodiment. For example, each function can be divided into its own functional modules, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing unit. The integrated modules can be implemented in hardware or as software functional modules. It should be noted that the module division in this application embodiment is illustrative and only represents one logical functional division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods.

[0191] Based on the same concept as the above communication method, this application also provides the following communication device:

[0192] Figure 10 shows a schematic diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of this application. The communication device 1000 includes a transceiver unit 1001 and a processing unit 1002. Wherein:

[0193] For example, the transceiver unit 1001 described above may include a receiving unit and a transmitting unit. The receiving unit and the transmitting unit may be an integral whole or independent units.

[0194] When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the functions of the UE, the transceiver unit 1001 is used to execute one or more operations of the UE in steps S401 and S402 of the embodiment shown in FIG4.

[0195] When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the functions of a network device, the transceiver unit 1001 is used to execute one or more operations of the network device in steps S401 and S402 of the embodiment shown in FIG4.

[0196] For details on the implementation of the transceiver unit 1001 and the processing unit 1002, please refer to the relevant description in the embodiment shown in Figure 4.

[0197] The module division in this application is illustrative and represents only one logical functional division. In actual implementation, other division methods are possible. Furthermore, the functional modules in the various examples of this application can be integrated into a single processor, exist as separate physical entities, or be integrated into a single module. The integrated modules described above can be implemented in hardware or as software functional modules.

[0198] Figure 11 shows a schematic diagram of another communication device provided in an embodiment of this application. The communication device 1100 includes a processor 1101. Optionally, the communication device 1100 may further include an interface circuit 1102 (shown as a dashed line in the figure), and the processor 1101 and the interface circuit 1102 are coupled to each other. It is understood that the interface circuit 1102 can be a transceiver or an input / output interface. Optionally, the communication device 1100 may further include a memory 1103 (shown as a dashed line in the figure), which is used to store instructions executed by the processor 1101, or to store input data required by the processor 1101 to execute instructions, or to store data generated after the processor 1101 executes instructions.

[0199] When the communication device 1100 is used to implement the functions of the UE, the interface circuit 1102 is used to execute one or more operations of the UE in steps S401 and S402 of the embodiment shown in FIG4.

[0200] When the communication device 1100 is used to implement the functions of a network device, the interface circuit 1102 is used to execute one or more operations of the network device in steps S401 and S402 of the embodiment shown in FIG4.

[0201] For details on the implementation of the processor 1101, interface circuit 1102, and memory 1103, please refer to the relevant descriptions in the embodiment shown in Figure 4.

[0202] When the aforementioned communication device is a chip applied to a network device, the chip implements the functions of the network device in the above method embodiments. The chip receives information from other modules (such as radio frequency modules or antennas) in the network device, which is sent by the UE to the network device; or, the chip sends information to other modules (such as radio frequency modules or antennas) in the network device, which is sent by the network device to the UE.

[0203] When the aforementioned communication device is a chip applied to the UE, the chip implements the functions of the UE in the above method embodiments. The chip receives information from other modules (such as radio frequency modules or antennas) in the UE, which is sent to the UE by the network device; or, the chip sends information to other modules (such as radio frequency modules or antennas) in the UE, which is sent to the network device by the UE.

[0204] Furthermore, it should be noted that the aforementioned transceiver unit and / or processing unit can be implemented through virtual modules. For example, the processing unit can be implemented through software functional units or virtual devices, and the transceiver unit can be implemented through software functions or virtual devices. Alternatively, the processing unit or transceiver unit can also be implemented through physical devices. For example, if the device is implemented using a chip / chip circuit, the transceiver unit can be an input / output circuit and / or a communication interface, performing input operations (corresponding to the aforementioned receiving operation) and output operations (corresponding to the aforementioned sending operation); the processing unit is an integrated processor, microprocessor, or integrated circuit.

[0205] It is understood that the processor in the embodiments of this application can be a central processing unit (CPU), or other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components, or any combination thereof. A general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor or any conventional processor.

[0206] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program or instructions that, when executed, implement the methods described in the above embodiments.

[0207] This application also provides a computer program product containing instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the methods described in the above embodiments.

[0208] This application also provides a communication system, including the communication device described above.

[0209] This application also provides a circuit coupled to a memory, which is used to perform the methods shown in the above embodiments. This circuit may include a chip circuit.

