Communication method and apparatus

Abstract

A communication method and apparatus, which relate to the field of communications, and can solve the problem of it being impossible to perform a handover between a terrestrial cell and a non-terrestrial cell. The method comprises: receiving first cell information of a first network device, and receiving second cell information from at least one second network device, wherein the first network device is a network device corresponding to a source cell accessed by a terminal device, one of the first network device and the second network device is a terrestrial network device, and the other one of the first network device and the second network device is a non-terrestrial network device, such that target cell information of the terminal device can be determined on the basis of the first cell information and the second cell information, and a network device corresponding to a target cell is one of the at least one second network device; and sending the target cell information to the first network device.

Description

Communication method and apparatus

[0001] The present application claims priority from the Chinese patent application No. 202411292012.6 filed on September 13, 2024, and entitled "Communication method and apparatus", the content of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The present application relates to the field of communication, in particular to a communication method and apparatus. BACKGROUND

[0003] The non-terrestrial communication network (NTN) can effectively solve the demand of people in remote areas such as deserts, oceans, and grasslands to access the network. In urban areas, the ground base station signal coverage effect is better than the satellite base station. Since the mobile terminal device may move from the urban area to the remote area, or move from the remote area to the urban area, there is a cell handover between the ground base station and the satellite base station.

[0004] However, the relative position of the satellite base station and the ground base station changes, and it is difficult to maintain the Xn connection between the satellite base station and the ground base station at all times, which makes it difficult to select a suitable target cell, so that the target cell cannot be informed to complete the handover preparation, the handover command cannot be issued to the terminal device to inform the target cell, and finally the handover between the satellite cell and the ground cell cannot be completed. Therefore, how to solve the problem of not being able to complete the satellite cell and ground cell handover is an urgent problem to be solved. SUMMARY

[0005] The present application provides a communication method and apparatus, which connects the ground base station and the satellite base station through the control device, and completes the functions of adjacent area determination indication, interconnection following the satellite base station, and handover decision indication, which can effectively solve the problem of satellite cell and ground cell handover.

[0006] To achieve the above purpose, the present application adopts the following technical solutions:

[0007] In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be applied to a network side, such as a control device of the network side, a module (such as a circuit, a processor, a chip or a chip system, etc.) in the control device, or a logic node, a logic module or software capable of realizing all or part of the functions of the control device. Taking the case where the method is applied to the control device, in the method: first cell information from a first network device is received, the first network device being a network device corresponding to a source cell accessed by a terminal device, and at least one second cell information is received, the at least one second cell information corresponding to at least one second network device one by one, one of the first network device and the second network device being a ground network device and the other being a non-ground network device. Target cell information corresponding to the terminal device is sent to the first network device, the target cell information being determined according to the first cell information and the at least one second cell information, and the network device corresponding to the target cell being one of the at least one second network device.

[0008] In the method, the control device maintains a connection between the ground network device and the non-ground network device, and can perform a handover decision for the terminal device according to the received first cell information of the source cell corresponding to the first network device and the second cell information of each of the at least one second network device, one of the first network device and the second network device being a ground network device and the other being a non-ground network device, determine whether the terminal device needs to perform cell handover and target cell information of the handover, and send the target cell information to the first network device, so as to ensure the implementation of cell handover between the ground cell and the non-ground cell.

[0009] In a possible design, the method of the first aspect can further include: obtaining location information of the terminal device. The cell handover is performed for the terminal device according to the location information of the terminal device and the first cell information. The target cell information is determined according to the first cell information and the at least one second cell information. In this way, in addition to considering the state of the cell itself, such as the load state, to determine whether the terminal device needs to be switched for adjustment, the control device can also determine whether the terminal device is at the edge of the cell according to the current location of the terminal device, the received signal strength is weak, and thus perform a handover decision.

[0010] In a possible design, in a case where the first network device is a ground network device and the second network device is a non-ground network device: the first cell information can include neighbor cell information of the source cell, a load status of the source cell, and information about a terminal device to be handed over in the source cell, where the neighbor cell of the source cell includes a cell corresponding to the non-ground network device; and the second cell information can include at least one of the following: location information of the second network device, a beam scanning range of the second network device, an operating status of the second network device, neighbor cell information of a cell corresponding to the second network device, or a load status of the cell corresponding to the second network device, where the neighbor cell of the cell corresponding to the second network device includes a cell corresponding to the ground network device. In this way, cell handover between a ground network device and a non-ground network device, that is, cell handover between a ground cell and a non-ground cell, can be implemented.

