Communication method and apparatus, device, chip and storage medium

Abstract

Provided in the embodiments of the present application is a communication method, which is applied to a terminal device. The method comprises: receiving first information from a source network device, the first information being used for determining a target central unit (CU) of the terminal device to perform a handover, and the target CU being included in one or more CUs associated with a target distributed unit (DU). In this way, on the basis of the first information from the source network device, the terminal device may determine from among the one or more CUs associated with the target DU the target CU to be handed over to.

Description

A communication method, apparatus, device, chip and storage medium TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] Embodiments of the present application relate to the technical field of communication, in particular to a communication method, apparatus, device, chip and storage medium. BACKGROUND

[0002] In the process of performing handover, a target distributed unit (DU) can be connected to multiple central units (CUs). In this scenario, how to determine which CU the terminal device switches to is a problem that has not been solved.

[0003] SUMMARY

[0004] Embodiments of the present application provide a communication method, apparatus, device, chip and storage medium.

[0005] In a first aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a communication method applied to a terminal device, the method comprising: receiving first information from a source network device, the first information being used to determine a target central unit (CU) for the terminal device to perform handover, the target CU being included in one or more CUs associated with a target distributed unit (DU).

[0006] In a second aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a communication method applied to a source network device, the method comprising: sending first information to a terminal device, the first information being used to determine a target central unit (CU) for the terminal device to perform handover, the target CU being included in one or more CUs associated with a target distributed unit (DU).

[0007] In a third aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a communication method applied to a target distributed unit (DU), the method comprising: receiving second information from a terminal device, the second information being used to indicate a target central unit (CU) for the terminal device to perform handover, the target CU being included in one or more CUs associated with the target DU.

[0008] In a fourth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a communication method applied to a target distributed unit (DU), the method comprising: receiving fifth information from a terminal device, the fifth information being associated with a target central unit (CU) for the terminal device to perform handover; sending the fifth information to one or more CUs, feedback information of the fifth information being used to determine or indicate the target CU, the target CU being included in the one or more CUs, the one or more CUs being associated with the target DU.

[0009] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method applied to a first centralized unit (CU), the method comprising: receiving fifth information from a target distributed unit (DU), the fifth information being associated with a target CU to which a terminal device performs handover, and the target DU being associated with the first CU; and sending sixth information to the target DU, the sixth information being feedback information of the fifth information, and the sixth information being used to determine or indicate whether the first CU is the target CU.

[0010] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method applied to a terminal device, the method comprising: receiving seventh information from a network device, the seventh information being used to determine a first measurement sequence, and the first measurement sequence being a sequence in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to multiple cells.

[0011] In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method applied to a network device, the method comprising: sending seventh information to a terminal device, the seventh information being used to determine a first measurement sequence, and the first measurement sequence being a sequence in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to multiple cells.

[0012] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, the device comprising: a first communication unit configured to receive first information from a source network device, the first information being used to determine a target centralized unit (CU) to which the device performs handover, and the target CU being included in one or more CUs associated with a target distributed unit (DU).

[0013] In a ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, the device comprising: a second communication unit configured to send first information to a terminal device, the first information being used to determine a target centralized unit (CU) to which the terminal device performs handover, and the target CU being included in one or more CUs associated with a target distributed unit (DU).

[0014] In a tenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, the device comprising: a third communication unit configured to receive second information from a terminal device, the second information being used to indicate a target centralized unit (CU) to which the terminal device performs handover, and the target CU being included in one or more CUs associated with the device.

[0015] In an eleventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, the device comprising: a fourth communication unit configured to receive fifth information from a terminal device, the fifth information being associated with a target centralized unit (CU) to which the terminal device performs handover; and the fourth communication unit being further configured to send the fifth information to one or more CUs, feedback information of the fifth information being used to determine or indicate the target CU, and the target CU being included in the one or more CUs, and the one or more CUs being associated with the device.

[0016] In a twelfth aspect, embodiments of this application provide a communication device, the device comprising: a fifth communication unit configured to receive fifth information from a target distributed unit (DU), the fifth information being associated with a target CU performing a handover on a terminal device, the target DU being associated with the device; the fifth communication unit further configured to send sixth information to the target DU, the sixth information being feedback information of the fifth information, the sixth information being used to determine or indicate whether the device is the target CU.

[0017] In a thirteenth aspect, embodiments of this application provide a communication device, the device comprising: a sixth communication unit configured to receive seventh information from a network device, the seventh information being used to determine a first measurement order, the first measurement order being the order in which the device measures measurement objects corresponding to multiple cells.

[0018] In a fourteenth aspect, embodiments of this application provide a communication device, the device comprising: a seventh communication unit configured to send seventh information to a terminal device, the seventh information being used to determine a first measurement order, the first measurement order being the order in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to multiple cells.

[0019] In a fifteenth aspect, embodiments of this application provide a communication device, comprising: a memory for storing a computer program; a processor connected to the memory for calling and running the computer program from the memory to implement the method described in any one of the first to seventh aspects; and a transceiver for receiving and sending information during the exchange of information with other devices.

[0020] In a sixteenth aspect, embodiments of this application provide a chip. The chip includes: a processor for calling and running a computer program from a memory, causing a device on which the chip is installed to perform the method described in any one of the first to seventh aspects; and a transceiver for receiving and sending information during the exchange of information with the device or the chip.

[0021] In a seventeenth aspect, embodiments of this application provide a computer-readable storage medium for storing a computer program that causes a computer to perform the method described in any one of the first to seventh aspects.

[0022] In this embodiment of the application, the terminal device may receive first information from the source network device. The first information can be used to determine the target CU to which the terminal device will perform a handover. The target CU is included in one or more CUs associated with the target DU. That is, the terminal device may determine the target CU to be handed over from one or more CUs associated with the target DU based on the first information from the source network device. Attached Figure Description

[0023] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the application and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this application, illustrate embodiments of the application and together with the description serve to explain the application. In the drawings:

[0024] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario of an embodiment of the present application;

[0025] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an initial registration process of network sharing of multi-cell ID broadcast provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0026] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an RRC connection reestablishment process of network sharing of multi-cell ID broadcast provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0027] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a scenario in which a DU is connected to multiple CUs provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0028] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a flow of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0029] FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a flow of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0030] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of a possible implementation flow of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0031] FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of a possible implementation flow of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0032] FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a possible implementation flow of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0033] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of a possible implementation flow of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0034] FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication apparatus provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0035] FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication apparatus provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0036] FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication apparatus provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0037] FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication apparatus provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0038] FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication apparatus provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0039] FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication apparatus provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0040] FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0041] FIG. 18 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0042] FIG. 19 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a chip according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0043] FIG. 20 is a schematic diagram of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0044] FIG. 21 is a schematic diagram of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0045] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all the embodiments of the present application. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative work fall within the scope of protection of the present application.

[0046] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0047] As shown in FIG. 1, a communication system 100 can include a terminal device 110 and a network device 120. The network device 120 can communicate with the terminal device 110 through an air interface. The terminal device 110 and the network device 120 support multi-service transmission.

[0048] It should be understood that the embodiments of the present application are exemplarily described by taking the communication system 100 as an example, but the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto. That is, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application can be applied to various communication systems, such as a Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, an LTE Time Division Duplex (TDD) system, a Universal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS) system, an Internet of Things (IoT) system, a Narrow Band Internet of Things (NB-IoT) system, an enhanced Machine-Type Communications (eMTC) system, a 5G communication system (also referred to as a New Radio (NR) communication system), a 6G communication system, or a future communication system, etc.

[0049] In the communication system 100 shown in FIG. 1, the network device 120 can be an access network device that communicates with the terminal device 110. The access network device can provide communication coverage for a specific geographic area and can communicate with the terminal device 110 (e.g., UE) located in the coverage area.

[0050] The network device 120 can be an evolved node B (eNB or eNodeB) in a long term evolution (LTE) system, or a next generation radio access network (NG RAN) device, or a base station (gNB) in an NR system, or a base station in a 6G system, or a radio controller in a cloud radio access network (CRAN), or a relay station, an access point, a vehicle-mounted device, a wearable device, a hub, a switch, a bridge, a router, or a network device in a future evolved public land mobile network (PLMN) and the like.

[0051] The terminal device 110 can be any terminal device, including but not limited to a terminal device that uses wired or wireless connection with the network device 120 or other terminal devices.

[0052] For example, the terminal device 110 can refer to an access terminal, a user equipment (UE), a subscriber unit, a subscriber station, a mobile station, a mobile, a remote station, a remote terminal, a mobile device, a user terminal, a terminal, a wireless communication device, a user agent, or a user device. The access terminal can be a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, an IoT device, a satellite handset, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a handheld device with wireless communication function, a computing device, or other processing device connected to a wireless modem, a vehicle-mounted device, a wearable device, a terminal device in a 5G network, a terminal device in a 6G network, or a terminal device in a future evolved network, and the like.

[0053] The terminal device 110 can be used for device-to-device (D2D) communication.

[0054] The communication system 100 can further include a core network device 130 in communication with the network device 120, which can be a 5G core network (5GC) device, e.g., an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), e.g., an Authentication Server Function (AUSF), e.g., a User Plane Function (UPF), e.g., a Session Management Function (SMF). In some embodiments, the core network device 130 can also be an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) device of an LTE network, e.g., a Session Management Function + Core Packet Gateway (SMF+PGW-C) device. It should be understood that the SMF+PGW-C can implement the functions of both the SMF and the PGW-C. During the evolution of the network, the above-mentioned core network devices can also be referred to by other names, or new network entities can be formed by dividing the functions of the core network, which are not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0055] The various functional units in the communication system 100 can also be connected and communicate through a next generation (NG) interface.

[0056] For example, the terminal device establishes an air interface connection with the network device through the NR interface, which is used to transmit user plane data and control plane signaling; the terminal device can establish a control plane signaling connection with the AMF through the NG interface 1 (N1 for short); the network device, e.g., a next generation wireless access base station (gNB), can establish a user plane data connection with the UPF through the NG interface 3 (N3 for short); the network device can establish a control plane signaling connection with the AMF through the NG interface 2 (N2 for short); the UPF can establish a control plane signaling connection with the SMF through the NG interface 4 (N4 for short); the UPF can interact with the data network to transmit user plane data through the NG interface 6 (N6 for short); the AMF can establish a control plane signaling connection with the SMF through the NG interface 11 (N11 for short); the SMF can establish a control plane signaling connection with the PCF through the NG interface 7 (N7 for short).

[0057] Fig. 1 exemplarily shows one network device, one core network device and two terminal devices. Optionally, the communication system 100 can include multiple network devices and each network device can include other number of terminal devices within its coverage, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0058] It should be noted that Fig. 1 is only schematically shown as an example of the system to which the present application is applicable. Of course, the method shown in the embodiments of the present application can also be applicable to other systems. In addition, the terms "system" and "network" are often used interchangeably in the present application. The term "and / or" in the present application is only used to describe the association relationship of the associated objects. It means that there can be three relationships, for example, A and / or B can represent the following three cases: A exists alone, A and B exist together, and B exists alone. In addition, the character " / " in the present application generally represents an "or" relationship between the front and rear associated objects. It should also be understood that the "indication" mentioned in the embodiments of the present application can be direct indication or indirect indication, or can represent an associated relationship. For example, A indicates B can mean that B can be obtained by A directly; or A indirectly indicates B, for example, A indicates C, and B can be obtained by C; or A and B have an associated relationship. It should also be understood that the "correspondence" mentioned in the embodiments of the present application can represent a direct correspondence or an indirect correspondence between the two, or can represent an associated relationship between the two, or can represent an indication and being indicated, configuration and being configured, and the like. It should also be understood that the "predefined" or "predefined rule" mentioned in the embodiments of the present application can be realized by pre-storing corresponding codes, tables or other means for indicating related information in devices (for example, including terminal devices and network devices). The specific implementation manner is not limited in the present application. For example, the predefined can mean defined in the protocol. It should also be understood that the "protocol" in the embodiments of the present application can mean a standard protocol in the communication field, for example, can include the LTE protocol, the NR protocol and the related protocol applied to the future communication system, which is not limited in the present application.

[0059] In order to facilitate the understanding of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the related technologies of the embodiments of the present application are described as follows. The following related technologies can be combined with the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application in any way, which all belong to the protection scope of the embodiments of the present application.

[0060] 1. Radio Resource Management (RRM) measurement

[0061] For the UE in the connected state, the measurement basic configuration of the 5G system inherits the framework of the LTE system, including the following parts.

[0062] 1) Measurement Object (MO): identifies the frequency point information where the UE performs measurement. In terms of measurement reference signal, NR system supports both Synchronization Signal Block (SSB) and Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS) measurement. For SSB measurement, the frequency point information is the SSB frequency point associated with the measurement object. Since 5G system supports multiple different subcarrier spacing transmission, the measurement related SSB subcarrier spacing needs to be indicated in the measurement object. For SSB reference signal measurement configuration, the time window information of SSB measurement, i.e. SSB Measurement Timing Configuration (SMTC) information, also needs to be indicated in the measurement object. The network can further indicate which SSBs the UE measures within the SMTC, etc. For CSI-RS reference signal measurement configuration, the CSI-RS resource configuration is included in the measurement object. In order to enable the UE to derive cell measurement results from beam measurement results, the measurement object also configures the beam measurement result screening threshold value based on SSB and CSI-RS and the maximum number of beams allowed for linear average calculation. For L3 filtering of beam measurement results and cell measurement results, the measurement object also indicates the specific filtering coefficients according to different measurement reference signals.

[0063] 2) Reporting configuration: mainly includes reporting criteria, reference signal type and reporting form configuration information. NR supports periodic reporting, event triggered reporting, cell global identification (CGI) reporting for automatic neighbor relation (ANR) purposes and system frame number and frame timing difference (SFTD) reporting for measurement time difference. For periodic reporting and event triggered reporting, the reference signal type (SSB or CSI-RS), measurement reporting quantity (any combination of reference signal receiving power (RSRP), reference signal receiving quality (RSRQ) and signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR)), whether to report beam measurement results and the maximum number of reportable beams are specified in the reporting configuration. For event triggered reporting, the reporting configuration specifies a measurement trigger quantity for each event, selected from RSRP, RSRQ and SINR. The 5G system currently inherits the 6 intra-RAT measurement events (events A1 to A6) and 2 inter-RAT measurement events (events B1 and B2) of the LTE system.

[0064] 3) Measurement identity: the NR system uses measurement identity to associate measurement objects and reporting configurations. This association is flexible and can achieve any combination of measurement objects and reporting configurations, i.e. one measurement object can be associated with multiple reporting configurations and one reporting configuration can be associated with multiple measurement objects. The measurement identity is carried in the measurement report for the network side as a reference.

[0065] 4) Measurement quantity configuration: defines a set of measurement filtering configuration information for measurement event evaluation and reporting and periodic reporting. Each measurement quantity configuration in the measurement configuration contains beam measurement quantity configuration and cell measurement quantity configuration, and defines two sets of filtering configuration information for SSB and CSI-RS, respectively, and each set of filtering configuration information defines 3 sets of filtering coefficients for RSRP, RSRQ and SINR, respectively. The L3 filtering coefficient used in the measurement object is corresponding to one measurement quantity configuration here, which is indicated by the index in the measurement quantity configuration sequence.

[0066] 5) Measurement gap: For NR UE in connected state, measurement gap is configured by network when performing inter-frequency or inter-RAT measurement. During measurement gap, UE stops all measurements of serving and non-serving cells. For intra-frequency measurement, UE also needs measurement gap, e.g. when the current active BWP does not cover the SSB frequency point to be measured. In terms of configuration, NR supports per UE and per FR measurement gap. Taking EN-DC as an example, when per UE measurement gap is configured, the SN informs the MN about the FR1 and FR2 frequency points to be measured, and the MN decides the final measurement gap and configures the measurement gap information to the SN. When measurement gap is configured per frequency range, the SN informs the MN about the FR1 frequency points to be measured, and the MN informs the SN about the FR2 frequency points to be measured. The MN configures the measurement gap for FR1, and the SN configures the measurement gap for FR2. The measurement gap configured by the MN is referred to by the UE when performing measurement, in terms of radio frame number and subframe number of the PCell. Correspondingly, the measurement gap configured by the SN is calculated by the UE based on the radio frame number and subframe number of the PSCell.

[0067] 2. Measurement performance and measurement reporting

[0068] In order to meet the power saving requirement of the UE, the network can include an s-measure (RSRP value) parameter in the measurement configuration. The UE compares the RSRP measurement value of the primary cell (PCell) with the s-measure parameter to control whether to perform measurement of a non-serving cell. Specifically, the network only configures one s-measure parameter, and since NR supports both SSB and CSI-RS measurement, the network indicates whether the threshold value is for SSB-RSRP or CSI-RSRP value, and one s-measure parameter controls the start of measurement of all neighboring cells (including SSB measurement and CSI-RS measurement).