[0210] This application also provides a chip device, including a processor, for calling computer programs or computer instructions stored in the memory, so that the processor executes the method provided in any of the above method embodiments.

[0211] In one possible implementation, the input of the chip device corresponds to the receiving operation in any of the above method embodiments, and the output of the chip device corresponds to the sending operation in any of the above method embodiments.

[0212] Optionally, the processor is coupled to the memory via an interface.

[0213] Optionally, the chip device may also include a memory that stores computer programs or computer instructions.

[0214] When the aforementioned communication device is a module applied to a network device, the network device module implements the functions of the network device in the above method embodiments. The network device module receives information from other modules (such as radio frequency modules or antennas) within the network device; this information is sent by the UE to the network device. Alternatively, the network device module sends information to other modules (such as radio frequency modules or antennas) within the network device; this information is sent by the network device to the UE. Here, the network device module can be the baseband chip of the network device, or a CU, DU, or other module, or a device under an O-RAN architecture, such as an open CU, open DU, etc.

[0215] It should be noted that one or more of the above units can be implemented by software, hardware, or a combination of both. When any of the above units is implemented by software, the software exists as computer program instructions and is stored in memory. The processor can be used to execute the program instructions and implement the above method flow.

[0216] In this application, the processor can be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, 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, capable of implementing or executing the methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in this application. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor or any conventional processor. The steps of the methods disclosed in this application can be directly manifested as being executed by a hardware processor, or executed by a combination of hardware and software modules within the processor.

[0217] When the above units or components are implemented in hardware, the hardware can be any one or any combination of a CPU, microprocessor, digital signal processing (DSP) chip, microcontroller unit (MCU), artificial intelligence processor, ASIC, SoC, FPGA, programmable logic device (PLD), application-specific digital circuit, hardware accelerator, or non-integrated discrete device, which can run the necessary software or perform the above method flow independently of software.

[0218] Optionally, embodiments of this application also provide a chip system, including: at least one processor and an interface, wherein the at least one processor is coupled to a memory via the interface, and when the at least one processor executes a computer program or instructions in the memory, the chip system performs the method in any of the above method embodiments. Optionally, the chip system may be composed of chips, or may include chips and other discrete devices; embodiments of this application do not specifically limit this.

[0219] The memory in this application can also be a circuit or any other device capable of performing storage functions, used to store program instructions and / or data. Memory is any other medium capable of carrying or storing desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures, and accessible by a computer, but is not limited thereto. For example, memory can be non-volatile memory, such as digital versatile disc (DVD), hard disk drive (HDD), or solid-state drive (SSD), or it can be volatile memory, such as random-access memory (RAM).

[0220] It is understood that in this application, "instruction" can include direct instruction, indirect instruction, explicit instruction, and implicit instruction. When describing a certain instruction information to indicate A, it can be understood that the instruction information carries A, directly indicates A, or indirectly indicates A. In this application, the information indicated by the instruction information is called the information to be instructed. In specific implementation, there are many ways to indicate the information to be instructed, such as, but not limited to, directly indicating the information to be instructed, such as the information to be instructed itself or its index, or indirectly indicating the information to be instructed by indicating other information, wherein there is an association between the other information and the information to be instructed. It is also possible to indicate only a part of the information to be instructed, while the other parts of the information to be instructed are known or agreed upon in advance. For example, the instruction of specific information can also be achieved by using the arrangement order of various information in advance (e.g., as specified by a protocol), thereby reducing the instruction overhead to a certain extent. The information to be instructed can be sent as a whole or divided into multiple sub-information to be sent separately, and the sending period and / or sending time of these sub-information can be the same or different. This application does not limit the specific sending method. The sending period and / or timing of these sub-information messages can be predefined, for example, according to a protocol, or configured by the transmitting device by sending configuration information to the receiving device.

[0221] The term "at least one" in this application refers to one or more items. "More than one" means two or more items. "And / or" describes the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A existing alone, A and B existing simultaneously, and B existing alone, where A and B can be single or multiple. The character " / " generally indicates that the preceding and following related objects are in an "or" relationship. Furthermore, it should be understood that although the terms "first," "second," etc., may be used to describe objects in this application, these objects should not be limited to these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish the objects from each other. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions are used to indicate any combination of the listed items; for example, at least one of A, B, and / or C can represent: A existing alone, B existing alone, C existing alone, A and B existing simultaneously, B and C existing simultaneously, A and C existing simultaneously, and A, B, and C existing simultaneously, where A, B, and C can be single or multiple.