[0011] In a possible design, in a case where the first network device is a non-ground network device and the second network device is a ground network device: the first cell information can include at least one of the following: location information of the first network device, a beam scanning range of the first network device, an operating status of the first network device, neighbor cell information of the source cell, a load status of the source cell, or information about a terminal device to be handed over in the source cell, where the neighbor cell of the source cell includes a cell corresponding to the ground network device; and the second cell information can include neighbor cell information of a cell corresponding to the second network device and a load status of the cell corresponding to the second network device, where the neighbor cell of the cell corresponding to the second network device includes a cell corresponding to the non-ground network device. In this way, cell handover between a non-ground network device and a ground network device, that is, cell handover between a non-ground cell and a ground cell, can be implemented.

[0012] In a possible design, the method in the first aspect can further include: receiving a handover request from the first network device, where the handover request is used to request to hand over the terminal device to a target cell; sending the handover request to a network device corresponding to the target cell; receiving a handover request response from the network device corresponding to the target cell; and sending the handover request response to the first network device. In this way, after the target cell is acquired, a handover preparation procedure performed between the source network device and the target network device can be implemented through a control device.

[0013] In a second aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be applied to a network side, for example, a first network device of the network side, a module (for example, a circuit, a processor, a chip or a chip system, etc.) in the first network device, or a logic node, a logic module or software capable of realizing all or part of the functions of the first network device. Taking the case where the method is applied to the first network device as an example, in the method: the first network device sends first cell information to a control device, and the first network device is a network device corresponding to a source cell accessed by a terminal device. The first network device receives target cell information of the terminal device from the control device, and one of the first network device and a network device corresponding to the target cell is a ground network device, and the other is a non-ground network device.

[0014] In a possible design, in the case where the first network device is a ground network device, the first cell information can include neighbor cell information of the source cell, a load status of the source cell and information of a terminal device to be handed over in the source cell, wherein the neighbor cell of the source cell includes a cell corresponding to a non-ground network device.

[0015] In a possible design, in the case where the first network device is a non-ground network device, the first cell information can include at least one of the following: location information of the first network device, a beam scanning range of the first network device, a working status of the first network device, neighbor cell information of the source cell, a load status of the source cell, or information of a terminal device to be handed over in the source cell, wherein the neighbor cell of the source cell is a cell corresponding to a ground network device, and the neighbor cell of the source cell includes a cell corresponding to the ground network device.

[0016] In a possible design, the method in the second aspect can further include: the first network device sends a handover request to the control device, and the handover request is used to request the terminal device to hand over to the target cell; and the first network device receives a handover request response from the control device.

[0017] The technical effects of the method in the second aspect can refer to the related descriptions of the technical effects of the method in the first aspect, and details are not described herein.

[0018] In a third aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be applied to a network side, for example, a target network device of the network side, a module (for example, a circuit, a processor, a chip or a chip system, etc.) in the target network device, or a logic node, a logic module or software capable of realizing all or part of the functions of the target network device. Taking the case where the method is applied to the target network device, in the method: the target network device sends second cell information to a control device, and the target network device is a network device corresponding to a target cell of a terminal device. The target network device receives a handover request from a first network device through the control device, the handover request is used to request to hand over the terminal device to the target cell, the first network device is a network device corresponding to a source cell accessed by the terminal device, and one of the first network device and the target network device is a ground network device and the other is a non-ground network device. The target network device sends a handover request response to the first network device through the control device.

[0019] In a possible design, when the target network device is a non-ground network device, the second cell information can include at least one of the following: location information of the target network device, a beam scanning range of the target network device, a working state of the target network device, neighboring cell information of a cell corresponding to the target network device, or a load state of the cell corresponding to the target network device, wherein the neighboring cell of the cell corresponding to the target network device includes a cell corresponding to a ground network device.

[0020] In a possible design, when the target network device is a ground network device, the second cell information includes neighboring cell information of a cell corresponding to the target network device and a load state of the cell corresponding to the target network device, wherein the neighboring cell of the cell corresponding to the target network device includes a cell corresponding to a non-ground network device.