[0069] The measurement reporting process of the NR system is basically the same as that of the LTE system, with the difference that the NR system increases the reporting of SINR measurement results and beam measurement results. When the UE reports the beam measurement results, the beam index is also reported as an identifier.

[0070] 3. Connected state mobility management

[0071] The mobility management of the connected state UE is mainly implemented through the network-controlled handover process, which mainly includes three stages of handover preparation, handover execution and handover completion.

[0072] In the handover preparation phase, the source base station receives the measurement report sent by the UE, makes a handover decision, and initiates a handover request to the target base station. If the target cell accepts the request, the target base station sends a handover response message to the source base station through the inter-base station interface, and the message contains the configuration information of the target cell, i.e., the handover command.

[0073] In the handover execution phase, the source base station sends the handover command to the UE. After receiving the handover command, the UE disconnects the source cell connection, starts to establish downlink synchronization with the target cell, and then initiates a random access process to the target cell using the random access resource configured in the handover command, and reports a handover completion message when the random access is completed. In the process of accessing the target cell, the source base station forwards the data packets from the UPF to the target base station, and sends the state information of the uplink and downlink data packet transmission in the source cell to the target base station before forwarding.

[0074] In the handover completion phase, the target base station sends a path switching request to the AMF, requesting the AMF to switch the data packet transmission path from the UPF to the access network to the target base station side. Once the AMF responds to the request, it indicates that the path switching is successful, and the target base station can instruct the source base station to release the context information of the UE. At this point, the entire UE connection is switched to the target cell.

[0075] Conditional handover (CHO) is different from the traditional immediate handover process triggered by the base station. The core idea of conditional handover is to configure the handover command content of the target cell to the UE in advance when the link quality of the source cell is good, and to configure a handover execution condition associated with the handover command content at the same time. When the configured handover execution condition is met, the UE can spontaneously initiate a handover access to the target cell that meets the condition based on the configuration in the handover command. Since the UE no longer triggers measurement reporting when the handover condition is met, and the UE has already obtained the configuration in the handover command in advance, the problem of incorrect reception of measurement reporting and handover command mentioned above is solved.

[0076] The conditional handover process is divided into three phases.

[0077] In the handover preparation phase, the source base station receives the measurement report sent by the UE (usually, the threshold configured for CHO measurement reporting is earlier than the threshold configured for normal handover process), decides to initiate a conditional handover preparation process, and sends a handover request message to the target base station. Once the target base station accepts the handover request, it responds to a set of target cell configurations and sends them to the source base station. The source base station configures a set of handover execution conditions for the UE when forwarding the target cell configurations.

[0078] In detail, the conditional handover configuration contains two parts, target cell configuration and handover execution condition configuration. The target cell configuration is the handover command from the target base station, which must be forwarded to the UE completely and transparently by the source base station without any modification. This principle is consistent with the traditional handover. Like the traditional handover, the handover command can be configured in full configuration mode or in delta configuration mode. When the delta configuration mode is used, the latest UE configuration of the source cell will be used as the reference configuration for the delta configuration.

[0079] The handover execution condition configuration is mainly used by the UE to evaluate when to trigger the handover. In the discussion of the conditional handover configuration, 3GPP adopts the principle of maximizing the reuse of RRM measurement configuration and decides to introduce the widely used measurement reporting events in the traditional handover into the handover execution condition configuration, mainly for the A3 and A5 measurement events. The difference is that when the A3 or A5 event in the handover execution condition configuration is triggered, the terminal will no longer perform measurement reporting, but will perform the handover access operation. In order to achieve the above distinction, in the design of the radio resource control (RRC) signaling, it is decided in the standard discussion to redefine the A3 and A5 events to a new conditional trigger configuration branch in the reporting configuration. In this way, the handover execution condition can be configured to the UE in the form of measurement identification, without affecting each other with the measurement configuration related to the measurement reporting. In the discussion process, some network equipment manufacturers propose that, in order to maximize the network implementation of the traditional handover decision, the handover execution condition configured to the terminal needs to consider multiple factors, such as multiple reference signals (SSB or CSI-RS), multiple measurement quantities (RSRP, RSRQ and SINR) and multiple measurement events. On the contrary, terminal manufacturers hope that the configuration of the handover execution condition is as simple as possible, which is convenient for UE implementation. Finally, through the discussion and integration of the standard meeting, the following restrictions and flexibility are reached for the configuration of the handover execution condition:

[0080] At most two measurement identifications;

[0081] At most one reference signal (SSB or CSI-RS);

[0082] At most two measurement quantities (two of RSRP, RSRQ and SINR);

[0083] At most two measurement events.

[0084] Since the handover configuration is sent to the UE in advance, and because the direction of terminal movement is somewhat unpredictable, the source base station cannot accurately know which candidate cell the UE will ultimately initiate handover access to. Therefore, in actual network deployment, the source base station will send handover requests to multiple target base stations and forward the handover commands from multiple target base stations to the UE, while configuring the corresponding handover execution conditions. In other words, the terminal typically receives a set of handover configurations related to a set of candidate cells.

[0085] During the handover execution phase, the UE continuously evaluates whether the measurement results of the candidate cell meet the handover execution conditions. Once the conditions are met, the UE immediately terminates the connection with the source cell, establishes synchronization with that cell, initiates a random access procedure, and reports a handover completion message to the target base station upon completion of the random access procedure.

[0086] As mentioned earlier, since the direction of terminal movement is unpredictable, the network typically configures a set of handover-related settings for target cells for the terminal. This provides the terminal with significant flexibility in selecting the target cell for handover. The terminal is only allowed to select a target cell once. If access to the target cell fails, the terminal triggers a connection re-establishment process. Furthermore, NR introduces enhancements to connection re-establishment. Specifically, during connection re-establishment, if the terminal selects a CHO candidate cell, it can directly perform handover access based on the cell's handover-related settings; otherwise, the terminal executes the traditional connection re-establishment process. Additionally, if multiple target cells simultaneously meet the conditions, NR does not specify how the terminal should select one, leaving this to the terminal to implement.

[0087] 4. CU and DU in 5G

[0088] A 5G base station is called a gNB, which consists of two physical entities: the Central Unit (CU) and the Distributed Unit (DU).

[0089] The CU supports upper layers of the protocol stack, such as the Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP) layer, the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer, and the Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer. The DU supports lower layers of the protocol stack, such as the Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, the Media Access Control (MAC) layer, and the physical layer. Additionally, if the CU is connected to a 4G Core network, the SDAP layer will not be present.

[0090] Generally, each gNB can correspond to one CU, but one CU can control multiple DUs.

[0091] In 4G, the base station is divided into indoor baseband processing unit (BBU), remote radio unit (RRU) and antenna modules, each base station has a set of BBU, and is directly connected to the core network through the BBU. In the 5G era, the original RRU and antenna are combined into an active antenna unit (AAU), and the BBU is split into DU and CU, each site has a set of DU, and multiple sites can share the same CU for centralized management. That is, one CU can connect multiple DUs.

[0092] 5, Multi-CU and DU / one DU connecting multiple CUs scenario

[0093] In the CCSA TC5 WG6 research report "User-Centric Simplified Access Network System Framework and Key Technologies", a scenario of DU connecting multiple CUs is mentioned, as follows:

[0094] In the 5G network, the access network is composed of two types of nodes, CU and DU. Therefore, in the mobility management process of the connected state UE, according to the change of the air interface connection network side terminal node, it can be divided into the following four scenarios:

[0095] 1) Intra-cell Inter-beam handover: In this process, the UE MAC does not need to be reset.

[0096] 2) Intra-DU Inter-cell handover: In this process, the UE MAC needs to be reset, and the hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) entity needs to be rebuilt.

[0097] 3) Intra-CU Inter-DU handover: In this process, the UE MAC needs to be reset, the radio link control (RLC) needs to be rebuilt, and the packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) data needs to be recovered.

[0098] 4) Inter-CU handover: In this procedure, UE MAC needs to be reset, RLC / PDCP reestablishment, and Access Stratum (AS) key needs to be changed.

[0099] It can be seen that the higher the node of the access network side changes, the more complex the mobility-related operations the UE needs to perform, the more potential packet loss / retransmission, the longer the corresponding data interruption time, and the more serious the decline in user-perceived experience. Therefore, in 6G, user-centered connected mode mobility design requires to reduce the frequency of access network node changes as much as possible, or replace high-level access network node changes with low-level access network node changes. For example:

[0100] 1) One cell covers a larger area (contains more Transmission and Reception Points (TRPs)): Intra-cell inter-beam handover instead of Inter-Cell handover;

[0101] 2) One DU manages a larger area (contains more cells): to reduce the frequency of inter-DU handover;

[0102] 3) One DU connects multiple CUs: in the case of unchanged CU and DU deployment density, the areas covered by different CUs overlap each other to improve the coverage area of a single CU and reduce the frequency of inter-CU handover. Based on the above traditional architecture (one CU connected to multiple DUs), in order to achieve this goal, the architecture of "one DU connected to multiple CUs" is introduced.

[0103] Currently, there is already a description of the scenario of one DU connected to multiple CUs in the protocol.

[0104] Based on network implementation, it is possible to support one DU connected to multiple CUs, which is transparent to the UE and has no protocol impact. In addition, in the specification of the technology in the protocol, there will be a scenario of one DU connected to multiple CUs in the case of network sharing with multiple cell-ID broadcast. Among them, the DU is shared between two different CUs, but the two CUs need to belong to different operator networks.

[0105] 6、Support network sharing with multiple cell-ID broadcast

[0106] Figure 2 illustrates a signaling flow for initial registration of network sharing with multiple cell-ID broadcast, where each PLMN has separate signaling.

[0107] In Figure 2, the following assumptions are made:

[0108] 1) The UE does not provide a UE identity from which the DU can infer a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) ID.

[0109] 2) Each F1-C interface instance uses separate signaling transport or shares signaling transport with other F1-C interface instances.

[0110] 3) The gNB-DU A / B entity refers to: gNB-DU A of PLMN A, gNB-DU B of PLMN B, and the corresponding radio resources of the two DUs (gNB-DU A and gNB-DU B ) in a shared cell.

[0111] As shown in Figure 2, the signaling flow can include the following steps:

[0112] S201, the UE sends an RRC Setup Request message to the gNB-DU A / B .

[0113] S202, the gNB-DU A / B sends an INITIAL UL RRC MESSAGE TRANSFER message to the gNB-CU A .

[0114] Upon receiving the RRC Setup Request message, the gNB-DU A / B may carry the RRC Setup Request message in the sent INITIAL UL RRC MESSAGE TRANSFER message. If the UE is admitted, the corresponding lower layer configuration for the UE can also be carried in the INITIAL UL RRC MESSAGE TRANSFER message.

[0115] Exemplarily, the INITIAL UL RRC MESSAGE TRANSFER message includes the gNB-DU A / BAllocated Cell Radio Network Temporary Identifier (C-RNTI). If the gNB-DU identifies the UE as a Reduced Capability UE in the random access procedure, the NR RedCap UE indication is provided in the initial UL RRC message transfer message.

[0116] S203, gNB-CU A to the gNB-DU A / B sends a DL RRC message transfer (DL RRC MESSAGE TRANSFER) message.

[0117] gNB-CU A allocates a gNB-CU UE F1AP ID for the UE and generates an RRCSetup message for the UE, which is encapsulated in the DL RRC message transfer message.

[0118] S204, gNB-DU A / B sends the RRCSetup message to the UE.

[0119] S205, UE to gNB-DU A / B sends an RRCSetupComplete message.

[0120] The selected PLMN identity (selectedPLMN-Identity) is provided in this step.

[0121] S206, DU parses the RRCSetupComplete message, i.e. the DU knows that the PLMN (B) is not served by the CU A by the selected PLMN identity. In the initial registration procedure, the RRCSetupComplete message is not yet encrypted, so the DU is able to directly parse the RRCSetupComplete message.

[0122] S207, gNB-DU A to the gNB-CU A sends a UE context release request (UE CONTEXT RELEASE REQUEST) message.

[0123] In this step, the gNB-DU A may send a UE context release request (UE CONTEXT RELEASE REQUEST) message to the gNB-CU ASends the F1AP UE Context Release Request (F1AP UE CONTEXT RELEASE REQUEST) message with Cause set to "PLMN not served by CU".

[0124] S208, gNB-DU B To gNB-CU B Sends the INITIAL UL RRC MESSAGE TRANSFER message.

[0125] In this step, the gNB-DU B To gNB-CU B Sends the F1AP INITIAL UL RRC MESSAGE TRANSFER message including the NR Cell Global Identification (CGI) associated to the PLMN B , the Cell Radio Network Temporary Identifier (C-RNTI) indicated by the gNB-DU A in S202, and the RRC-Container IE and RRC-Container-RRCSetupComplete IE received in the RRC messages respectively in S201 and S205.

[0126] For the case of network sharing, the RRC-Container-RRCSetupComplete IE is included in the INITIAL UL RRC MESSAGE TRANSFER message and shall contain the RRC message received from the UE through the RRC UL-DCCH-Message IE, which has not been sent to the gNB-CU B before.

[0127] S209, gNB-CU A To gNB-DU A / B Sends the UE CONTEXT RELEASE COMMAND message.

[0128] gNB-CU A To gNB-DU sends the UE CONTEXT RELEASE COMMAND message.

[0129] S210, the gNB-DU sends an INITIAL UL RRC MESSAGE TRANSFER message to the gNB-CU A a UE CONTEXT RELEASE COMPLETE message.

[0130] Figure 3 illustrates a signaling flow of RRC connection reestablishment for network sharing with multiple cell-ID broadcast, where each PLMN has separate signaling.

[0131] In Figure 3, the following assumptions are made:

[0132] 1) Each F1-C / Xn-C interface instance uses separate signaling transmission or shares signaling transmission with other interface instances.

[0133] 2) New gNB-DU A / B entity refers to: New gNB-DU A of PLMN A, New gNB-DU B of PLMN B, and the corresponding radio resources of the two DUs (New gNB-DU A and New gNB-DU B ) in the shared cell.

[0134] As shown in Figure 3, the signaling flow can include the following steps:

[0135] S301, the UE sends an RRCReestablishmentRequest message to the New gNB-DU A / B .

[0136] S302, the New gNB-DU A / B sends an INITIAL UL RRC MESSAGE TRANSFER message to the New gNB-CU A .

[0137] S303, the New gNB-CU A sends a RETRIEVE UE CONTEXT REQUEST message to the Old gNB A .

[0138] S304, the Old gNB A sends a RETRIEVE UE CONTEXT FAILURE message to the New gNB-CU A .

[0139] S305, New gNB-CU A to New gNB-DU A / B sends a DL RRC MESSAGE TRANSFER message.

[0140] S302 to S305 describe the New gNB-CU A case the UE context cannot be retrieved.

[0141] In 302, the NR CGI associated with PLMN A is indicated.

[0142] In S305, the New gNB-CU A will prepare for the possibility to resume to normal RRC connection establishment. In this step, it is indicated that the UE context is not retrievable and can include the re-directed RRC message received in S301.

[0143] After S305, if the PLMN assistance information is provided by the gNB-CU A , the New gNB-DU A may redirect the UE to the PLMN indicated in the DL RRC MESSAGE TRANSFER message. If the New gNB-DU A / B cannot infer the RRC message from S301, S306 is triggered. The New gNB-DU A should release the UE associated signaling connection (not shown).

[0144] S306, New gNB-DU A / B to New gNB-CU B sends an INITIAL UL RRC MESSAGE TRANSFER message.

[0145] S307, New gNB-CU B to Old gNB B sends a RETRIEVE UE CONTEXT REQUEST message.

[0146] S308, Old gNB B to New gNB-CU B sends a RETRIEVE UE CONTEXT RESPONSE message.

[0147] S309, New gNB-CU B to New gNB-DU A / B Sends a DL RRC MESSAGE TRANSFER message.

[0148] Where S306 to S309 describe the case where the UE context is retrievable by the New gNB-CU B

[0149] In S306, the NR CGI associated with PLMN B is indicated. S306 also includes the C-RNTI assigned at reception step 1. S306 also includes the C-RNTI assigned in S301.

[0150] S310, New gNB-DU A / B Sends an RRCReestablishment message to the UE

[0151] S311, UE to New gNB-DU A / B Sends an RRCReestablishmentComplete message.

[0152] S312, New gNB-DU A / B Sends an UL RRC MESSAGE TRANSFER message to New gNB-CU B

[0153] In S310 to S312, the RRC connection re-establishment will continue through the New gNB-CU B .

[0154] It should be understood that if all gNB-CUs indicate that the UE context is not retrievable, the RRC connection re-establishment will fallback to RRC connection establishment.