[0222] The terms "comprising" and "having," and any variations thereof, mentioned above are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus that includes a series of steps or units is not limited to the listed steps or units, but may optionally include other steps or units not listed, or optionally include other steps or units inherent to such process, method, product, or apparatus. It should be noted that in this application, words such as "exemplary" or "for example" are used to indicate exemplification, illustration, or description. Any method or design described as "exemplary" or "for example" in this application should not be construed as preferred or advantageous over other methods or designs. Specifically, the use of words such as "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present the relevant concepts in a concrete manner.

[0223] In a communication system, a network element can send signals to or receive signals from another network element. These signals can include information, signaling, or data. The term "network element" can also be replaced by an entity, network entity, device, UE, communication module, node, communication node, etc. This application uses a network element as an example for description. For instance, a communication system may include at least one UE and at least one network device. The network device can send downlink signals to the UE, and / or the UE can send uplink signals to the network device. Furthermore, it is understood that if the communication system includes multiple UEs, these UEs can also exchange signals; that is, both the sending and receiving network elements can be UEs.

[0224] In the above embodiments, implementation can be achieved, in whole or in part, through software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software programs, implementation can be, in whole or in part, in the form of a computer program product. This computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of this application are generated. 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. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from one website, computer, server, or data center to another via wired (e.g., coaxial cable, fiber optic, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) means.

[0225] Although this application has been described herein in conjunction with various embodiments, those skilled in the art, by reviewing the accompanying drawings, disclosure, and appended claims, will understand and implement other variations of the disclosed embodiments in carrying out the claimed application. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other components or steps, and "a" or "an" does not exclude multiple instances. A single processor or other unit can implement several functions listed in the claims. While different dependent claims may recite certain measures, this does not mean that these measures cannot be combined to produce good results.

[0226] It is understood that the various numerical designations used in the embodiments of this application are merely for descriptive convenience and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of this application. The order of the process numbers described above does not imply the order of execution; the execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic.

[0227] In the above embodiments, the descriptions of each embodiment have different focuses. For parts not described in detail in a certain embodiment, please refer to the relevant descriptions in other embodiments.

[0228] The components in the device described in this application embodiment can be combined, divided, or removed according to actual needs. Those skilled in the art can combine or integrate the different embodiments and features described in this specification.

[0229] In this application, examples may reference each other without logical contradiction. For example, methods and / or terms between method embodiments may reference each other, functions and / or terms between device embodiments may reference each other, and functions and / or terms between device examples and method examples may reference each other.

Claims

1. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method comprises: receiving a first downlink control information (DCI), the first DCI being used to indicate a first receiving parameter of a first downlink information; receiving the first downlink information based on the first receiving parameter.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The first DCI adopts a switching type modulation signal.

3. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein, The receiving of the first DCI comprises: receiving the first DCI by using a sequence receiver; and / or receiving the first DCI by using a first number of antennas, and receiving the first downlink information by using a second number of antennas, the first number of antennas being less than the second number of antennas; and / or receiving the first DCI by using a first number of spatial layers, and receiving the first downlink information by using a second number of spatial layers, the first number of spatial layers being less than the second number of spatial layers.

4. The method of any one of claims 1-3, wherein, The first DCI is carried on a first bandwidth, and the first downlink information is carried on a second bandwidth, the first bandwidth being less than the second bandwidth; and / or The first DCI carries a first amount of information, and the first downlink information carries a second amount of information, the first amount of information being less than the second amount of information.

5. The method of any one of claims 1-4, wherein, The first downlink information comprises a second DCI, and the first receiving parameter comprises at least one of the following information: indication information of whether to start monitoring of the second DCI; frequency resource information corresponding to the second DCI; spatial domain configuration information corresponding to the second DCI; control resource set corresponding to the second DCI; search space corresponding to the second DCI; control channel element (CCE) level corresponding to the second DCI; candidate position of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) corresponding to the second DCI; format of the second DCI; and time domain resource information corresponding to the second DCI.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein, The first downlink information further comprises first downlink data, and the second DCI is used to indicate at least one of the following information: frequency resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; spatial domain configuration information corresponding to the first downlink data; time domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; and code domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data.