[0021] The technical effect of the method described in the third aspect can refer to the related description of the technical effect of the method described in the first aspect, and details are not repeated.

[0022] In a fourth aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be applied to a network side, for example, a first network device of the network side, a module (for example, a circuit, a processor, a chip or a chip system, etc.) in the first network device, or a logic node, a logic module or software capable of realizing all or part of the functions of the first network device. Taking the case where the method is applied to the first network device, in the method: the first network device receives at least one second cell information from a control device, the first network device is a network device corresponding to a source cell accessed by a terminal device, the at least one second cell information corresponds to at least one second network device in a one-to-one manner, one of the first network device and the second network device is a ground network device, and the other is a non-ground network device. The first network device determines target cell information of the terminal device according to the first cell information and the at least one second cell information, and the network device corresponding to the target cell is one of the at least one second network device.

[0023] In the method, as the source network device, the first network device can obtain the second cell information of each of the at least one second network device from the control device, so that the first network device and the second network device, one of which is a ground network device and the other is a non-ground network device, can perform a handover decision for the terminal device according to the locally obtained first cell information and the second cell information of the at least one second network device, to determine whether the terminal device needs to perform cell handover and the target cell information of the handover, thereby ensuring the implementation of cell handover between a ground cell and a non-ground cell.

[0024] In a possible design, in the case where the first network device is a ground network device and the second network device is a non-ground network device: the first cell information can include neighbor cell information of the source cell, a load state of the source cell and information of a terminal device to be handed over in the source cell, wherein the neighbor cell of the source cell includes a cell corresponding to the non-ground network device; and the second cell information can include at least one of the following: location information of the second network device, a beam scanning range of the second network device, an operating state of the second network device, neighbor cell information of a cell corresponding to the second network device, or a load state of the cell corresponding to the second network device, wherein the neighbor cell of the cell corresponding to the second network device includes a cell corresponding to the ground network device.

[0025] In a possible design, in a case where the first network device is a non-ground network device and the second network device is a ground network device, the first cell information can include at least one of the following: location information of the first network device, a beam scanning range of the first network device, an operating state of the first network device, neighboring cell information of the source cell, a load state of the source cell, or information about a terminal device to be handed over in the source cell, where the neighboring cell of the source cell includes a cell corresponding to the ground network device; and the second cell information can include neighboring cell information of a cell corresponding to the second network device and a load state of the cell corresponding to the second network device, where the neighboring cell of the cell corresponding to the second network device includes a cell corresponding to the non-ground network device.

[0026] In a possible design, the method in the fourth aspect further can include: sending, by the first network device, a handover request to a network device corresponding to the target cell according to the target cell information, by using the control device. The first network device receives a handover request response from the network device corresponding to the target cell, by using the control device.

[0027] In a fifth aspect, a communication apparatus is provided for implementing the methods described above. The communication apparatus can be the control device in the first aspect, or a device including the control device, or a device included in the control device, such as a chip. The communication apparatus includes corresponding modules, units, or means for implementing the methods described in the first aspect, which can be implemented by hardware, software, or by executing corresponding software with hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules or units corresponding to the above functions.

[0028] In some possible designs, the communication apparatus includes a first transceiver, a second transceiver, and a processing module. The first transceiver is configured to receive first cell information from a first network device, and the second transceiver is configured to receive at least one second cell information. The first network device is a network device corresponding to a source cell accessed by a terminal device, and the at least one second cell information corresponds to at least one second network device. One of the first network device and the second network device is a ground network device, and the other is a non-ground network device. The first transceiver is further configured to send target cell information to the first network device, where the target cell information corresponds to the terminal device, and the target cell information is determined by the processing module according to the first cell information and the at least one second cell information. The network device corresponding to the target cell is one of the at least one second network device. For more details of the communication apparatus, refer to the description of the method in the first aspect.

[0029] In a sixth aspect, a communication apparatus is provided for implementing the methods described above. The communication apparatus can be the first network device in the second aspect, or a device including the first network device, or a chip included in the first network device. The communication apparatus includes corresponding modules, units, or means for implementing the methods described above. The modules, units, or means can be implemented in hardware, or in software, or in an execution of the corresponding software by a hardware.