[0155] The above briefly describes the related technologies / terms involved in the present application, which will not be repeated in the following embodiments.

[0156] As mentioned above, there is already a scenario in the prior art where a DU is connected to multiple CUs, and there are two cases as follows:

[0157] 1) Fully network-based implementation to support a DU connected to multiple CUs, in which case, since it is an internal implementation of the network, it is completely transparent to the UE.

[0158] ​​2) There is a scenario that one DU connects multiple CUs in the technical specification of the protocol specification (e.g., the DU is shared between two different CUs), but this scenario is used to support network sharing (Network Sharing), that is, the two CUs need to belong to different operator networks.

[0159] In the handover scenario (e.g., CHO), for the target DU served by multiple CUs (e.g., CU1, CU2), the UE may need to preferentially select to hand over to one of the CUs for some reasons. However, if the two CUs belong to the same operator network, the existing solution adopted in network sharing (Network Sharing) cannot be directly applied to this scenario. In addition, if implemented based on the network, since it is transparent to the UE, the UE cannot know the difference between different CUs, and thus cannot be applied to this scenario. Therefore, in the process of the UE performing CHO, for the case that the target DU is connected to multiple CUs, how to determine which CU the UE hands over to is a problem that has not been solved.

[0160] Taking FIG. 4 as an example, the gNB-DU2 (or simply referred to as DU2) is connected to the gNB-CU1 (or simply referred to as CU1) and the gNB-CU2 (or simply referred to as CU2) at the same time, then, when the UE moves from the gNB-DU1 served by the gNB-CU1 to the gNB-DU2 served by the gNB-CU1 and the gNB-CU2, how to determine whether the UE hands over to the gNB-CU1 or the gNB-CU2 is a problem that has not been solved.

[0161] Therefore, the present application provides a communication method, device, equipment, chip and storage medium. In the method, the terminal device can receive first information from the source network device, and the first information can be used to determine a target CU for the terminal device to perform handover, and the target CU is included in one or more CUs associated with a target DU. That is, the terminal device can determine the target CU to be handed over from the one or more CUs associated with the target DU according to the first information from the source network device.

[0162] In order to facilitate understanding of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the technical solutions of the present application are described in detail below through specific embodiments. The above related technologies can be combined with the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application as optional solutions, which all belong to the protection scope of the embodiments of the present application. The embodiments of the present application include at least part of the following contents.

[0163] FIG. 5 is a flow diagram of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 5, the method can include the following steps:

[0164] S501, the terminal device receives first information from the source network device, and the first information is used to determine a target CU for the terminal device to perform handover, and the target CU is included in one or more CUs associated with a target DU.

[0165] In this embodiment, the source network device can send the first information to the terminal device. Accordingly, the terminal device can receive the first information from the source network device.

[0166] The first information can be used to determine the target CU to which the terminal device performs the handover, and the target CU can be included in one or more CUs associated with the target DU. That is, after receiving the first information from the source network device, the terminal device can determine the target CU to which the terminal device performs the handover from the one or more CUs associated with the target DU based on the first information.

[0167] In some embodiments, the target DU can be associated with a plurality of CUs, and the target CU can be included in the plurality of CUs associated with the target DU. That is, the method of this embodiment can be applied to a scenario in which one DU (such as the target DU) is associated with a plurality of CUs. In this scenario, after receiving the first information from the source network device, the terminal device can determine a target CU to which the terminal device performs the handover from the plurality of CUs associated with the target DU based on the first information.

[0168] In some embodiments, among the plurality of CUs associated with the target DU, at least two CUs belong to the same operator network.

[0169] As mentioned above, although there is a scenario in which one DU is shared between two different CUs in the protocol specification technology, in this scenario, the two CUs need to belong to different operator networks, and the method of this embodiment can be applied to a case in which at least part of the CUs associated with one DU belong to the same operator network, for example, can be applied to a case in which, among the plurality of CUs associated with the target DU, at least two CUs belong to the same operator network.

[0170] In this embodiment, the "handover" mentioned can be CHO, for example.

[0171] In some embodiments, the first information can be CHO configuration information.

[0172] It should be noted that the target DU in this embodiment can also be understood as the DU to which the terminal device needs to switch in the process of performing the handover; and the target CU (i.e., the target CU to which the terminal device performs the handover) in this embodiment can also be understood as the CU to which the terminal device needs to switch in the process of performing the handover.

[0173] In some embodiments, the source network device can also be referred to as or replaced by a source base station (such as a source gNB) or a source access network device. For example, the source network device can include a source DU (i.e., a DU to which the terminal device is currently connected) and a source CU (i.e., a CU to which the terminal device is currently connected), and the terminal device can be connected to the source CU through the source DU.

[0174] In some embodiments, the source network device can be a source DU, or in other words, the source network device in the embodiments of the present application can refer to a source DU.

[0175] In some embodiments, the first information can be used to indicate one or more of the following 11) to 14):

[0176] 11) the type (such as the first type / second type) of the one or more CUs.

[0177] In some embodiments, for a CU (such as for any CU), in the case where the CU is the same as the CU to which the terminal device is currently connected, the type of the CU is the first type; and / or, for a CU (such as for any CU), in the case where the CU is different from the CU to which the terminal device is currently connected, the type of the CU is the second type.

[0178] That is, for a CU (such as for any CU), if the CU is the same as the CU to which the terminal device is currently connected, or in other words, the CU is the CU to which the terminal device is currently connected, the type of the CU is the first type. Taking FIG. 4 as an example, the type of gNB-CU1 is the first type. In some scenarios, the CU of the first type can also be referred to as intra-CU.

[0179] Similarly, for a CU (such as for any CU), if the CU is different from the CU to which the terminal device is currently connected, or in other words, the CU is not the CU to which the terminal device is currently connected, the type of the CU is the second type. Taking FIG. 4 as an example, the type of gNB-CU2 is the second type. In some scenarios, the CU of the second type can also be referred to as inter-CU.

[0180] In some embodiments, the terminal device can determine the target CU according to the type of the one or more CUs. For example, the terminal device can determine the CU of the first type (intra-UE) as the target CU to improve the service continuity of the terminal device. For another example, the terminal device can determine the CU of the second type (inter-UE) as the target CU to ensure mobility.

[0181] 12) the identifier (such as gNB ID / gNB-CU ID) of the one or more CUs.

[0182] Exemplarily, the terminal device can distinguish different CUs according to the identifier of the one or more CUs, and then determine a target CU therefrom.

[0183] 13) the priority of the one or more CUs.

[0184] Exemplarily, the terminal device can determine the target CU according to the priority of the one or more CUs. For example, the terminal device can determine the CU with the highest priority as the target CU; or for another example, the terminal device can determine the CU with a priority higher than a certain priority threshold as the target CU.

[0185] 14) a handover execution condition (e.g., a CHO execution condition) corresponding to the one or more CUs.

[0186] Exemplarily, the terminal device can determine the target CU according to the handover execution condition corresponding to the one or more CUs. For example, the terminal device can select a CU from the CUs satisfying the handover execution condition as the target CU according to its own situation.

[0187] Here, the CU satisfying the handover execution condition can also be understood as the cell measurement result corresponding to the CU satisfying the handover execution condition corresponding to the CU.

[0188] In some embodiments, different CUs can correspond to different handover execution conditions, or multiple CUs can correspond to the same handover execution condition.

[0189] In some embodiments, the cell measurement result corresponding to the target CU satisfies the handover execution condition corresponding to the target CU. That is, the target CU determined by the terminal device should satisfy the handover execution condition corresponding to the target CU. Or, in the case that the cell measurement result corresponding to a certain CU satisfies the handover execution condition corresponding to the CU, the CU can only be the target CU.

[0190] In some embodiments, the type of the one or more CUs, and / or the identity of the one or more CUs, can be indicated by the cell configuration information (e.g., CHO candidate cell configuration information) corresponding to the one or more CUs.

[0191] In some embodiments, the cell configuration information corresponding to the one or more CUs can also be used to indicate the random access channel (RACH) resource associated with the one or more CUs.

[0192] In some embodiments, if the number of CUs associated with the target DU is multiple, one or more of the above 11) to 13) can be indicated in the first information. If the number of CUs associated with the target DU is one, one or more of the above 11) to 13) can not need to be indicated in the first information.

[0193] In some embodiments, the identities of different CUs in the one or more CUs are different. In this way, after the terminal device determines the target CU, the terminal device can indicate the target CU to the target DU by indicating the identity of the target CU to the target DU. In some embodiments, the identities of different CUs in the one or more CUs are different. In this way, after the terminal device determines the target CU, the terminal device can indicate the target CU to the target DU by indicating the identity of the target CU to the target DU.

[0194] In some embodiments, the RACH resources associated with different CUs are different in the one or more CUs. In this way, after the terminal device determines the target CU, the terminal device can send the information (e.g., the second information) to the target DU on the RACH resource (e.g., the first RACH resource) associated with the target CU, so as to indicate the target CU to the target DU.

[0195] In some embodiments, the method can further include: sending, by the terminal device, the second information to the target DU. Accordingly, the target DU can receive the second information from the terminal device. The second information can be used to indicate the target CU (i.e., the target CU to which the terminal device performs the handover).

[0196] According to the method of the present embodiment, the target DU can be associated with one or more CUs, and the terminal device can indicate the target CU (the target CU is included in the one or more CUs) to which the terminal device performs the handover by sending the second information to the target DU. Thus, after the target DU receives the second information, the target DU can know the target CU to which the terminal device performs the handover according to the indication of the second information. In other words, the target DU can know which CU the terminal device needs to hand over to according to the indication of the second information.

[0197] In some embodiments, the second information can be transmitted through the first RACH resource, and the first RACH resource is associated with the target CU.

[0198] That is, the terminal device can send the second information to the target DU on the first RACH resource associated with the target CU. In this way, if the target DU receives the second information on the first RACH resource, the target DU can know the target CU to which the terminal device performs the handover according to the association between the first RACH resource and the target CU.

[0199] In some embodiments, the second information can be carried in Layer 1 (L1) signaling. For example, in the case that the second information is transmitted through the first RACH resource, the second information can be carried in Layer 1 signaling.

[0200] It can be understood that since the protocol layer of the DU only includes the physical layer (PHY), the MAC layer and the RLC layer, the encrypted Layer 3 (L3) message cannot be directly parsed, and therefore the target CU is indicated through the Layer 1 signaling, which can be directly parsed by the target DU.

[0201] It should be noted that for the control plane access layer (Access Stratum, AS) protocol stack, Layer 1 (Layer 1, L1) is the physical layer (PHY layer), Layer 2 (Layer 2, L2) includes the MAC layer, the RLC layer and the PDCP layer, and Layer 3 is the RRC layer.

[0202] In some embodiments, the second information can comprise one or more of the following:

[0203] The third information is used to indicate the type of the target CU (e.g., the first type / second type);

[0204] The fourth information is used to indicate the identity of the target CU (e.g., the gNB ID / gNB-CU ID).

[0205] In some embodiments, the second information can be carried in layer 2 (L2) signaling.

[0206] In some embodiments, the second information can be carried in a MAC control element (MAC CE), or can be carried in a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH).

[0207] In some embodiments, the second information can be carried in layer 1 signaling. For example, the second information can be indicated in the PUCCH through a certain uplink control information (UCI) format (UCI Format).

[0208] It can be understood that since the protocol layer of the DU only has the PHY, MAC and RLC layers, the encrypted layer 3 message cannot be directly parsed, and therefore the target CU is indicated through the layer 1 signaling or the layer 2 signaling (e.g., the MAC CE signaling), so that the target DU can directly parse.

[0209] In some embodiments, the cell configuration information corresponding to the target CU can be included in the first RRC reconfiguration message (the first RRC reconfiguration message can be included in the first information), or in other words, the first RRC reconfiguration message can carry the cell configuration information corresponding to the target CU. In this case, the method can further comprise: the terminal device, in response to the first RRC reconfiguration message, sending an RRC reconfiguration complete message to the target DU.

[0210] Exemplarily, after the terminal device determines the target CU, the terminal device can perform an RRC reconfiguration operation according to the first RRC reconfiguration message, and then can send an RRC reconfiguration complete message to the target DU in response to the first RRC reconfiguration message. That is, the RRC reconfiguration complete message is a response to the first RRC reconfiguration message.

[0211] Accordingly, the target DU can receive the RRC reconfiguration complete message from the terminal device. Further, the target DU can send the RRC reconfiguration complete message to the target CU, or the target DU can send a first message to the target CU in response to the RRC reconfiguration complete message, the first message can contain the content of the RRC reconfiguration complete message.

[0212] In some embodiments, the terminal device sends the second information to the target DU at a time no later than when the terminal device sends the RRC reconfiguration complete message to the target DU. Accordingly, the target DU receives the second information at a time no later than when the target DU receives the RRC reconfiguration complete message. In this way, the target DU can learn the target CU for the terminal device to perform the handover according to the second information, and then can forward the RRC reconfiguration complete message from the terminal device to the target CU, or can send a first message to the target CU in response to the RRC reconfiguration complete message.

[0213] As an example, the terminal device sends the second information to the target DU at a time before the terminal device sends the RRC reconfiguration complete message to the target DU. For example, in the case that the second information is carried by layer 1 signaling, the layer 1 signaling can be message 1 (Msg1), and the RRC reconfiguration complete message can be message 3 (Msg3).

[0214] As another example, the terminal device sends the second information to the target DU at the same time as the terminal device sends the RRC reconfiguration complete message to the target DU. For example, in the case that the second information is carried by a MAC CE, the MAC CE can be sent together with the RRC reconfiguration complete message. For example, the MAC CE and the RRC reconfiguration complete message can both be sent through the physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) resource of Msg3.

[0215] In some embodiments, the terminal device can send fifth information to the target DU, and accordingly, the target DU can receive the fifth information from the terminal device. The fifth information is associated with the target CU for the terminal device to perform the handover.

[0216] In some embodiments, the fifth information is the RRC reconfiguration complete message described above.

[0217] In some embodiments, the target DU can send / forward the fifth information to the one or more CUs (i.e., the one or more CUs associated with the target DU), and accordingly, the one or more CUs can receive the fifth information from the target DU. The feedback information of the fifth information can be used to determine or indicate the target CU.

[0218] According to the method of the embodiment, the target DU can send the fifth information to one or more CUs associated with the target DU, and then determine the target CU to which the terminal device performs the handover according to feedback information of the fifth information. In other words, the target DU can learn which CU the terminal device needs to hand over to according to the feedback information of the fifth information.

[0219] In some embodiments, the target DU sends the fifth information to the one or more CUs, including that the target DU sends the fifth information to the one or more CUs simultaneously, or the target DU sends the fifth information to the one or more CUs based on a first order.

[0220] For example, the target DU can send the fifth information to the one or more CUs simultaneously. If the target DU sends the fifth information to multiple CUs simultaneously, the target DU can receive feedback information of the fifth information from the multiple CUs simultaneously.

[0221] For another example, the target DU can send the fifth information to the one or more CUs based on a first order. In a possible manner, the first order can be determined by the target DU. In other words, the target DU can determine the order of sending the fifth information to the one or more CUs.

[0222] In some embodiments, the first order is determined according to priorities of the one or more CUs. In other words, the target DU can determine the first order according to the priorities of the one or more CUs, and then send the fifth information to the one or more CUs based on the first order.

[0223] In some embodiments, the one or more CUs include a first CU. After the first CU receives the fifth information from the target DU, the first CU can send sixth information to the target DU, and accordingly, the target DU can receive the sixth information from the first CU. The sixth information is feedback information of the fifth information sent to the first CU, and the sixth information can be used to determine or indicate whether the first CU is the target CU.

[0224] In some embodiments, the sixth information is an acknowledgement information (such as ACK) when the fifth information is associated with the first CU, and / or the sixth information is a negative acknowledgement information (such as NACK) when the fifth information is not associated with the first CU.

[0225] For example, after the first CU receives the fifth information, the first CU can determine whether the fifth information is associated with the first CU. If the fifth information is associated with the first CU, the first CU can feed back an acknowledgement information to the target DU, that is, the sixth information is the acknowledgement information. If the fifth information is not associated with the first CU, the first CU can feed back a negative acknowledgement information to the target DU, that is, the sixth information is the negative acknowledgement information.

[0226] In some embodiments, when the terminal device sends the fifth information, the fifth information can be encrypted using a key corresponding to the target CU, so that after the first CU receives the fifth information, the first CU can use the key corresponding to the first CU to parse the fifth information. If the first CU can correctly parse the fifth information, it means that the first CU is the target CU, that is, the fifth information is associated with the first CU. On the contrary, if the first CU cannot parse the fifth information using the key corresponding to the first CU, it means that the first CU is not the target CU, that is, the fifth information is not associated (not associated) with the first CU.