7. The method of any one of claims 1-6, wherein, The first downlink information comprises first downlink data, and the first receiving parameter comprises at least one of the following information: frequency resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; spatial domain configuration information corresponding to the first downlink data; time domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; and code domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data.

8. The method of any one of claims 5-7, wherein, The receiver receiving the first DCI is different from the receiver receiving the second DCI.

9. The method of any one of claims 1-8, wherein, The first receiving parameter is a currently effective receiving parameter in a plurality of first candidate receiving parameters, and the plurality of first candidate receiving parameters are associated with a first frequency unit.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein, The first frequency unit comprises a plurality of sub-frequency units, and the plurality of first candidate receiving parameters correspond to the plurality of sub-frequency units respectively, wherein the first receiving parameter comprises a configuration parameter of a first sub-frequency unit in the plurality of sub-frequency units.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein, The plurality of sub-frequency units further comprise a second sub-frequency unit, and a time delay from the first sub-frequency unit to the second sub-frequency unit is less than a time delay from the first frequency unit to a second frequency unit.

12. The method of any one of claims 1-11, wherein, The method further comprises: receiving a third DCI, the third DCI being used to indicate monitoring the first DCI and / or the second DCI.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein, a first time between a time of monitoring the third DCI to a time of starting monitoring the first DCI is greater than a second time between a time of monitoring the first DCI to a time of starting monitoring the second DCI; and / or, a third time between the time of monitoring the third DCI to a time of starting monitoring the second DCI is greater than the second time between the time of monitoring the first DCI to the time of starting monitoring the second DCI.

14. The method of any one of claims 1-13, wherein, The method further comprises: monitoring the first DCI based on first time domain configuration information; in a case of monitoring the first DCI, monitoring the first DCI based on second time domain configuration information.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein, After monitoring the first DCI based on the second time domain configuration information, the method further comprises: monitoring the first DCI again, the first DCI further comprising first indication information or third indication information, the first indication information being used to indicate monitoring the first DCI based on the first time domain configuration information after monitoring the first DCI again, the third indication information being used to indicate falling back to a state of monitoring the third DCI.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein, The method further comprises: starting a first timer when monitoring the first DCI; monitoring the first DCI based on the first time domain configuration information when the first timer reaches a first time length and the first DCI is still not received.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein, The method further comprises: monitoring the third DCI based on third time domain configuration information when the first timer reaches a second time length and the first DCI is still not received, wherein the second time length is greater than the first time length.

18. The method of any one of claims 5-17, wherein, The method further comprises: starting a second timer when monitoring the first DCI; monitoring the second DCI before a time length of the second timer reaches a third time length.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein, monitoring the first DCI based on the first time domain configuration information when the time length of the second timer reaches the third time length and the second DCI is still not received.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein, The second DCI comprises second indication information, the second indication information being used to indicate monitoring the first DCI based on the first time domain configuration information and no longer monitoring the second DCI.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein, The method further comprises: monitoring the third DCI based on third time domain configuration information when the second timer reaches a fourth time length and the first DCI or the second DCI is still not received, wherein the fourth time length is greater than the third time length.

22. The method of claim 18, wherein, The second DCI further comprises fourth indication information, the fourth indication information being used to indicate monitoring the third DCI based on third time domain configuration information.

23. A method of communication, comprising: The method comprises: sending a first DCI, the first DCI being used to indicate first receiving parameters of first downlink information; sending the first downlink information.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein, The first DCI adopts a switching type modulation signal.

25. The method of claim 23 or 24, wherein, The first DCI is carried on a first bandwidth, and the first downlink information is carried on a second bandwidth, the first bandwidth being less than the second bandwidth; and / or The first DCI carries a first amount of information, and the first downlink information carries a second amount of information, the first amount of information being less than the second amount of information.

26. The method of any one of claims 23-25, wherein, The first downlink information includes a second DCI, and the first receiving parameter includes at least one of the following information: indication information of whether to start monitoring the second DCI; frequency resource information corresponding to the second DCI; spatial domain configuration information corresponding to the second DCI; control resource set corresponding to the second DCI; search space corresponding to the second DCI; control channel element (CCE) level corresponding to the second DCI; candidate position of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) corresponding to the second DCI; format of the second DCI; and time domain resource information corresponding to the second DCI.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein, The first downlink information further includes first downlink data, and the second DCI is used to indicate at least one of the following information: frequency resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; spatial domain configuration information corresponding to the first downlink data; time domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; and code domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data.