[0030] In some possible design, the communication apparatus includes a processing module and a first transceiver module. The first transceiver module is configured to send the first cell information to the control device, and the communication apparatus is a network device corresponding to a source cell accessed by the terminal device. The first transceiver module is further configured to receive target cell information of the terminal device from the control device, and one of the communication apparatus and the network device corresponding to the target cell is a ground network device, and the other is a non-ground network device. The processing module is configured to determine the network device corresponding to the target cell according to the target cell information. More details of the communication apparatus can be referred to the description of the method in the second aspect.

[0031] In a seventh aspect, a communication apparatus is provided for implementing the methods described above. The communication apparatus can be the target network device in the third aspect, or a device including the target network device, or a chip included in the target network device. The communication apparatus includes corresponding modules, units, or means for implementing the methods described above. The modules, units, or means can be implemented in hardware, or in software, or in an execution of the corresponding software by a hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules or units corresponding to the functions described above.

[0032] In some possible design, the communication apparatus includes a processing module and a second transceiver module. The processing module is configured to generate the second cell information. The second transceiver module is configured to send the second cell information to the control device, and the communication apparatus is a network device corresponding to a target cell of the terminal device. The second transceiver module is further configured to receive, through the control device, a handover request from the first network device, the handover request being used to request to handover the terminal device to the target cell, the first network device being a network device corresponding to a source cell accessed by the terminal device, and one of the first network device and the communication apparatus is a ground network device, and the other is a non-ground network device. The second transceiver module is further configured to send, through the control device, a handover request response to the first network device. More details of the communication apparatus can be referred to the description of the method in the third aspect.

[0033] In an eighth aspect, a communication apparatus is provided for implementing the methods described above. The communication apparatus can be the first network device in the fourth aspect, or a device including the first network device, or a device included in the first network device, such as a chip. The communication apparatus includes corresponding modules, units, or means for implementing the methods described in the fourth aspect, which can be implemented by hardware, software, or by executing corresponding software by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules or units corresponding to the functions described above.

[0034] In some possible designs, the communication apparatus includes a processing module and a first transceiver module. The first transceiver module is configured to receive at least one second cell information from a control device, the communication apparatus is a network device corresponding to a source cell accessed by a terminal device, the at least one second cell information corresponds to at least one second network device in a one-to-one manner, and one of the communication apparatus and the second network device is a ground network device and the other is a non-ground network device. The processing module is configured to determine target cell information of the terminal device according to the first cell information and the at least one second cell information, and a network device corresponding to the target cell is one of the at least one second network device. For more details of the communication apparatus, refer to the description of the method in the fourth aspect.

[0035] With reference to any one of the fifth aspect to the eighth aspect, in a possible design, the transceiver module can include a receiving module and a sending module. The sending module is configured to implement the sending function of the communication apparatus in any one of the fifth aspect to the eighth aspect, and the receiving module is configured to implement the receiving function of the communication apparatus in any one of the fifth aspect to the eighth aspect.

[0036] In a possible design, the communication apparatus in any one of the fifth aspect to the eighth aspect can further include a storage module. The storage module stores a program or an instruction. When the processing module executes the program or the instruction, the communication apparatus in the fifth aspect can execute the method in the first aspect, or the communication apparatus in the sixth aspect can execute the method in the second aspect, or the communication apparatus in the sixth aspect can execute the method in the third aspect, or the communication apparatus in the eighth aspect can execute the method in the fourth aspect.

[0037] In a ninth aspect, a communication apparatus is provided, including modules for implementing the methods in any one of the first aspect to the fourth aspect.

[0038] In a tenth aspect, a communication apparatus (for example, the communication apparatus can be a chip or a chip system) is provided. The communication apparatus includes a processor configured to implement the functions involved in any one of the aspects.

[0039] In a possible design, the communication apparatus further includes a memory configured to store necessary program instructions and data. The processor is coupled to the memory, and is configured to execute the computer program or instructions stored in the memory, so that the communication apparatus performs the method in any possible implementation of the first aspect to the fourth aspect.