[0227] In some embodiments, in the case that the sixth information is positive acknowledgement information, the first CU is the target CU. That is, if the first CU feeds back positive acknowledgement information to the target DU after receiving the fifth information, it means that the first CU is the target CU.

[0228] In some embodiments, in the case that the sixth information is negative acknowledgement information, the first CU is not the target CU. That is, if the first CU feeds back negative acknowledgement information to the target DU after receiving the fifth information, it means that the first CU is not the target CU.

[0229] In the embodiments of the present application, the positive acknowledgement information can also be referred to as or replaced by "confirmation information / confirmation message"; the negative acknowledgement information can also be referred to as or replaced by "denial information / denial message".

[0230] In some embodiments, if a CU associated with the target DU feeds back positive acknowledgement information to the target DU after receiving the fifth information, the target DU does not need to send the fifth information to other CUs associated with the target DU.

[0231] In some embodiments, the one or more CUs include a plurality of first CUs, and the method can further include: receiving sixth information from the plurality of first CUs; wherein the sixth information from the plurality of first CUs is feedback information of the fifth information sent to the plurality of first CUs; and the sixth information from the plurality of first CUs can be used to determine or indicate whether the target CU is one of the plurality of first CUs.

[0232] That is, if the target DU receives the sixth information from the plurality of first CUs, the target DU can determine whether the target CU is one of the plurality of first CUs, or whether there is a target CU in the plurality of first CUs, based on the sixth information from the plurality of first CUs.

[0233] In some embodiments, in the case that there is positive acknowledgement information in the sixth information from the plurality of first CUs, the target CU is the first CU that sends the positive acknowledgement information.

[0234] For example, assuming that the sixth information sent by a CU1 in the plurality of first CUs is positive acknowledgement information, and the sixth information sent by other CUs is negative acknowledgement information, the CU1 is the target CU.

[0235] In some embodiments, in a case where the sixth information from the plurality of first CUs is all negative acknowledgement information, none of the plurality of first CUs is the target CU.

[0236] According to the method of the embodiment, the target DU can send the fifth information to one or more CUs associated therewith, and then the target CU can be determined according to feedback information of the fifth information. It can be seen that the target DU can learn the target CU to be switched by the terminal device through interaction with the one or more CUs, and the process is transparent to the terminal device.

[0237] In some scenarios, for handover (HO), the order in which a UE measures measurement objects (MOs) corresponding to a plurality of neighboring cells is a problem that needs to be solved at present.

[0238] Therefore, the present application also provides a communication method, device, equipment, chip and storage medium. In the method, a terminal device can receive seventh information from a network device, and the seventh information can be used to determine a first measurement order (i.e., an order in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to a plurality of cells). Thus, the terminal device can determine the first measurement order based on the seventh information, and then can measure the measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells in the first measurement order.

[0239] FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 6, the method can include the following steps:

[0240] S601, a terminal device receives seventh information from a network device, and the seventh information is used to determine a first measurement order, and the first measurement order is an order in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to a plurality of cells.

[0241] In the embodiment, the network device can send the seventh information to the terminal device, and accordingly, the terminal device can receive the seventh information from the network device. The seventh information can be used to determine a first measurement order, and the first measurement order is an order in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to a plurality of cells.

[0242] The plurality of cells can also be understood as a plurality of neighboring cells (adjacent cells) of a current serving cell of the terminal device.

[0243] It should be noted that the measurement objects corresponding to different cells in the plurality of cells can be the same or different. For example, the plurality of cells includes cell A and cell B, and cell A and cell B can correspond to the same measurement object, or can correspond to different measurement objects.

[0244] According to the method of the embodiment, the terminal device can receive the seventh information from the network device, and can determine the first measurement order (i.e., the order in which the terminal device measures the measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells) based on the seventh information, and then the terminal device can measure the measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells in the first measurement order.

[0245] In some embodiments, the seventh information can be used to indicate the types of the plurality of cells.

[0246] In some embodiments, for a certain cell, the type of the cell can be the first type or the second type.

[0247] For example, for a cell (e.g., for any cell), if the DU corresponding to the cell is associated with a first type of CU, the type of the cell is the first type; and / or for a cell (e.g., for any cell), if the DU corresponding to the cell is associated with a second type of CU, the type of the cell is the second type. The first type of CU is the same as the CU to which the terminal device is currently connected, and the second type of CU is different from the CU to which the terminal device is currently connected. That is, the first type of CU is intra-CU, and the second type of CU is inter-CU.

[0248] That is, for a cell (e.g., for any cell), if the DU corresponding to the cell is associated with intra-CU, the type of the cell is the first type. In some scenarios, the cell of the first type can also be referred to as an intra-CU cell. Similarly, for a cell (e.g., for any cell), if the DU corresponding to the cell is associated with inter-CU, the type of the cell is the second type. In some scenarios, the cell of the second type can also be referred to as an inter-CU cell.

[0249] It should be noted that since there is a scenario in which one DU is connected to multiple CUs, the following situation can occur: the DU corresponding to a certain cell is associated (connected) with both the first type of CU and the second type of CU. In this case, the cell can be considered to be both a cell of the first type and a cell of the second type. For example, in FIG. 4, gNB-DU2 is associated (connected) with gNB-CU1 (first type of CU) and gNB-CU2 (second type of CU), so the cell corresponding to gNB-DU2 is both a cell of the first type and a cell of the second type.

[0250] According to the method of the embodiment, the terminal device can learn the types of the plurality of cells according to the seventh information, and thus can determine the first measurement sequence based on the types of the plurality of cells. That is, the terminal device can take the types of the plurality of cells as reference information, and thus autonomously determine the first measurement sequence. This method is advantageous in improving the decision-making status and implementation degree of freedom of the terminal device.

[0251] In some embodiments, the first measurement sequence can include: preferentially measuring measurement objects corresponding to cells belonging to the first type in the plurality of cells, and then measuring measurement objects corresponding to cells belonging to the second type in the plurality of cells.

[0252] For example, assuming that there are X cells belonging to the first type and Y cells belonging to the second type in the plurality of cells, the terminal device can preferentially measure measurement objects corresponding to the X cells belonging to the first type, and then measure measurement objects corresponding to the Y cells belonging to the second type.

[0253] According to the method of the embodiment, the terminal device can preferentially measure measurement objects corresponding to cells of the first type (intra-CU cells), and then measure measurement objects corresponding to cells of the second type (inter-CU cells). In this way, it is advantageous to improve the possibility of the terminal device preferentially switching to a cell of the first type. Since the DUs corresponding to the cells of the first type are associated with the first type of CU (intra-CU), this method is advantageous in improving the service continuity of the terminal device.

[0254] In some embodiments, if there are a plurality of cells belonging to the first type in the plurality of cells, the order in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells belonging to the first type can be determined by the terminal device.

[0255] For example, assuming that there are two cells belonging to the first type in the plurality of cells, denoted as cell 1 and cell 2, the terminal device can autonomously determine the order in which it measures measurement objects corresponding to cell 1 and cell 2. For example, the terminal device can first measure measurement objects corresponding to cell 1, and then measure measurement objects corresponding to cell 2; or the terminal device can first measure measurement objects corresponding to cell 2, and then measure measurement objects corresponding to cell 1.

[0256] In some embodiments, if there are a plurality of cells belonging to the second type in the plurality of cells, the order in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells belonging to the second type can be determined by the terminal device.

[0257] For example, assuming that there are 2 second-type cells in the plurality of cells, denoted as cell 3 and cell 4, the terminal device can autonomously determine the order of measuring the measurement objects corresponding to cell 3 and cell 4. For example, the terminal device can first measure the measurement object corresponding to cell 3, and then measure the measurement object corresponding to cell 4; or the terminal device can first measure the measurement object corresponding to cell 4, and then measure the measurement object corresponding to cell 3.

[0258] In some embodiments, the method can further include: the network device sending eighth information to the terminal device, and accordingly, the terminal device can receive the eighth information from the network device. The eighth information can be used to indicate a second measurement order, and the second measurement order can be used to determine the first measurement order, and the first measurement order can be the same as or different from the second measurement order.

[0259] That is, the network device can indicate the second measurement order to the terminal device by sending the eighth information, so that the terminal device can determine the first measurement order according to the seventh information and further according to the second measurement order indicated by the network device.

[0260] In one possible way, the first measurement order is the same as the second measurement order.

[0261] For example, the second measurement order indicated by the network device is: first measuring the measurement objects corresponding to the cells belonging to the first type in the plurality of cells, and then measuring the measurement objects corresponding to the cells belonging to the second type in the plurality of cells. Then, the first measurement order determined by the terminal device can also be: first measuring the measurement objects corresponding to the cells belonging to the first type in the plurality of cells, and then measuring the measurement objects corresponding to the cells belonging to the second type in the plurality of cells. Further, the terminal device can first measure the measurement objects corresponding to the first-type cells and then measure the measurement objects corresponding to the second-type cells in the case of knowing the types of the plurality of cells.

[0262] In another possible way, the first measurement order is different from the second measurement order. That is, the terminal device can take the second measurement order indicated by the network device as reference information for determining the first measurement order, but the first measurement order finally determined by the terminal device can be different from or not completely the same as the second measurement order.

[0263] According to the method of the present embodiment, the network device can indicate the second measurement order to the terminal device by sending the eighth information, so as to enable the terminal device to determine the first measurement order, thereby improving the flexibility of network indication.

[0264] In some embodiments, the seventh information can be carried by system information or by dedicated signaling.

[0265] In an example, the seventh information can be carried by system information. For example, the seventh information can be carried by a System Information Block (SIB). In this case, the seventh information can be transmitted in a broadcast manner.

[0266] In a possible manner, in the seventh information (e.g., carried by a SIB message), a list of Physical Cell Identities (PCIs) of the first type of cells (PCI-List) and a list of PCIs of the second type of cells can be included, so that the terminal device can learn the type of each cell according to the list in which the PCI of the cell is located. For example, if the PCI of a cell is located in the list of PCIs of the first type of cells, it indicates that the type of the cell is the first type; for another example, if the PCI of a cell is located in the list of PCIs of the second type of cells, it indicates that the type of the cell is the second type.

[0267] According to the method of the embodiment, the network device can transmit the seventh information in a broadcast manner by using system information, so that the seventh information can be provided for all terminal devices in the communication system, thereby facilitating saving signaling overhead of the network device.

[0268] In another example, the seventh information can be carried by dedicated signaling, which can be carried in measurement configuration information, for example.

[0269] In a possible manner, in the seventh information (e.g., carried by dedicated signaling), the type of the cell corresponding to each measurement object in the measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells can be indicated respectively. For example, for measurement object A, the type of the cell corresponding to the measurement object A can be indicated; for another example, for measurement object B, the type of the cell corresponding to the measurement object B can be indicated.

[0270] In another possible manner, in the seventh information (e.g., carried by dedicated signaling), the type of each cell in the cell list corresponding to each measurement object in the measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells can be indicated by a bitmap. For example, the cell list corresponding to measurement object A includes 3 cells, and then 3 indicators in the bitmap can be included to indicate the types of the 3 cells respectively; for another example, the cell list corresponding to measurement object B includes 2 cells, and then 2 indicators in the bitmap can be included to indicate the types of the 2 cells respectively.

[0271] According to the method of the embodiment, the seventh information can be carried by dedicated signaling, so that the terminal device does not need to read system information additionally, thereby facilitating saving energy consumption.

[0272] In some embodiments, the seventh information can be used to indicate measurement priorities of a plurality of measurement objects; and a sequence in which the terminal device measures the plurality of measurement objects is consistent with the measurement priorities of the plurality of measurement objects; wherein the plurality of measurement objects comprise measurement objects corresponding to at least part (part or all) of the plurality of cells.

[0273] That is, the network device can indicate, by sending the seventh information, the terminal device the measurement priorities of the plurality of measurement objects (i.e., the measurement objects corresponding to at least part of the plurality of cells), so as to facilitate the terminal device to determine the sequence in which the plurality of measurement objects are measured based on the measurement priorities.

[0274] For example, assuming that the plurality of measurement objects comprise measurement object A, measurement object B and measurement object C, wherein the measurement priority of measurement object A is higher than the measurement priority of measurement object B, and the measurement priority of measurement object B is higher than the measurement priority of measurement object C, then the terminal device can first measure measurement object A, then measure measurement object B, and then measure measurement object C.

[0275] In one possible way, the network device can multiplex the existing measSequence in MeasObject to indicate the measurement priorities of the plurality of measurement objects.

[0276] In another possible way, the network device can introduce a new information element (IE) to indicate the measurement priorities of the plurality of measurement objects. For example, Value 1 represents the first priority, value 2 represents the second priority, and so on.

[0277] In some embodiments, if there are at least two measurement objects in the plurality of measurement objects whose measurement priorities are the same, the sequence in which the terminal device measures the at least two measurement objects can be determined by the terminal device.

[0278] For example, assuming that the plurality of measurement objects comprise measurement object A and measurement object B, and the measurement priorities of measurement object A and measurement object B are the same, then the terminal device can autonomously determine the sequence in which measurement object A and measurement object B are measured. For example, the terminal device can first measure measurement object A, and then measure measurement object B; or the terminal device can first measure measurement object B, and then measure measurement object A.

[0279] In some embodiments, the sequence in which the terminal device measures the at least two measurement objects is determined according to a preset rule. That is, the terminal device can determine the sequence in which the at least two measurement objects are measured according to the preset rule.

[0280] Exemplarily, the terminal device determines the sequence of measuring the at least two measurement objects according to a preset rule. It can be understood that the terminal device reorders the measurement priorities of the measurement objects according to certain rules (such as certain preset rules) after comprehensively considering the measurement priorities of the plurality of measurement objects, thereby obtaining a new measurement priority sequence. Further, the terminal device can determine the sequence of measuring the at least two measurement objects based on the new measurement priority sequence.

[0281] In some embodiments, the sequence of measuring the first measurement object by the terminal device can be determined by the terminal device; or the sequence of measuring the first measurement object by the terminal device is after the sequence of measuring the plurality of measurement objects (i.e., the plurality of measurement objects whose measurement priorities are indicated in the seventh information) by the terminal device; wherein the first measurement object includes measurement objects other than the plurality of measurement objects among the measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells.

[0282] The first measurement object can also be understood as a measurement object included in the measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells but whose measurement priority is not indicated in the seventh information. For example, the measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells include measurement object A, measurement object B, measurement object C, and measurement object D, wherein the measurement priorities of measurement object A and measurement object B are indicated in the seventh information (i.e., the plurality of measurement objects include measurement object A and measurement object B), and thus the first measurement object can include measurement object C and measurement object D.

[0283] In one possible manner, the sequence of measuring the first measurement object by the terminal device can be determined by the terminal device.

[0284] For example, in the above example, the sequence of measuring measurement object C and measurement object D by the terminal device can be determined by the terminal device. The sequence of measuring measurement object C and / or measurement object D by the terminal device can be before measurement object A and / or measurement object B, or can be after measurement object A and / or measurement object B.

[0285] In one possible manner, the sequence of measuring the first measurement object by the terminal device is after the sequence of measuring the plurality of measurement objects by the terminal device.

[0286] For example, in the above example, the sequence of measuring measurement object C and measurement object D by the terminal device can be after measurement object A and measurement object B. That is, the terminal device can first measure measurement object A and measurement object B, and then measure measurement object C and measurement object D after the measurement is completed.

[0287] In some embodiments, the terminal device can autonomously determine the measurement order for each of the first measurement objects. For example, in the above example, the terminal device can first measure the measurement object C and then measure the measurement object D; or the terminal device can first measure the measurement object D and then measure the measurement object C.

[0288] According to the method of the present embodiment, the network device can indicate the measurement priorities of the plurality of measurement objects to the terminal device by sending the seventh information, so that the terminal device can determine the order of measuring the plurality of measurement objects based on the measurement priorities. Further, the terminal device can also determine the order of measuring the first measurement objects (i.e., the measurement objects for which the measurement priorities are not indicated in the seventh information), and thus the final first measurement order can be obtained. The method specifies the behavior of the terminal device in determining the measurement order based on the measurement priorities.

[0289] The above describes the communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application. In order to facilitate the understanding of the embodiments of the present application, the possible implementation schemes of the communication method applicable to the embodiments of the present application are described below.

[0290] Two implementation schemes (referred to as scheme one and scheme two) provided by the embodiments of the present application are described below.

[0291] Among them, scheme one can be applicable to the CHO scenario, and scheme two can be applicable to the HO scenario. Scheme two can be applicable to the scenario where one DU is connected to multiple CUs, and can also be applicable to the general scenario where one DU is connected to one CU.