28. The method of any one of claims 23-27, wherein, The first downlink information includes first downlink data, and the first receiving parameter includes at least one of the following information: frequency resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; spatial domain configuration information corresponding to the first downlink data; time domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data; and code domain resource information corresponding to the first downlink data.

29. The method of any one of claims 23-28, wherein, The first receiving parameter is a currently effective receiving parameter in a plurality of first candidate receiving parameters, and the plurality of first candidate receiving parameters are associated with a first frequency unit.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein, The first frequency unit includes a plurality of sub-frequency units, and the plurality of first candidate receiving parameters correspond to the plurality of sub-frequency units respectively, wherein the first receiving parameter includes configuration parameters of a first sub-frequency unit in the plurality of sub-frequency units.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein, The plurality of sub-frequency units further include a second sub-frequency unit, and a time delay from switching from the first sub-frequency unit to the second sub-frequency unit is less than a time delay from switching from the first frequency unit to a second frequency unit.

32. The method of any one of claims 23-31, wherein, The method further includes: sending a third DCI, the third DCI being used to indicate monitoring the first DCI and / or the second DCI.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein, A first time between a time of sending the third DCI and a time of earliest sending the first DCI is greater than a second time between a time of sending the first DCI and a time of earliest sending the second DCI; and / or, A third time between the time of sending the third DCI and a time of earliest sending the second DCI is greater than the second time between the time of sending the first DCI and the time of earliest sending the second DCI.

34. The method of any one of claims 23-33, wherein, The method further includes: sending the first DCI based on first time domain configuration information; after sending the first DCI, sending the first DCI based on second time domain configuration information.

35. The method of claim 34, wherein, After sending the first DCI based on the first time domain configuration information, the method further includes: The first DCI is sent again, and the first DCI further includes first indication information or third indication information, the first indication information being used to indicate that the first DCI is monitored based on the first time domain configuration information after the first DCI is monitored again, and the third indication information being used to indicate that the state of monitoring the third DCI is returned to.

36. The method of claim 34, wherein, The method further includes: starting a first timer when the first DCI is sent; the first timer reaches a first time length and the first DCI is still not sent, and the first DCI is sent based on the first time domain configuration information.

37. The method of claim 36, wherein, The method further includes: the first timer reaches a second time length and the first DCI is still not sent, and the third DCI is sent based on third time domain configuration information, wherein the second time length is greater than the first time length.

38. The method of any one of claims 26-37, wherein, The method further includes: starting a second timer when the second DCI is sent; the second timer reaches a third time length before the second DCI is sent.

39. The method of claim 38, wherein, The second timer reaches the third time length and the second DCI is still not sent, and the first DCI is sent based on the first time domain configuration information.

40. The method of claim 38, wherein, The second DCI includes second indication information, and the second indication information is used to indicate that the first DCI is monitored based on the first time domain configuration information, and the second DCI is no longer monitored.

41. The method of claim 39, wherein, The method further includes: the second timer reaches a fourth time length and the first DCI or the second DCI is still not sent, and the third DCI is sent based on third time domain configuration information, wherein the fourth time length is greater than the third time length.

42. The method of claim 38, wherein, The second DCI further includes fourth indication information, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the third DCI is monitored based on third time domain configuration information.

43. A communications device, characterized by The unit for implementing the method as claimed in any one of claims 1-22, or the unit for implementing the method as claimed in any one of claims 23-42.

44. A communications device, characterized by The processor is configured to enable the communication device to implement the method as claimed in any one of claims 1-22, or implement the method as claimed in any one of claims 23-42 when the computer program is executed.

45. A computer-readable storage medium, comprising: The storage medium stores a computer program or instructions, and when the computer program or instructions are executed, the method as claimed in any one of claims 1-22 is implemented, or the method as claimed in any one of claims 23-42 is implemented.

46. A computer program product, characterised in that, The computer program product includes program instructions involved, and when the program instructions involved are executed, the method as claimed in any one of claims 1-22 is implemented, or the method as claimed in any one of claims 23-42 is implemented.

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