[0040] In a possible design, the communication apparatus in the tenth aspect further includes a transceiver. The transceiver can be a transceiver circuit or an interface circuit. The transceiver can be configured to enable the communication apparatus in the tenth aspect to communicate with another communication apparatus.

[0041] In a possible design, the processor can be integrated with the memory.

[0042] In some possible designs, when the apparatus is a chip system, the apparatus can be formed by a chip, or can include a chip and other discrete devices.

[0043] In an eleventh aspect, a communication apparatus is provided. The communication apparatus includes a processor and an interface circuit. The interface circuit is configured to receive a signal from another communication apparatus outside the communication apparatus and transmit the signal to the processor, or send a signal from the processor to the other communication apparatus outside the communication apparatus. The processor is configured to implement the method in any possible implementation of the first aspect to the fourth aspect by using a logic circuit or executing code instructions.

[0044] It can be understood that, when the communication apparatus in any one of the tenth aspect or the eleventh aspect is a chip, the sending action / functionality described above can be understood as output, and the receiving action / functionality described above can be understood as input.

[0045] In a twelfth aspect, a communication chip is provided. The communication chip has stored therein instructions that, when executed on a communication device, cause the method in any one of the first aspect to the fourth aspect described above to be implemented.

[0046] In a thirteenth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided. The computer-readable storage medium has stored therein computer programs or instructions that, when executed on a communication apparatus, cause the communication apparatus to perform the method in any one of the first aspect to the fourth aspect described above.

[0047] In a fourteenth aspect, a computer program product is provided. The computer program product includes instructions, which, when executed on a communication apparatus, cause the communication apparatus to perform the method in any one of the first aspect to the fourth aspect described above.

[0048] In a fifteenth aspect, a communication system is provided, comprising: a control device for implementing the method of the first aspect, and a first network device for implementing the method of the second aspect and a target network device for implementing the method of the third aspect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0049] FIG. 1 is a flowchart of a cell handover;

[0050] FIG. 2 is a curve diagram of a change of ground coverage and satellite coverage;

[0051] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of connection between ground base stations through an Xn interface or an NG interface;

[0052] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a new communication system architecture provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0053] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a handover scenario suitable for the embodiments of the present application;

[0054] FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0055] FIGS. 7-10 are schematic diagrams of the structure of a communication device provided by the embodiments of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0056] The embodiments of the present application will present various aspects, embodiments or features around a system which can include a plurality of devices, components, modules, etc. It should be understood and appreciated that each system can include additional devices, components, modules, etc., and / or can not include all of the devices, components, modules, etc. discussed in connection with the figures. Furthermore, combinations of these approaches can also be used.

[0057] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application are mainly applied to a communication system integrating ground network and non-ground network, and can be applied to various communication systems, such as a 4th generation (4G) mobile communication system, e.g., a long term evolution (LTE) system, a worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) communication system, a 5th generation (5G) mobile communication system, e.g., a new radio (NR) system, and a future communication system.

[0058] For easy understanding, the following first introduces related terms, concepts or technologies that can be involved in the embodiments of the present application:

[0059] 1. Cell handover

[0060] Due to the movement of the terminal device, the signal quality of the cell currently accessed by the terminal device can become poor, and the terminal device needs to be switched to a cell with better signal quality to obtain service. For the traditional switching process, the switching of the terminal device is controlled by the network device, that is, the network device instructs the terminal device to switch to which cell and how to switch by sending a switching command. As shown in FIG. 1, after receiving the switching command, the terminal device accesses the target cell according to the content contained in the switching command, therefore, the network side needs to obtain the target cell identifier. The switching process includes the following steps:

[0061] S101, the source base station sends a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration message to the terminal device. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the RRC reconfiguration message from the source base station.

[0062] The source base station sends an RRC reconfiguration message to the terminal device in a connected state to instruct the terminal device to perform measurement, wherein the RRC reconfiguration message contains parameters such as measurement object, reporting configuration, and measurement identifier.

[0063] The reporting configuration defines the related configuration of the measurement report, including the reporting evaluation criteria of the measurement report, such as whether the measurement report is triggered by a measurement event or is periodically reported. For example, the measurement event can be at least one of event A1, event A2, event A3, event A4, event A5, event A6, event B1, or event B2. The description of the specific event can refer to the description in section 5.4.4 of technical specification (TS) 38.331 of the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP). The threshold corresponding to the measurement event is the reference value for determining the entry or exit of the event, and the specific value of the threshold is usually configured by the network device.