[0292] It should be noted that the gNB-CU mentioned below can also be referred to as or replaced by CU, and the gNB-DU can also be referred to as or replaced by DU.

[0293] Scheme one

[0294] FIG. 7 shows a possible implementation flowchart of scheme one. As shown in FIG. 7, the implementation flowchart can include the following steps:

[0295] S701, CHO preparation.

[0296] In this step, the source gNB can decide to use CHO based on the measurement report of the UE, and send a CHO request message (Handover Request) to one or more candidate cells belonging to one or more candidate gNBs, each candidate cell corresponding to one CHO request message.

[0297] Further, the candidate gNBs can send CHO response messages (Handover Request Acknowledge) to the source gNB in case of admitting the handover request. The CHO response messages contain CHO candidate cell configuration information, and each candidate cell corresponds to one CHO response message.

[0298] For the scenario that one gNB-DU is connected to multiple gNB-CUs, the source gNB can obtain multiple sets of CHO candidate cell configuration information for the same candidate cell (same gNB-DU) from multiple candidate gNBs (gNB-CUs) respectively. Here, the same candidate cell (same gNB-DU) shares the same physical layer cell resource, and the multiple sets of CHO candidate cell configuration information correspond to different gNB-CUs.

[0299] S702, the source gNB sends CHO configuration information to the UE through an RRC reconfiguration message.

[0300] In this step, the source gNB can send CHO configuration information (corresponding to the first information in the foregoing embodiments) to the UE through an RRC reconfiguration (RRCReconfiguration) message, and accordingly, the UE can receive the CHO configuration information from the source gNB.

[0301] In some embodiments, the CHO configuration information can contain at least one CHO candidate cell configuration information (corresponding to the cell configuration information in the foregoing embodiments) and at least one corresponding CHO execution condition (corresponding to the handover execution condition in the foregoing embodiments).

[0302] The CHO candidate cell configuration information, i.e., the RRC reconfiguration message of the candidate cell, is carried in the RRC reconfiguration message sent by the source gNB in the form of a container, or in other words, the source gNB forwards the RRC reconfiguration message of the candidate cell without parsing the RRC reconfiguration message and without making any changes to the message.

[0303] The CHO execution condition can contain a measurement object, a measurement quantity, a measurement event, etc.

[0304] In some embodiments, the CHO candidate cell configuration information is distinguished between intra / inter-CU, and / or between different gNB-CUs.

[0305] One possible way is to add indication information (such as intra / inter-CU indication information) for each CHO candidate cell configuration information to indicate intra / inter-CU.

[0306] For example, assuming that the CHO candidate cell configuration information includes first CHO candidate cell configuration information and second CHO candidate cell configuration information, an indication information can be added in the first CHO candidate cell configuration information to indicate whether the gNB-CU corresponding to the first CHO candidate cell configuration information is intra-CU or inter-CU, and similarly, an indication information can be added in the second CHO candidate cell configuration information to indicate whether the gNB-CU corresponding to the second CHO candidate cell configuration information is intra-CU or inter-CU.

[0307] Optionally, the indication of intra / inter-CU is only made when multiple sets of CHO candidate cell configuration information are contained for the same candidate cell.

[0308] Optionally, the indication of intra / inter-CU is only made when multiple sets of CHO candidate cell configuration information are contained for the same candidate cell.

[0309] For example, assuming that the CHO candidate cell configuration information includes first CHO candidate cell configuration information and second CHO candidate cell configuration information, an indication information can be added in the first CHO candidate cell configuration information to indicate whether the gNB-CU corresponding to the first CHO candidate cell configuration information is intra-CU or inter-CU, and similarly, an indication information can be added in the second CHO candidate cell configuration information to indicate whether the gNB-CU corresponding to the second CHO candidate cell configuration information is intra-CU or inter-CU.

[0310] Optionally, the indication of intra / inter-CU is only made when multiple sets of CHO candidate cell configuration information are contained for the same candidate cell.

[0311] Optionally, the indication of intra / inter-CU is only made when multiple sets of CHO candidate cell configuration information are contained for the same candidate cell.

[0312] As mentioned above, for a UE, one candidate cell can have multiple sets of CHO candidate cell configuration information, the candidate cells share the same physical layer cell resource, and the multiple sets of CHO candidate cell configuration information correspond to different gNB-CUs. According to the method of the embodiment, the UE can learn the difference between different gNB-CUs, for example, can learn whether each gNB-CU is intra-CU or inter-CU, and then can select a suitable gNB-CU according to its own situation to perform CHO.

[0313] S703, the UE sends an RRC reconfiguration complete message to the source gNB.

[0314] In this step, the UE can send an RRC reconfiguration complete (RRCReconfigurationComplete) message to the source gNB to inform the source gNB that the RRC reconfiguration (RRC Reconfiguration) is successfully received and completed.

[0315] S704, the UE evaluates the CHO execution condition.

[0316] After the UE receives the CHO configuration information, it maintains the connection with the source gNB and starts to evaluate the CHO execution condition of the candidate cell.

[0317] If at least one CHO candidate cell meets the corresponding CHO execution condition, the UE separates from the source gNB, applies the corresponding configuration information of the selected candidate cell stored, and synchronizes to the candidate cell. Further, the UE can send an RRC reconfiguration complete (RRCReconfigurationComplete) message to the target gNB (target gNB-DU) corresponding to the candidate cell to complete the RRC handover process (i.e., S706). After successfully completing the RRC handover process, the UE releases the stored CHO configuration.

[0318] S705, the UE indicates the selected gNB-CU to the target gNB-DU through L1 / L2 signaling.

[0319] Before sending the RRC reconfiguration complete message to the target gNB (target gNB-DU), the UE can indicate the selected gNB-CU to the target gNB-DU through L1 / L2 signaling.

[0320] In one possible way, the UE can indicate the selected gNB-CU through L1 signaling. For example, the selected gNB-CU can be indicated through dedicated RACH resources.

[0321] Exemplarily, the dedicated RACH resource can be configured in the RRC reconfiguration message of the candidate cell (i.e., CHO candidate cell configuration information), and the network needs to ensure that different gNB-CUs of the same candidate cell (gNB-DU) provide dedicated RACH resource configurations respectively.

[0322] In a possible manner, the UE can indicate the selected gNB-CU through L2 signaling. For example, the selected gNB-CU can be indicated through a MAC CE. As an example, the UE can indicate intra / inter-CU indication information and / or gNB ID / gNB-CU ID through a MAC CE. The UE can obtain the information through S702.

[0323] Exemplarily, the ID information (gNB ID / gNB-CU ID) described above can be carried in the RRC reconfiguration message of the candidate cell (i.e., CHO candidate cell configuration information), and the network needs to ensure that different gNB-CUs of the same candidate cell (gNB-DU) carry different IDs in the RRC reconfiguration message respectively.

[0324] In some embodiments, for the same candidate cell, if the CHO execution conditions for different gNB-CUs are all met, the UE can select one gNB-CU based on the implementation

[0325] In some embodiments, for the same candidate cell, if the CHO execution conditions for different gNB-CUs are all met, the UE can select one gNB-CU with a higher priority according to the priority configured by the network. Exemplarily, the priority can be indicated by the source gNB in the CHO configuration information.

[0326] According to the method of the present embodiment, for the case that multiple sets of CHO candidate cell configuration information corresponding to different gNB-CUs share the same physical layer cell resource of the candidate cell, the UE can indicate the selected gNB-CU through L1 / L2 signaling, so that the gNB-DU can know which gNB-CU to forward the RRC reconfiguration complete message to.

[0327] S706, the UE sends an RRC reconfiguration complete message to the target gNB-DU.

[0328] S707, the target gNB-DU identifies the gNB-CU selected by the UE.

[0329] In this step, the target gNB-DU can identify the gNB-CU selected by the UE according to the L1 / L2 signaling received in S705. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the gNB-CU selected by the UE is the target gNB-CU.

[0330] S708, the target gNB-DU sends / forwards the RRC reconfiguration complete message to the target gNB-CU.

[0331] After the target gNB-DU identifies the gNB-CU selected by the UE, it forwards the RRC reconfiguration complete message from the UE to the gNB-CU selected by the UE (i.e., to the target gNB-CU).

[0332] It can be understood that since the gNB-DU only has PHY, MAC and RLC protocol layers, it cannot directly parse the encrypted L3 message, but by indicating the selected gNB-CU through L1 / L2 signaling, the gNB-DU can directly parse it.

[0333] According to the above technical solution, for the target DU served by multiple CUs (such as CU1 and CU2), the CHO configuration configured by the network for the UE can indicate different CU options, and / or configure exclusive CHO execution conditions for different CUs. Further, in the execution of the CHO process, the UE needs to identify different CUs connected to the target DU, and tell the target DU through L1 / L2 signaling which CU to select to execute the CHO, so that the target DU can know which CU to forward the RRC reconfiguration complete message to.

[0334] FIG. 8 shows another possible implementation flowchart of scheme one. As shown in FIG. 8, the implementation flowchart can include the following steps:

[0335] S801, CHO preparation.

[0336] S802, the source gNB sends the CHO configuration information to the UE through the RRC reconfiguration message.

[0337] S803, the UE sends the RRC reconfiguration complete message to the source gNB.

[0338] S804, the UE evaluates the CHO execution condition.

[0339] The implementation manners of S801 to S804 are the same as those of S701 to S704, which will not be described here.

[0340] S805, the UE sends the RRC reconfiguration complete message to the target gNB-DU.

[0341] After the UE synchronizes to the candidate cell to be switched, it can send the RRC reconfiguration complete message to the target gNB (target gNB-DU) corresponding to the candidate cell.

[0342] Further, after receiving the RRC reconfiguration complete message from the UE, the target gNB-DU can send (forward) the RRC reconfiguration complete message to all gNB-CUs (target gNB-CUs) connected to the target gNB-DU.

[0343] In some embodiments, the target gNB-DU can send the RRC reconfiguration complete message to each gNB-CU in a sequence based on implementation decision, or the target gNB-DU can send the RRC reconfiguration complete message to each gNB-CU simultaneously.

[0344] In the embodiment, it is assumed that the gNB-CUs connected to the target gNB-DU include a target gNB-CU1 and a target gNB-CU2. In this case, the implementation procedure can further include the following S806 to S808.

[0345] S806, the target gNB-DU sends the RRC reconfiguration complete message to the target gNB-CU1.

[0346] S807, the target gNB-CU1 sends a negative acknowledgement message (NACK) to the target gNB-DU.

[0347] After receiving the RRC reconfiguration complete message from the target gNB-DU, the target gNB-CU can feed back an acknowledgement message or a negative acknowledgement message to the target gNB-DU according to whether the RRC reconfiguration complete message is associated with the target gNB-CU. For example, for a certain target gNB-CU, if the RRC reconfiguration complete message is associated with the target gNB-CU, the target gNB-CU can feed back an acknowledgement message to the target gNB-DU; if the RRC reconfiguration complete message is not associated (unassociated) with the target gNB-CU, the target gNB-CU can feed back a negative acknowledgement message to the target gNB-DU.

[0348] In S807, it is assumed that the target gNB-CU1 feeds back a negative acknowledgement message to the target gNB-DU.

[0349] S808, the target gNB-DU sends the RRC reconfiguration complete message to the target gNB-CU2.

[0350] S809, the target gNB-CU2 sends an acknowledgement message (ACK) to the target gNB-DU.

[0351] In S809, it is assumed that the target gNB-CU2 feeds back an acknowledgement message to the target gNB-DU.

[0352] In the above example, since the target gNB-CU2 feeds back an acknowledgement message to the target gNB-DU, the UE will be switched to the target gNB-CU2, or in other words, the target gNB-DU can know that the UE needs to be switched to the target gNB-CU2.

[0353] It should be noted that the execution sequence of S806 and S808 is not limited in this embodiment. For example, S806 can be executed first, and then S808 can be executed; or S808 can be executed first, and then S806 can be executed; or S806 and S808 can be executed simultaneously.

[0354] In some embodiments, if a certain target gNB-CU feeds back a confirmation message to the target gNB-DU, the target gNB-DU does not need to send an RRC reconfiguration complete message to other target gNB-CUs. For example, if the target gNB-CU1 feeds back a confirmation message to the target gNB-DU in S807, the target gNB-DU does not need to send an RRC reconfiguration complete message to the target gNB-CU2.

[0355] According to the method of this embodiment, the target gNB-DU can learn the target gNB-CU to which the UE is to be handed over through interaction with the target gNB-CU (such as the target gNB-CU1 and the target gNB-CU2), and this process does not require UE signaling and is transparent to the UE.

[0356] Scheme Two

[0357] FIG. 9 shows a possible implementation flowchart of scheme two. As shown in FIG. 9, the implementation flowchart can include the following steps:

[0358] S901, the source gNB sends measurement configuration information to the UE.

[0359] In this step, the source gNB can send measurement configuration information to the UE, and accordingly, the UE can receive the measurement configuration information from the source gNB. The measurement configuration information can include measurement identity, measurement object, measurement quantity, reporting configuration, and the like.

[0360] S902, the source gNB sends cell type indication information to the UE.

[0361] In this step, the source gNB can send cell type indication information to the UE, and accordingly, the UE can receive the cell type indication information from the source gNB. The cell type indication information can be used to indicate the cell type of at least one neighbor cell. For example, for a certain neighbor cell, it can be indicated whether the neighbor cell is an inter-CU cell and / or an intra-CU cell.

[0362] Exemplarily, for a certain neighbor cell, the cell type of the neighbor cell can be divided into the following three cases:

[0363] The neighbor cell is an inter-CU cell;

[0364] The neighbor cell is an intra-CU cell;

[0365] The neighbor cell is both an inter-CU cell and an intra-CU cell.

[0366] According to the method of the embodiment, the UE can know whether a neighbor cell is an inter-CU cell or an intra-CU cell. In addition, for a scenario in which one DU is connected to multiple CUs, there can be a case in which a neighbor cell is both an inter-CU cell and an intra-CU cell.

[0367] In some embodiments, the cell type indication information can be transmitted in a broadcast form through an SIB message.

[0368] For example, in the SIB message, a PCI list (PCI-List) of inter-CU cells and a PCI list of intra-CU cells can be included, so that the UE can know the cell type of each neighbor cell according to the PCI list in which the PCI of each neighbor cell is located. For example, if the PCI of a neighbor cell is located in the PCI list of inter-CU cells, it indicates that the cell type of the neighbor cell is an inter-CU cell; similarly, if the PCI of a neighbor cell is located in the PCI list of intra-CU cells, it indicates that the cell type of the neighbor cell is an intra-CU cell.

[0369] It can be understood that, since the cell type information of each neighbor cell is common information of the current serving cell, the frequency of change is low, or in other words, the cell type of each neighbor cell is relatively fixed, therefore, from the network perspective, the SIB message can be provided to all UEs, thereby facilitating saving signaling overhead.

[0370] In some embodiments, the cell type indication information can be transmitted through dedicated signaling. As an example, the dedicated signaling can be carried in measurement configuration information, for example.

[0371] For example, in the dedicated signaling, it can be indicated for each measurement object, or it can be indicated for the cell list corresponding to each measurement object through a bitmap.

[0372] As an example, it can be indicated for each measurement object. For example, for measurement object A, it can be indicated whether the cell corresponding to the measurement object A is an inter-CU cell or an intra-CU cell; for example, for measurement object B, it can be indicated whether the cell corresponding to the measurement object B is an inter-CU cell or an intra-CU cell.

[0373] For example, the cell list corresponding to the measurement object A contains 3 cells, and 3 indicators in the bitmap are used to indicate the cell types of the 3 cells respectively. For example, the cell list corresponding to the measurement object B contains 2 cells, and 2 indicators in the bitmap are used to indicate the cell types of the 2 cells respectively.

[0374] According to the method of the embodiment, the cell type indication information can be carried by dedicated signaling, and from the perspective of the UE, the UE does not need to additionally read SIB messages, thereby facilitating energy saving.

[0375] S903, the UE performs measurement according to the cell type indication information.

[0376] In this step, the UE can perform measurement on the MOs corresponding to the neighbor cells according to the cell type indication information.

[0377] In some embodiments, when the UE triggers measurement of the non-serving cell, the UE can determine the measurement order according to the cell type indication information. That is, the UE can use the cell type indication information as reference information to determine the measurement order.

[0378] In some embodiments, when the UE triggers measurement of the non-serving cell, the UE can determine the measurement order according to the cell type indication information. For example, after the UE learns the cell types of the neighbor cells, the UE can preferentially measure the MOs of the intra-CU cells, and after the measurement of the MOs of the intra-CU cells is completed, the UE can measure the MOs of the inter-CU cells.

[0379] In some embodiments, if the neighbor cells corresponding to the multiple MOs are all intra-CU cells, the UE can determine the order of measurement of the multiple MOs based on implementation. In some embodiments, if the neighbor cells corresponding to the multiple MOs are all inter-CU cells, the UE can determine the order of measurement of the multiple MOs based on implementation.