[0064] When the measurement result (which can be a measurement result after filtering and other processing) meets the entry condition of a certain measurement event and lasts for a time-to-trigger (TTT), it can be considered that the measurement event is met. The TTT can be configured by the network side or agreed in advance. It can be understood that by agreement, when the exit condition of a certain measurement event is met and lasts for a period of time, it can also be considered that the measurement event is met.

[0065] S102, the terminal device sends a measurement report to the source base station. Correspondingly, the source base station receives the measurement report from the terminal device.

[0066] After the terminal device measures the cell according to the RRC reconfiguration message, a measurement report is formed to report various events to the source base station.

[0067] S103, the source base station performs handover decision.

[0068] After the source base station receives the measurement report, it determines to perform cell handover, i.e., from the source base station to the target base station, according to the measurement report decision.

[0069] S104, the source base station sends a handover request to the target base station. Correspondingly, the target base station receives the handover request from the source base station.

[0070] S105, the target base station performs admission control.

[0071] The target base station determines whether to allow the terminal device to access according to the handover request, and if the result of the decision is to allow, it sends a handover confirmation message to the source base station, wherein the handover request confirmation contains new cell-radio network temporary identifier (C-RNTI), target base station security-related algorithm and other parameters.

[0072] S106, the target base station sends a handover request acknowledgement (ACK) to the source base station. Correspondingly, the source base station receives the handover request acknowledgement from the target base station.

[0073] S107, the source base station sends an RRC reconfiguration message to the terminal device. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the RRC reconfiguration message from the source base station.

[0074] After the source base station receives the handover confirmation message from the target base station, it sends an RRC reconfiguration message (handover command) to the terminal device, and the content contained in the RRC reconfiguration message comes from the handover request acknowledgement of S106. Specifically, the handover command in the NR system contains the related information of the target cell and the related configuration parameters required for the terminal device to access the target cell. For example, the target cell information (such as the physical cell identifier (PCI) of the target cell and the frequency information corresponding to the target cell), the C-RNTI allocated by the target cell to the terminal device, the random access channel (RACH) resource information (such as dedicated RACH resource and / or public RACH resource) required for the terminal device to access the target cell, etc.

[0075] S108, the terminal device performs random access with the target base station.

[0076] The terminal device initiates random access to the target base station according to the handover command. In the existing handover process, the terminal device disconnects from the source base station, and there is a short interruption in the data transmission and reception of the terminal device before successfully accessing the target base station.

[0077] S109, the terminal device sends an RRC Reconfiguration Complete message to the target base station. Correspondingly, the target base station receives the RRC Reconfiguration Complete message from the terminal device.

[0078] The above cell switching is that the network device judges the target cell based on the reference signal receiving power (RSRP), signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR), or reference signal receiving quality (RSRQ) of the neighboring cell of the current serving cell measured and reported by the terminal device at a certain moment, and instructs the terminal device to switch from the current cell to the target cell.

[0079] It should be understood that the network device involved in the embodiments of the present application can also be referred to as a radio access network (RAN) node, an access network device, a RAN entity or an access node, etc., located at the network side of the above-mentioned communication system, used to help terminal devices to realize wireless access, and a device with wireless transceiving function or a chip or chip system that can be arranged in the device. The network device can include but is not limited to: a base station, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), an access point (AP), a transmission reception point (TRP), a next generation Node-B (gNB), a base station in a future mobile communication system, etc. The network device can be a macro base station, a micro base station or an indoor station, a relay node or a donor node, an open radio access network (ORAN) or a centralized radio access network (CRAN) scenario wireless controller. Optionally, the RAN node can also be a server, a wearable device, a vehicle or a vehicle-mounted device, etc. For example, the network device in the vehicle to everything (V2X) technology can be a road side unit (RSU). All or part of the functions of the network device in the present application can also be realized by software functions running on hardware, or by virtualized functions instantiated on a platform (such as a cloud platform). The network device in the present application can also be a logical node, a logical module or software that can realize all or part of the functions of the network device.