[0380] The method has a certain UE behavior, and can ensure that the UE preferentially measures the MOs of the intra-CU cells.

[0381] In some embodiments, when the UE triggers measurement of the non-serving cell, the UE can determine the measurement order according to the cell type indication information and further according to the measurement priority indicated by the network (source gNB). For example, the measurement priority can indicate that the inter-CU cell is preferred, or the intra-CU cell is preferred. The measurement priority can be carried in the measurement configuration information, for example.

[0382] For example, if the measurement priority indicates that the intra-CU cell is prioritized, the UE can prioritize the measurement of the MO of the intra-CU cell, and after the measurement of the MO of the intra-CU cell is completed, the UE can measure the MO of the inter-CU cell.

[0383] For another example, if the measurement priority indicates that the inter-CU cell is prioritized, the UE can prioritize the measurement of the MO of the inter-CU cell, and after the measurement of the MO of the inter-CU cell is completed, the UE can measure the MO of the intra-CU cell.

[0384] According to the method of the embodiment, the network can indicate whether the UE prioritizes the measurement of the MO of the inter-CU cell or the MO of the intra-CU cell, thereby improving the flexibility of the network indication.

[0385] S904, the UE reports the measurement result to the source gNB.

[0386] In the case of triggering the measurement reporting, the UE can report the measurement result to the source gNB.

[0387] FIG. 10 shows another possible implementation flowchart of the second scheme. As shown in FIG. 10, the implementation flowchart can include the following steps:

[0388] S1001, the source gNB sends the measurement configuration information carrying the measurement priority to the UE.

[0389] In this step, the source gNB can send the measurement configuration information to the UE, and correspondingly, the UE can receive the measurement configuration information from the source gNB. The measurement configuration information can include the measurement identity, the measurement object, the measurement quantity, the reporting configuration, and the like.

[0390] In this embodiment, the source gNB can also carry the measurement priority in the measurement configuration information to configure different measurement priorities for the MOs of different types of neighboring cells. For example, in the measurement configuration information, different measurement priorities can be configured for the inter / intra-CU cells. Accordingly, the UE can perform the measurement according to the measurement priority and report the measurement result.

[0391] In a possible manner, the existing measSequence in MeasObject can be multiplexed or a new IE indicating the measurement priority can be introduced. For example, value 1 represents the first priority, value 2 represents the second priority, and so on.

[0392] S1002, the UE performs the measurement according to the measurement priority.

[0393] In this step, when the UE triggers the measurement of the non-serving cell, the UE can perform the measurement according to the order of the measurement priority.

[0394] For example, the UE can measure the frequency point / MO with the highest priority first according to the measurement priority order, and then measure the frequency point / MO with a lower priority after the measurement of the frequency point / MO with the higher priority is completed.

[0395] In some embodiments, for the frequency points / MOs with the same measurement priority, the UE can determine the measurement order based on implementation.

[0396] In some embodiments, for the frequency points / MOs without indication of the measurement priority, the UE can determine the measurement order based on implementation, or the UE can measure the frequency points / MOs without indication of the measurement priority after the measurement of the frequency points / MOs with indication of the measurement priority is completed.

[0397] The method of the embodiment specifies the behavior of the UE to perform different measurement orders according to different measurement priorities.

[0398] S1003, the UE reports the measurement result to the source gNB.

[0399] In the case of triggering measurement reporting, the UE can report the measurement result to the source gNB.

[0400] Currently, for HO, when the UE moves from the DU1 served by the CU1 to the DU2 served by the CU1 and the CU2, how to preferentially switch to the CU1 to enable the UE to perform intra-CU HO and improve service continuity, or preferentially switch to the CU2 to ensure mobility, is a problem that has not been solved. Although it is already possible to configure different measurement events and corresponding thresholds for the measurement objects of inter-CU cells and intra-CU cells respectively by using the existing measurement configuration, and also support different CUs based on implementation implicitly by indicating the recommended measurement order through measSequence in MeasObject in Rel-18, this way is completely based on network implementation and does not specify the measurement behavior of the UE, and only recommends the measurement order. In addition, the UE cannot flexibly determine the measurement order for the difference between different CUs (or cells) based on the needs of the UE itself, because it cannot know the difference between different CUs (or cells).

[0401] To this end, in one implementation of scheme two, the network can send cell type indication information to the UE, so that the UE can perform measurement and report measurement results according to the cell type indication information; in another implementation of scheme two, the network can configure different measurement priorities for the MOs of different types of neighboring cells in the measurement configuration, so that the UE can perform measurement and report measurement results according to the measurement priority.

[0402] The preferred embodiments of the present application are described in detail above with reference to the drawings, but the present application is not limited to the specific details of the above-described embodiments. Within the technical concept of the present application, various simple modifications can be made to the technical solutions of the present application, and these simple modifications all belong to the protection scope of the present application. For example, in the above-described specific embodiments, various specific technical features described in the embodiments can be combined in any appropriate manner without contradiction. In order to avoid unnecessary repetition, various possible combinations are not described again in the present application. For another example, various different embodiments of the present application can also be combined in any manner, as long as it does not deviate from the idea of the present application, and it should also be considered as disclosed in the present application. For another example, under the premise of no conflict, each embodiment described in the present application and / or technical features in each embodiment can be combined with any prior art, and the technical solutions obtained after combination should also fall within the protection scope of the present application.

[0403] It should also be understood that, in various method embodiments of the present application, the size of the sequence number of the above-described processes does not mean the order of execution, and the execution order of the processes should be determined according to its function and inherent logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of the present application. In addition, in the embodiments of the present application, the terms "downlink", "uplink" and "sidelink" are used to represent the transmission direction of signals or data, wherein "downlink" is used to represent the transmission direction of signals or data as the first direction from the station to the user equipment of the cell, "uplink" is used to represent the transmission direction of signals or data as the second direction from the user equipment of the cell to the station, and "sidelink" is used to represent the transmission direction of signals or data as the third direction from the user equipment 1 to the user equipment 2. For example, "downlink signal" represents that the transmission direction of the signal is the first direction. In addition, in the embodiments of the present application, the term "and / or" is only used to describe the association relationship of the associated objects, which means that there can be three relationships. Specifically, A and / or B can represent three cases of A alone, A and B together, and B alone. In addition, the character " / " in this paper generally represents that the front and rear associated objects are in an "or" relationship.

[0404] Based on the foregoing embodiments, the embodiments of the present application provide corresponding communication devices.

[0405] FIG. 11 is a structural composition schematic diagram one of a communication device provided by the embodiments of the present application, applied to a terminal device, as shown in FIG. 11, the communication device 1100 (hereinafter referred to as device 1100) includes:

[0406] The first communication unit 1101 is configured to receive first information from a source network device, the first information being used to determine a target centralized unit CU for which the device 1100 performs handover, and the target CU being contained in one or more CUs associated with a target distributed unit DU.

[0407] In some embodiments, the first information is used to indicate one or more of: a type of the one or more CUs; an identity of the one or more CUs; a priority of the one or more CUs; a handover execution condition corresponding to the one or more CUs.

[0408] In some embodiments, the type of the one or more CUs, and / or, the identity of the one or more CUs, is indicated by cell configuration information corresponding to the one or more CUs; the cell configuration information corresponding to the one or more CUs is further used to indicate: random access channel (RACH) resource associated with the one or more CUs.

[0409] In some embodiments, identities of different CUs in the one or more CUs are different; and / or, RACH resources associated with different CUs in the one or more CUs are different.

[0410] In some embodiments, the cell measurement result corresponding to the target CU satisfies the handover execution condition corresponding to the target CU.

[0411] In some embodiments, the first communication unit 1101 is further configured to: send, to the target DU, second information, the second information being used to indicate the target CU.

[0412] In some embodiments, the second information is transmitted through a first RACH resource, the first RACH resource being associated with the target CU.

[0413] In some embodiments, the second information comprises one or more of: third information used to indicate a type of the target CU; fourth information used to indicate an identity of the target CU.

[0414] In some embodiments, the second information is carried in a medium access control control element (MAC-CE), or, in a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH).

[0415] In some embodiments, for a CU, in a case that the CU is the same as a CU to which the apparatus 1100 is currently connected, a type of the CU is a first type; and / or, for a CU, in a case that the CU is different from a CU to which the apparatus 1100 is currently connected, a type of the CU is a second type.

[0416] In some embodiments, the cell configuration information corresponding to the target CU is contained in a first radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration message, and the first communication unit 1101 is further configured to: in response to the first RRC reconfiguration message, send, to the target DU, an RRC reconfiguration complete message.

[0417] In some embodiments, the apparatus 1100 sends second information to the target DU, the second information being used for indicating the target CU, no later than the time when the apparatus 1100 sends the RRC reconfiguration complete message to the target DU.

[0418] In some embodiments, the target CU is included in a plurality of CUs associated with the target DU.

[0419] In some embodiments, among the plurality of CUs associated with the target DU, there are at least two CUs belonging to the same operator network.

[0420] In some embodiments, the source network device is a source DU.

[0421] FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application, which is applied to a source network device. As shown in FIG. 12, a communication apparatus 1200 (hereinafter referred to as apparatus 1200) includes:

[0422] A second communication unit 1201 is configured to send first information to a terminal device, the first information being used for determining a target centralized unit (CU) for performing handover by the terminal device, the target CU being included in one or more CUs associated with a target distributed unit (DU).

[0423] In some embodiments, the first information is used for indicating one or more of the following: a type of the one or more CUs; an identifier of the one or more CUs; a priority of the one or more CUs; and a handover execution condition corresponding to the one or more CUs.

[0424] In some embodiments, the type of the one or more CUs and / or the identifier of the one or more CUs is indicated by cell configuration information corresponding to the one or more CUs; and the cell configuration information corresponding to the one or more CUs is further used for indicating RACH resources associated with the one or more CUs.

[0425] In some embodiments, identifiers of different CUs among the one or more CUs are different; and / or RACH resources associated with different CUs among the one or more CUs are different.

[0426] In some embodiments, a cell measurement result corresponding to the target CU satisfies the handover execution condition corresponding to the target CU.

[0427] In some embodiments, for a CU, in a case where the CU is the same as a CU to which the terminal device is currently connected, the type of the CU is a first type; and / or for a CU, in a case where the CU is different from the CU to which the terminal device is currently connected, the type of the CU is a second type.

[0428] In some embodiments, the target CU is included in a plurality of CUs associated with the target DU.

[0429] In some embodiments, among the plurality of CUs associated with the target DU, there are at least two CUs belonging to the same operator network.

[0430] In some embodiments, the apparatus 1200 is a source DU.

[0431] FIG. 13 is a structural composition schematic diagram of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application, which is applied to a target DU, as shown in FIG. 13, the communication apparatus 1300 (hereinafter referred to as apparatus 1300) includes:

[0432] The third communication unit 1301 is configured to receive second information from a terminal device, the second information being used to indicate a target CU for the terminal device to perform handover, the target CU being included in one or more CUs associated with the apparatus 1300.

[0433] In some embodiments, the second information is transmitted through a first random access channel (RACH) resource, and the first RACH resource is associated with the target CU.

[0434] In some embodiments, the second information includes one or more of the following: third information used to indicate a type of the target CU; and fourth information used to indicate an identifier of the target CU.

[0435] In some embodiments, the second information is carried in a medium access control (MAC) control element, or is carried in a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH).

[0436] In some embodiments, for a CU, in a case where the CU is the same as a CU to which the terminal device is currently connected, the type of the CU is a first type; and / or for a CU, in a case where the CU is different from the CU to which the terminal device is currently connected, the type of the CU is a second type.

[0437] In some embodiments, the third communication unit 1301 is further configured to: receive an RRC reconfiguration complete message from the terminal device, the RRC reconfiguration complete message being a response to a first RRC reconfiguration message, the first RRC reconfiguration message carrying cell configuration information corresponding to the target CU; send the RRC reconfiguration complete message to the target CU, or send a first message to the target CU in response to the RRC reconfiguration complete message, the first message including content of the RRC reconfiguration complete message.

[0438] In some embodiments, the device 1300 receives the second information no later than the time when the device 1300 receives the RRC reconfiguration complete message.

[0439] In some embodiments, the target CU is included in a plurality of CUs associated with the device 1300.

[0440] In some embodiments, among the plurality of CUs associated with the device 1300, there are at least two CUs belonging to the same operator network.

[0441] FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram of the structural components of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application, which is applied to a target distributed unit DU. As shown in FIG. 14, a communication device 1400 (hereinafter referred to as device 1400) includes:

[0442] A fourth communication unit 1401, configured to receive fifth information from a terminal device, the fifth information being associated with a target centralized unit CU for the terminal device to perform handover; the fourth communication unit 1401 is also configured to send the fifth information to one or more CUs, the feedback information of the fifth information being used to determine or indicate the target CU, the target CU being included in the one or more CUs, the one or more CUs being associated with the device 1400.

[0443] In some embodiments, the fourth communication unit 1401 is configured to: send the fifth information to the one or more CUs at the same time; or send the fifth information to the one or more CUs based on a first order.

[0444] In some embodiments, the first order is determined by the device 1400.

[0445] In some embodiments, the first order is determined according to the priority of the one or more CUs.

[0446] In some embodiments, the one or more CUs includes a first CU, and the fourth communication unit 1401 is further configured to receive sixth information from the first CU, the sixth information being feedback information of the fifth information sent to the first CU, the sixth information being used to determine or indicate whether the first CU is the target CU.

[0447] In some embodiments, in the case that the sixth information is an acknowledgement information, the first CU is the target CU; and / or, in the case that the sixth information is a negative acknowledgement information, the first CU is not the target CU.

[0448] In some embodiments, the one or more CUs include a plurality of first CUs, and the fourth communication unit 1401 is further configured to receive sixth information from the plurality of first CUs, wherein the sixth information from the plurality of first CUs is feedback information of the fifth information sent to the plurality of first CUs, and the sixth information from the plurality of first CUs is used to determine or indicate whether the target CU is one of the plurality of first CUs.

[0449] In some embodiments, in a case where there is positive acknowledgement information in the sixth information from the plurality of first CUs, the target CU is the first CU that sends the positive acknowledgement information; and / or, in a case where the sixth information from the plurality of first CUs is all negative acknowledgement information, the plurality of first CUs are all not the target CU.

[0450] In some embodiments, the fifth information is a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration complete message, the RRC reconfiguration complete message is a response to a first RRC reconfiguration message, and the first RRC reconfiguration message carries cell configuration information corresponding to the target CU.

[0451] In some embodiments, the apparatus 1400 is associated with a plurality of CUs, and at least two CUs of the plurality of CUs belong to the same operator network.

[0452] FIG. 15 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application, which is applied to a first centralized unit (CU), as shown in FIG. 15, the communication apparatus 1500 (hereinafter referred to as the apparatus 1500) includes:

[0453] A fifth communication unit 1501 configured to receive fifth information from a target distributed unit (DU), the fifth information being associated with a target CU performing handover of the terminal device, and the target DU being associated with the apparatus 1500; and the fifth communication unit 1501 is further configured to send sixth information to the target DU, the sixth information being feedback information of the fifth information, and the sixth information being used to determine or indicate whether the apparatus 1500 is the target CU.

[0454] In some embodiments, in a case where the fifth information is associated with the apparatus 1500, the sixth information is positive acknowledgement information; and / or, in a case where the fifth information is not associated with the apparatus 1500, the sixth information is negative acknowledgement information.

[0455] In some embodiments, in a case where the sixth information is positive acknowledgement information, the apparatus 1500 is the target CU; and / or, in a case where the sixth information is negative acknowledgement information, the apparatus 1500 is not the target CU.

[0456] In some embodiments, the fifth information is a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration complete message, the RRC reconfiguration complete message is a response to a first RRC reconfiguration message, and the first RRC reconfiguration message carries the cell configuration information of the target CU.

[0457] In some embodiments, the target DU is associated with a plurality of CUs, and at least two CUs of the plurality of CUs belong to the same operator network.

[0458] FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application, which is applied to a terminal device. As shown in FIG. 16, a communication apparatus 1600 (hereinafter referred to as apparatus 1600) includes:

[0459] A sixth communication unit 1601, configured to receive seventh information from a network device, the seventh information being used to determine a first measurement order, the first measurement order being an order in which the apparatus 1600 measures measurement objects corresponding to a plurality of cells.

[0460] In some embodiments, the seventh information is used to indicate types of the plurality of cells.

[0461] In some embodiments, for a cell, if a distributed unit (DU) corresponding to the cell is associated with a first type of centralized unit (CU), the type of the cell is a first type; and / or for a cell, if a DU corresponding to the cell is associated with a second type of CU, the type of the cell is a second type; wherein the first type of CU is the same as a CU to which the apparatus 1600 is currently connected, and the second type of CU is different from the CU to which the apparatus 1600 is currently connected.

[0462] In some embodiments, the first measurement order includes: preferentially measuring measurement objects corresponding to cells of the first type in the plurality of cells, and then measuring measurement objects corresponding to cells of the second type in the plurality of cells.

[0463] In some embodiments, if there are a plurality of cells of the first type in the plurality of cells, an order in which the apparatus 1600 measures measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells of the first type is determined by the apparatus 1600; and / or if there are a plurality of cells of the second type in the plurality of cells, an order in which the apparatus 1600 measures measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells of the second type is determined by the apparatus 1600.

[0464] In some embodiments, the sixth communication unit 1601 is further configured to receive eighth information from the network device, the eighth information being used to indicate a second measurement order, the second measurement order being used to determine the first measurement order, the first measurement order being the same as or different from the second measurement order.

[0465] In some embodiments, the seventh information is carried by system information, or is carried by dedicated signaling.

[0466] In some embodiments, the seventh information is used to indicate measurement priorities of a plurality of measurement objects; the order in which the apparatus 1600 measures the plurality of measurement objects is consistent with the measurement priorities of the plurality of measurement objects; wherein the plurality of measurement objects comprise measurement objects corresponding to at least part of the plurality of cells.

[0467] In some embodiments, if there are at least two measurement objects in the plurality of measurement objects whose measurement priorities are the same, the order in which the apparatus 1600 measures the at least two measurement objects is determined by the apparatus 1600.

[0468] In some embodiments, the order in which the apparatus 1600 measures the at least two measurement objects is determined according to a preset rule.

[0469] In some embodiments, the order in which the apparatus 1600 measures a first measurement object is determined by the apparatus 1600; or the order in which the apparatus 1600 measures the first measurement object is after the order in which the apparatus 1600 measures the plurality of measurement objects; wherein the first measurement object comprises a measurement object other than the plurality of measurement objects among the measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells.

[0470] In some embodiments, FIG. 17 is a structural composition schematic diagram of a communication apparatus provided by the embodiments of the present application, and is applied to a network device, as shown in FIG. 17, the communication apparatus 1700 comprises:

[0471] A seventh communication unit 1701 configured to send seventh information to a terminal device, the seventh information being used to determine a first measurement order, the first measurement order being an order in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to a plurality of cells.

[0472] In some embodiments, the seventh information is used to indicate types of the plurality of cells.

[0473] In some embodiments, for a cell, if a distributed unit (DU) corresponding to the cell is associated with a first type of centralized unit (CU), a type of the cell is a first type; and / or for a cell, if a DU corresponding to the cell is associated with a second type of CU, a type of the cell is a second type; wherein the first type of CU is the same as a CU to which the terminal device is currently connected, and the second type of CU is different from the CU to which the terminal device is currently connected.

[0474] In some embodiments, the first measurement order comprises: preferentially measuring a measurement object corresponding to a cell belonging to the first type among the plurality of cells, and then measuring a measurement object corresponding to a cell belonging to the second type among the plurality of cells.

[0475] In some embodiments, if there are multiple cells belonging to the first type among the plurality of cells, an order in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to the multiple cells belonging to the first type is determined by the terminal device; and / or if there are multiple cells belonging to the second type among the plurality of cells, an order in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to the multiple cells belonging to the second type is determined by the terminal device.

[0476] In some embodiments, the seventh communication unit 1701 is further configured to: send eighth information to the terminal device, the eighth information being used to indicate a second measurement order, the second measurement order being used to determine the first measurement order, the first measurement order being the same as or different from the second measurement order.

[0477] In some embodiments, the seventh information is carried through system information or through dedicated signaling.

[0478] In some embodiments, the seventh information is used to indicate measurement priorities of a plurality of measurement objects; an order in which the terminal device measures the plurality of measurement objects is consistent with the measurement priorities of the plurality of measurement objects; wherein the plurality of measurement objects comprise measurement objects corresponding to at least part of the plurality of cells.

[0479] In some embodiments, if measurement priorities of at least two measurement objects among the plurality of measurement objects are the same, an order in which the terminal device measures the at least two measurement objects is determined by the terminal device.

[0480] In some embodiments, the terminal device determines the order in which the terminal device measures the first measurement objects; or the order in which the terminal device measures the first measurement objects is after the order in which the terminal device measures the plurality of measurement objects; wherein the first measurement objects include measurement objects other than the plurality of measurement objects among the measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells.

[0481] Those skilled in the art should understand that the above description of the communication apparatus of the embodiments of the present application can be understood with reference to the description of the communication method of the embodiments of the present application.

[0482] FIG. 18 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided by the embodiments of the present application. The communication device can be a terminal device, or can also be a DU (such as a target DU), or can also be a CU (such as a first CU), or can also be a network device (such as a source network device / network device). The communication device 1800 shown in FIG. 18 includes a processor 1810, which can invoke and run a computer program from a memory to implement the method in the embodiments of the present application.

[0483] Optionally, as shown in FIG. 18, the communication device 1800 can further include a memory 1820. The processor 1810 can invoke and run a computer program from the memory 1820 to implement the method in the embodiments of the present application.

[0484] The memory 1820 can be a separate device independent of the processor 1810, or can be integrated in the processor 1810.

[0485] Optionally, as shown in FIG. 18, the communication device 1800 can further include a transceiver 1830, and the processor 1810 can control the transceiver 1830 to communicate with other devices, specifically, to send information or data to other devices, or to receive information or data sent by other devices.

[0486] The transceiver 1830 can include a transmitter and a receiver. The transceiver 1830 can further include an antenna, and the number of antennas can be one or more.

[0487] Optionally, the communication device 1800 can be specifically a terminal device of the embodiments of the present application, and the communication device 1800 can implement the corresponding processes in the methods of the embodiments of the present application implemented by the terminal device. For the sake of brevity, details are not repeated here.

[0488] Optionally, the communication device 1800 can be a DU (e.g., a target DU) of embodiments of the present application, and the communication device 1800 can implement the corresponding procedures implemented by the DU (e.g., the target DU) in various methods of embodiments of the present application. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

[0489] Optionally, the communication device 1800 can be a CU (e.g., a first CU) of embodiments of the present application, and the communication device 1800 can implement the corresponding procedures implemented by the CU (e.g., the first CU) in various methods of embodiments of the present application. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

[0490] Optionally, the communication device 1800 can be a network device of embodiments of the present application, and the communication device 1800 can implement the corresponding procedures implemented by the network device in various methods of embodiments of the present application. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

[0491] FIG. 19 is a schematic structural diagram of a chip according to embodiments of the present application. The chip 1900 shown in FIG. 19 includes a processor 1910, which can call and run a computer program from a memory to implement the method in embodiments of the present application.

[0492] Optionally, as shown in FIG. 19, the chip 1900 can further include a memory 1920. The processor 1910 can call and run a computer program from the memory 1920 to implement the method in embodiments of the present application.

[0493] The memory 1920 can be a separate device independent of the processor 1910, or can be integrated in the processor 1910.

[0494] Optionally, the chip 1900 can further include an input interface 1930. The processor 1910 can control the input interface 1930 to communicate with other devices or chips, and specifically, can obtain information or data sent by other devices or chips.

[0495] Optionally, the chip 1900 can further include an output interface 1940. The processor 1910 can control the output interface 1940 to communicate with other devices or chips, and specifically, can output information or data to other devices or chips.

[0496] Optionally, the chip can be applied to a terminal device in embodiments of the present application, and the chip can implement the corresponding procedures implemented by the terminal device in various methods of embodiments of the present application. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

[0497] Optionally, the chip can be applied to the DU (e.g., the target DU) in the embodiments of the present application, and the chip can implement the corresponding procedures implemented by the DU (e.g., the target DU) in the various methods of the embodiments of the present application. For brevity, details are not described herein.

[0498] Optionally, the chip can be applied to the CU (e.g., the first CU) in the embodiments of the present application, and the chip can implement the corresponding procedures implemented by the CU (e.g., the first CU) in the various methods of the embodiments of the present application. For brevity, details are not described herein.

[0499] Optionally, the chip can be applied to the network device (e.g., the source network device / network device) in the embodiments of the present application, and the chip can implement the corresponding procedures implemented by the network device (e.g., the source network device / network device) in the various methods of the embodiments of the present application. For brevity, details are not described herein.

[0500] It should be understood that the chip mentioned in the embodiments of the present application can also be referred to as a system-level chip, a system chip, a chip system, or a system-on-chip chip, etc.

[0501] The embodiments of the present application also provide a computer storage medium, which stores one or more programs, and the one or more programs can be executed by one or more processors to implement the methods in the embodiments of the present application.

[0502] FIG. 20 is a schematic block diagram I of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 20, the communication system 2000 includes a terminal device 2010, a source network device 2020, a target DU 2030, and a CU 2040.

[0503] The terminal device 2010 can be configured to implement the corresponding functions performed by the terminal device in the above methods, the source network device 2020 can be configured to implement the corresponding functions performed by the source network device in the above methods, the target DU 2030 can be configured to implement the corresponding functions performed by the target DU in the above methods, and the CU 2040 can be configured to implement the corresponding functions performed by the CU (e.g., the first CU) in the above methods. For brevity, details are not described herein.

[0504] FIG. 21 is a schematic block diagram II of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 21, the communication system 2100 includes a terminal device 2110 and a network device 2120.

[0505] The terminal device 2110 can be configured to implement the corresponding functions performed by the terminal device in the above methods, and the network device 2120 can be configured to implement the corresponding functions performed by the network device in the above methods. For brevity, details are not described herein.

[0506] It should be understood that the processor of the embodiments of the present application can be an integrated circuit chip with a processing capability of signals. In the implementation process, each step of the method embodiments described above can be completed by the integrated logic circuit of hardware in the processor or the instructions in the form of software. The processor described above can be a general processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic devices, a discrete gate or transistor logic device, a discrete hardware component. The disclosed methods, steps and logic block diagrams in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented or executed. The general processor can be a microprocessor or the processor can also be any conventional processor or the like. The steps of the method disclosed in conjunction with the embodiments of the present application can be directly embodied as a hardware coding processor for execution, or a combination of hardware and software modules in the coding processor for execution. The software module can be located in a random access memory, a flash memory, a read only memory, a programmable read only memory or an electrically erasable programmable memory, a register or other mature storage medium in the art. The storage medium is located in the storage, and the processor reads the information in the storage, and combines the hardware to complete the steps of the above method.

[0507] It is to be understood that the memory in the embodiments of the present application can be a volatile memory or a nonvolatile memory, or can include both volatile and nonvolatile memory. Among them, the nonvolatile memory can be a read-only memory (Read-Only Memory, ROM), a programmable read-only memory (Programmable ROM, PROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (Erasable PROM, EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (Electrically EPROM, EEPROM) or a flash memory. The volatile memory can be a random access memory (Random Access Memory, RAM) used as an external cache. By way of example, but not limitation, many forms of RAM are available, such as static random access memory (Static RAM, SRAM), dynamic random access memory (Dynamic RAM, DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (Synchronous DRAM, SDRAM), double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (Double Data Rate SDRAM, DDR SDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (Enhanced SDRAM, ESDRAM), synchronous link dynamic random access memory (Synchlink DRAM, SLDRAM) and direct memory bus random access memory (Direct Rambus RAM, DR RAM). It should be noted that the memory of the system and method described herein is intended to include, but not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0508] It should be understood that the above-mentioned memory is exemplary but not limiting, for example, the memory in the embodiments of the present application can also be static random access memory (static RAM, SRAM), dynamic random access memory (dynamic RAM, DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (synchronous DRAM, SDRAM), double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (double data rate SDRAM, DDR SDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (enhanced SDRAM, ESDRAM), synchronous link dynamic random access memory (synch link DRAM, SLDRAM) and direct memory bus random access memory (Direct Rambus RAM, DR RAM) and the like. That is, the memory in the embodiments of the present application is intended to include, but not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0509] The embodiment of the present application further provides a computer readable storage medium for storing the computer program.

[0510] Optionally, the computer readable storage medium can be applied to the terminal device in the embodiment of the present application, and the computer program makes the computer execute the corresponding process realized by the terminal device in the various methods of the embodiment of the present application. For the sake of brevity, details are not repeated here.

[0511] Optionally, the computer readable storage medium can be applied to the DU (such as the target DU) in the embodiment of the present application, and the computer program makes the computer execute the corresponding process realized by the DU (such as the target DU) in the various methods of the embodiment of the present application. For the sake of brevity, details are not repeated here.

[0512] Optionally, the computer readable storage medium can be applied to the CU (such as the first CU) in the embodiment of the present application, and the computer program makes the computer execute the corresponding process realized by the CU (such as the first CU) in the various methods of the embodiment of the present application. For the sake of brevity, details are not repeated here.

[0513] Optionally, the computer readable storage medium can be applied to the network device (such as the source network device / network device) in the embodiment of the present application, and the computer program makes the computer execute the corresponding process realized by the network device (such as the source network device / network device) in the various methods of the embodiment of the present application. For the sake of brevity, details are not repeated here.

[0514] The embodiment of the present application further provides a computer program product comprising computer program instructions.

[0515] Optionally, the computer program product can be applied to the terminal device in the embodiment of the present application, and the computer program instructions make the computer execute the corresponding process realized by the terminal device in the various methods of the embodiment of the present application. For the sake of brevity, details are not repeated here.

[0516] Optionally, the computer program product can be applied to the DU (such as the target DU) in the embodiment of the present application, and the computer program instructions make the computer execute the corresponding process realized by the DU (such as the target DU) in the various methods of the embodiment of the present application. For the sake of brevity, details are not repeated here.

[0517] Optionally, the computer program product can be applied to the CU (such as the first CU) in the embodiment of the present application, and the computer program instructions make the computer execute the corresponding process realized by the CU (such as the first CU) in the various methods of the embodiment of the present application. For the sake of brevity, details are not repeated here.

[0518] Optionally, the computer program product can be applied to the network device (such as the source network device / network device) in the embodiments of the present application, and the computer program instructions cause the computer to execute the corresponding processes implemented by the network device (such as the source network device / network device) in the various methods of the embodiments of the present application. For the sake of brevity, details are not repeated here.

[0519] The embodiments of the present application further provide a computer program.

[0520] Optionally, the computer program can be applied to the terminal device in the embodiments of the present application, and when the computer program runs on the computer, causes the computer to execute the corresponding processes implemented by the terminal device in the various methods of the embodiments of the present application. For the sake of brevity, details are not repeated here.

[0521] Optionally, the computer program can be applied to the DU (such as the target DU) in the embodiments of the present application, and when the computer program runs on the computer, causes the computer to execute the corresponding processes implemented by the DU (such as the target DU) in the various methods of the embodiments of the present application. For the sake of brevity, details are not repeated here.

[0522] Optionally, the computer program can be applied to the CU (such as the first CU) in the embodiments of the present application, and when the computer program runs on the computer, causes the computer to execute the corresponding processes implemented by the CU (such as the first CU) in the various methods of the embodiments of the present application. For the sake of brevity, details are not repeated here.

[0523] Optionally, the computer program can be applied to the network device (such as the source network device / network device) in the embodiments of the present application, and when the computer program runs on the computer, causes the computer to execute the corresponding processes implemented by the network device (such as the source network device / network device) in the various methods of the embodiments of the present application. For the sake of brevity, details are not repeated here.

[0524] Those skilled in the art can realize that the units and algorithm steps of the examples described in combination with the embodiments disclosed herein can be realized in electronic hardware or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether the functions are realized in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to realize the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of the present application.

[0525] Those skilled in the art can clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of the description, the specific working processes of the above-described system, device and unit can refer to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and details are not repeated here.

[0526] In several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed system, device and method can be implemented in other manners. For example, the described device embodiments are merely schematic. The division of the units is merely logical function division. There can be other division manners in actual implementation. For example, a plurality of units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. In addition, the displayed or discussed mutual couplings or direct couplings or communication connections can be indirect couplings or communication connections through some interfaces, devices or units, and can be in electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0527] The units described as separate components can or can not be physically separate, and the components shown as units can or can not be physical units, i.e., can be located in one place, or can be distributed on a plurality of network units. Some or all of the units can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the embodiment.

[0528] In addition, each functional unit in the various embodiments of the present application can be integrated in one processing unit, or each unit can be physically present separately, or two or more units can be integrated in one unit.

[0529] If the functions are realized in the form of software function units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solutions of the present application can be embodied in the form of a software product in essence or the part of the technical solutions that make contributions to the prior art or the part of the technical solutions. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium, and includes a plurality of instructions for causing a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the method described in the various embodiments of the present application. The aforementioned storage medium includes: a U disk, a mobile hard disk, a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk or an optical disk, and various media that can store program codes.

[0530] The above description is merely specific embodiments of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art can easily think of changes or replacements within the technical scope disclosed in the present application, which should be covered in the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application should be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

A communication method applied to a terminal device, the method comprising: receiving first information from a source network device, the first information being used to determine a target centralized unit (CU) for the terminal device to perform handover, the target CU being included in one or more CUs associated with a target distributed unit (DU). The method of claim 1, wherein the first information is used to indicate one or more of: a type of the one or more CUs; an identity of the one or more CUs; a priority of the one or more CUs; a handover execution condition corresponding to the one or more CUs. The method of claim 2, wherein the type of the one or more CUs, and / or, the identity of the one or more CUs, is indicated by cell configuration information corresponding to the one or more CUs; the cell configuration information corresponding to the one or more CUs is further used to indicate: random access channel (RACH) resources associated with the one or more CUs. The method of any one of claims 1-3, wherein identities of different CUs among the one or more CUs are different; and / or RACH resources associated with different CUs among the one or more CUs are different. The method of any one of claims 1-4, wherein a cell measurement result corresponding to the target CU satisfies the handover execution condition corresponding to the target CU. The method of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein, The method further comprises: sending, to the target DU, second information used to indicate the target CU. The method of claim 6, wherein the second information is transmitted via first RACH resources, the first RACH resources being associated with the target CU. The method of claim 6, wherein the second information comprises one or more of: third information used to indicate a type of the target CU; fourth information used to indicate an identity of the target CU. The method of claim 6 or 8, wherein the second information is carried in a medium access control control element (MAC-CE), or, in a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH). The method of any one of claims 1-9, wherein for a CU, a type of the CU is a first type in a case that the CU is the same as a CU to which the terminal device is currently connected; and / or for a CU, a type of the CU is a second type in a case that the CU is different from the CU to which the terminal device is currently connected. The method of any one of claims 1-10, wherein the cell configuration information corresponding to the target CU is included in a first radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration message, the method further comprising: sending, to the target DU, an RRC reconfiguration complete message in response to the first RRC reconfiguration message. The method of claim 11, wherein a time at which the terminal device sends, to the target DU, second information used to indicate the target CU is not later than a time at which the terminal device sends, to the target DU, the RRC reconfiguration complete message. The method of any one of claims 1-12, wherein The target CU is included in a plurality of CUs associated with the target DU. The method of claim 13, wherein, Among the plurality of CUs associated with the target DU, there are at least two CUs belonging to a same operator network. The method of any of claims 1-14, wherein, The source network device is a source DU. A communication method applied to a source network device, the method comprising: sending, to a terminal device, first information used to determine a target centralized unit (CU) for the terminal device to perform handover, the target CU being included in one or more CUs associated with a target distributed unit (DU). The method of claim 16, wherein, The first information is used to indicate one or more of: a type of the one or more CUs; an identity of the one or more CUs; a priority of the one or more CUs; a handover execution condition corresponding to the one or more CUs. The method of claim 17, wherein, The type of the one or more CUs and / or the identity of the one or more CUs is indicated by cell configuration information corresponding to the one or more CUs; The cell configuration information corresponding to the one or more CUs is further used to indicate: random access channel (RACH) resources associated with the one or more CUs. The method of any of claims 16-18, wherein, The identities of different CUs among the one or more CUs are different; and / or, The RACH resources associated with different CUs among the one or more CUs are different. The method of any of claims 16-19, wherein, A cell measurement result corresponding to the target CU satisfies the handover execution condition corresponding to the target CU. The method of any of claims 16-20, wherein, For a CU, in a case where the CU is the same as a CU to which the terminal device is currently connected, a type of the CU is a first type; and / or, For a CU, in a case where the CU is different from a CU to which the terminal device is currently connected, a type of the CU is a second type. The method of any of claims 16-21, wherein, The target CU is included in a plurality of CUs associated with the target DU. The method of claim 22, wherein, Among the plurality of CUs associated with the target DU, there are at least two CUs belonging to a same operator network. The method of any of claims 16-23, wherein, The source network device is a source DU. A communication method applied to a target distributed unit (DU), the method comprising: receiving, from a terminal device, second information used to indicate a target centralized unit (CU) for the terminal device to perform handover, the target CU being included in one or more CUs associated with the target DU. The method of claim 25, wherein, The second information is transmitted through first random access channel (RACH) resources, the first RACH resources being associated with the target CU. The method of claim 25, wherein, The second information includes one or more of: third information used for indicating a type of the target CU; fourth information used for indicating an identity of the target CU. The method according to claim 25 or 27, wherein The second information is carried in a medium access control control element or a physical uplink control channel. The method according to any one of claims 25 to 28, wherein For a CU, the type of the CU is a first type in a case that the CU is the same as a CU to which the terminal device is currently connected; and / or For a CU, the type of the CU is a second type in a case that the CU is different from the CU to which the terminal device is currently connected. The method of any one of claims 25 to 29, wherein, The method further comprises: receiving an RRC reconfiguration complete message from the terminal device, the RRC reconfiguration complete message being a response to a first RRC reconfiguration message, the first RRC reconfiguration message carrying cell configuration information corresponding to the target CU; and sending the RRC reconfiguration complete message to the target CU, or sending a first message to the target CU in response to the RRC reconfiguration complete message, the first message containing contents of the RRC reconfiguration complete message. The method according to claim 30, wherein The target DU receives the second information no later than when the target DU receives the RRC reconfiguration complete message. The method according to any one of claims 25 to 31, wherein The target CU is included in a plurality of CUs associated with the target DU. The method according to claim 32, wherein Among the plurality of CUs associated with the target DU, at least two CUs belong to a same operator network. A communication method applied to a target distributed unit (DU), the method comprising: receiving fifth information from a terminal device, the fifth information being associated with a target centralized unit (CU) for which the terminal device performs handover; and sending the fifth information to one or more CUs, feedback information of the fifth information being used for determining or indicating the target CU, the target CU being included in the one or more CUs, the one or more CUs being associated with the target DU. The method according to claim 34, wherein The sending the fifth information to the one or more CUs comprises: sending the fifth information to the one or more CUs simultaneously; or sending the fifth information to the one or more CUs based on a first order. The method according to claim 35, wherein The first order is determined by the target DU. The method according to claim 35 or 36, wherein The first order is determined according to priorities of the one or more CUs. The method of any one of claims 34 to 37, wherein The one or more CUs include a first CU, and the method further comprises: receiving sixth information from the first CU, the sixth information being feedback information of the fifth information sent to the first CU, the sixth information being used for determining or indicating whether the first CU is the target CU. The method according to claim 38, wherein In a case where the sixth information is positive acknowledgement information, the first CU is the target CU; and / or, In a case where the sixth information is negative acknowledgement information, the first CU is not the target CU. The method of any one of claims 34 to 37, wherein, The one or more CUs comprise a plurality of first CUs, and the method further comprises: receiving sixth information from the plurality of first CUs; wherein the sixth information from the plurality of first CUs is feedback information of the fifth information sent to the plurality of first CUs, and is used to determine or indicate whether the target CU is one of the plurality of first CUs. According to the method of claim 40, wherein, In a case where there is positive acknowledgement information in the sixth information from the plurality of first CUs, the target CU is the first CU that sends the positive acknowledgement information; and / or, In a case where the sixth information from the plurality of first CUs is all negative acknowledgement information, the plurality of first CUs are all not the target CU. According to the method of any one of claims 34 to 41, wherein, The fifth information is a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration complete message, and the RRC reconfiguration complete message is a response to a first RRC reconfiguration message carrying cell configuration information corresponding to the target CU. According to the method of any one of claims 34 to 42, wherein, The target DU is associated with a plurality of CUs, and at least two CUs of the plurality of CUs belong to the same operator network. A communication method applied to a first centralized unit (CU), the method comprising: receiving fifth information from a target distributed unit (DU), the fifth information being associated with a target CU performing handover of the terminal device, the target DU being associated with the first CU; sending sixth information to the target DU, the sixth information being feedback information of the fifth information, and the sixth information being used to determine or indicate whether the first CU is the target CU. According to the method of claim 44, wherein, In a case where the fifth information is associated with the first CU, the sixth information is positive acknowledgement information; and / or, In a case where the fifth information is not associated with the first CU, the sixth information is negative acknowledgement information. According to the method of claim 44 or 45, wherein, In a case where the sixth information is positive acknowledgement information, the first CU is the target CU; and / or, In a case where the sixth information is negative acknowledgement information, the first CU is not the target CU. According to the method of any one of claims 44 to 46, wherein, The fifth information is a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration complete message, and the RRC reconfiguration complete message is a response to a first RRC reconfiguration message carrying cell configuration information corresponding to the target CU. According to the method of any one of claims 44 to 47, wherein, The target DU is associated with a plurality of CUs, and at least two CUs of the plurality of CUs belong to the same operator network. A communication method applied to a terminal device, the method comprising: receiving seventh information from a network device, the seventh information being used to determine a first measurement sequence, the first measurement sequence being a sequence in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to a plurality of cells. According to the method of any one of claims 49 to 54, wherein the seventh information is used to indicate types of the plurality of cells. According to the method of claim 50, wherein for a cell, the type of the cell is a first type in a case that a distributed unit (DU) corresponding to the cell is associated with a first type of centralized unit (CU); and / or for a cell, the type of the cell is a second type in a case that a DU corresponding to the cell is associated with a second type of CU; wherein the first type of CU is the same as a CU to which the terminal device is currently connected, and the second type of CU is different from the CU to which the terminal device is currently connected. According to the method of claim 51, wherein the first measurement sequence comprises: preferentially measuring measurement objects corresponding to cells belonging to the first type among the plurality of cells, and then measuring measurement objects corresponding to cells belonging to the second type among the plurality of cells. According to the method of claim 52, wherein if there are a plurality of cells belonging to the first type among the plurality of cells, a sequence in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells belonging to the first type is determined by the terminal device; and / or if there are a plurality of cells belonging to the second type among the plurality of cells, a sequence in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells belonging to the second type is determined by the terminal device. The method further comprises: The method of any one of claims 49 to 53, wherein, receiving eighth information from the network device, the eighth information being used to indicate a second measurement sequence, the second measurement sequence being used to determine the first measurement sequence, the first measurement sequence being the same as or different from the second measurement sequence. According to the method of any one of claims 49 to 54, wherein the seventh information is carried by system information or by dedicated signaling. According to the method of claim 49, wherein the seventh information is used to indicate measurement priorities of a plurality of measurement objects; a sequence in which the terminal device measures the plurality of measurement objects is consistent with the measurement priorities of the plurality of measurement objects; wherein the plurality of measurement objects comprise measurement objects corresponding to at least part of the plurality of cells. According to the method of claim 56, wherein if measurement priorities of at least two measurement objects among the plurality of measurement objects are the same, a sequence in which the terminal device measures the at least two measurement objects is determined by the terminal device. According to the method of claim 57, wherein the sequence in which the terminal device measures the at least two measurement objects is determined according to a preset rule. According to the method of any one of claims 56 to 58, wherein a sequence in which the terminal device measures a first measurement object is determined by the terminal device; or ​ The terminal device measures the first measurement object in a sequence, which is after the sequence in which the terminal device measures the plurality of measurement objects; The first measurement object includes measurement objects other than the plurality of measurement objects among the measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells. A communication method applied to a network device, the method comprising: sending, to a terminal device, seventh information used to determine a first measurement sequence, the first measurement sequence being a sequence in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to a plurality of cells. According to the method of claim 60, wherein The seventh information is used to indicate types of the plurality of cells. According to the method of claim 61, wherein For a cell, if a distributed unit (DU) corresponding to the cell is associated with a first type of centralized unit (CU), the type of the cell is a first type; and / or For a cell, if a DU corresponding to the cell is associated with a second type of CU, the type of the cell is a second type; The first type of CU is the same as a CU to which the terminal device is currently connected, and the second type of CU is different from the CU to which the terminal device is currently connected. According to the method of claim 62, wherein The first measurement sequence comprises: preferentially measuring measurement objects corresponding to cells belonging to the first type among the plurality of cells, and then measuring measurement objects corresponding to cells belonging to the second type among the plurality of cells. According to the method of claim 63, wherein If there are a plurality of cells belonging to the first type among the plurality of cells, the sequence in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells belonging to the first type is determined by the terminal device; and / or If there are a plurality of cells belonging to the second type among the plurality of cells, the sequence in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells belonging to the second type is determined by the terminal device. The method of any one of claims 60 to 64, wherein, The method further comprises: sending, to the terminal device, eighth information used to indicate a second measurement sequence, the second measurement sequence being used to determine the first measurement sequence, the first measurement sequence being the same as or different from the second measurement sequence. According to any one of claims 60 to 65, wherein The seventh information is carried by system information or by dedicated signaling. According to the method of claim 60, wherein The seventh information is used to indicate measurement priorities of a plurality of measurement objects; and the sequence in which the terminal device measures the plurality of measurement objects is consistent with the measurement priorities of the plurality of measurement objects; The plurality of measurement objects include measurement objects corresponding to at least part of the plurality of cells. According to the method of claim 67, wherein If there are at least two measurement objects with the same measurement priority among the plurality of measurement objects, the sequence in which the terminal device measures the at least two measurement objects is determined by the terminal device. According to the method of claim 67 or 68, wherein The order in which the terminal device measures the first measurement objects is determined by the terminal device; or The order in which the terminal device measures the first measurement objects is after the order in which the terminal device measures the plurality of measurement objects; The first measurement objects include measurement objects other than the plurality of measurement objects among the measurement objects corresponding to the plurality of cells. A communication apparatus, the apparatus comprising: A first communication unit configured to receive first information from a source network device, the first information being used to determine a target centralized unit, CU, for the apparatus to perform handover, the target CU being included in one or more CUs associated with a target distributed unit, DU. A communication apparatus, the apparatus comprising: A second communication unit configured to send first information to a terminal device, the first information being used to determine a target centralized unit, CU, for the terminal device to perform handover, the target CU being included in one or more CUs associated with a target distributed unit, DU. A communication apparatus, the apparatus comprising: A third communication unit configured to receive second information from a terminal device, the second information being used to indicate a target centralized unit, CU, for the terminal device to perform handover, the target CU being included in one or more CUs associated with the apparatus. A communication apparatus, the apparatus comprising: A fourth communication unit configured to receive fifth information from a terminal device, the fifth information being associated with a target centralized unit, CU, for the terminal device to perform handover; The fourth communication unit is further configured to send the fifth information to one or more CUs, feedback information of the fifth information being used to determine or indicate the target CU, the target CU being included in the one or more CUs, the one or more CUs being associated with the apparatus. A communication apparatus, the apparatus comprising: A fifth communication unit configured to receive fifth information from a target distributed unit, DU, the fifth information being associated with a target CU for a terminal device to perform handover, the target DU being associated with the apparatus; The fifth communication unit is further configured to send sixth information to the target DU, the sixth information being feedback information of the fifth information, the sixth information being used to determine or indicate whether the apparatus is the target CU. A communication apparatus, the apparatus comprising: A sixth communication unit configured to receive seventh information from a network device, the seventh information being used to determine a first measurement order, the first measurement order being an order in which the apparatus measures measurement objects corresponding to a plurality of cells. A communication apparatus, the apparatus comprising: A seventh communication unit configured to send seventh information to a terminal device, the seventh information being used to determine a first measurement order, the first measurement order being an order in which the terminal device measures measurement objects corresponding to a plurality of cells. A communication device, the communication device comprising: A memory for storing a computer program; A processor, connected to the memory, for calling and running the computer program from the memory, to implement the method of any one of claims 1 to 15, or the method of any one of claims 16 to 24, or the method of any one of claims 25 to 33, or the method of any one of claims 34 to 43, or the method of any one of claims 44 to 48, or the method of any one of claims 49 to 59, or the method of any one of claims 60 to 69. A transceiver for receiving and sending information in the process of transceiving information with other devices. A chip, the chip comprising: A processor for calling and running the computer program from the memory, to cause the device installed with the chip to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 15, or the method of any one of claims 16 to 24, or the method of any one of claims 25 to 33, or the method of any one of claims 34 to 43, or the method of any one of claims 44 to 48, or the method of any one of claims 49 to 59, or the method of any one of claims 60 to 69. A transceiver for receiving and sending information in the process of transceiving information with devices or chips. A computer readable storage medium for storing a computer program, the computer program causing a computer to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 15, or the method of any one of claims 16 to 24, or the method of any one of claims 25 to 33, or the method of any one of claims 34 to 43, or the method of any one of claims 44 to 48, or the method of any one of claims 49 to 59, or the method of any one of claims 60 to 69. ​

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