[0080] In another possible scenario, a terminal device is assisted by multiple RAN nodes to implement wireless access in cooperation, and different RAN nodes respectively implement part of functions of a base station. For example, a RAN node can be a central unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), a CU-control plane (CP), a CU-user plane (UP), or a radio unit (RU), etc. The CU and the DU can be separately arranged, or can be included in the same network element, for example, in a baseband unit (BBU). The RU can be included in a radio frequency device or a radio frequency unit, for example, in a remote radio unit (RRU), an active antenna processing unit (AAU), or a remote radio head (RRH).

[0081] In different systems, the CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU or RU can also have different names, but those skilled in the art can understand their meanings. For example, in an ORAN system, the CU can also be referred to as an O-CU (open CU), the DU can also be referred to as an O-DU, the CU-CP can also be referred to as an O-CU-CP, the CU-UP can also be referred to as an O-CU-UP, and the RU can also be referred to as an O-RU. For the convenience of description, the CU, CU-CP, CU-UP, DU and RU are taken as examples for description in this application. Any one of the CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU and RU in this application can be implemented by a software module, a hardware module, or a combination of a software module and a hardware module.

[0082] The form of the network device is not limited in the embodiments of this application, and the device for implementing the functions of the network device can be the network device; or can be a device capable of supporting the network device to implement the functions, for example, a chip system. The device can be installed in the network device or used in matching with the network device.

[0083] The terminal device involved in the embodiments of the present application is a terminal with wireless transceiving function or a chip or chip system that can be arranged in the terminal, which accesses the above communication system. The terminal device can also be referred to as user equipment (UE), user device, access terminal, user unit, user station, mobile station, mobile station, remote station, remote terminal, mobile device, user terminal, terminal, wireless communication device, user agent or user device. The terminal device in the embodiments of the present application can be a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a computer with wireless transceiving function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal in industrial control, a wireless terminal in self-driving, a wireless terminal in remote medical treatment, a wireless terminal in smart grid, a wireless terminal in transportation safety, a wireless terminal in smart city, a wireless terminal in smart home, a vehicle-mounted terminal, a RSU with terminal function, etc. The terminal device in the present application can also be a vehicle-mounted module, a vehicle-mounted component, a vehicle-mounted chip or a vehicle-mounted unit built in a vehicle as one or more components or units, and the vehicle can implement the method provided in the present application by the built-in vehicle-mounted module, vehicle-mounted component, vehicle-mounted chip or vehicle-mounted unit.

[0084] The embodiments of the present application do not limit the device form of the terminal device, and the device for realizing the function of the terminal device can be the terminal device; or can be a device capable of supporting the terminal device to realize the function, such as a chip system. The device can be installed in the terminal device or used in matching with the terminal device. In the embodiments of the present application, the chip system can be composed of a chip, or can include a chip and other discrete devices.

[0085] 2, NTN communication

[0086] NTN communication has the advantages of wide coverage, long communication distance, high reliability, great flexibility, high throughput, etc., and is not affected by geographical environment, climate conditions and natural disasters, and has been widely used in aviation communication, maritime communication, military communication and other fields. Introducing NTN into 5G mobile networks can improve the performance of communication systems. Satellite communication systems and high-altitude platform communication systems (HAPS) are typical non-terrestrial communication systems. On the one hand, satellite networks can provide communication services for areas that are difficult for ground networks to cover, such as oceans, forests, deserts or remote areas; on the other hand, satellite networks can enhance the reliability of 5G communication, such as providing more stable communication services for users in high-speed mobile scenarios such as trains and airplanes. In addition, satellite networks can also provide more data transmission resources to support a larger number of connections.

[0087] Generally speaking, the higher the orbit of the satellite, the larger the coverage area, but the longer the communication delay. According to the orbit height, satellites can be divided into:

[0088] (1) Low Earth Orbit (LEO): orbit height is 160-2000 kilometers (km);

[0089] (2) Medium Earth Orbit (MEO): orbit height is 2000-35786 km;

[0090] (3) Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO): orbit height is 35786 km;

[0091] Among them, GEO is a synchronous earth satellite orbit, and the satellite running on this orbit is stationary relative to the ground; LEO and MEO are collectively referred to as non-geostationary orbit (NGSO), and the satellite running on this type of orbit moves at high speed relative to the ground.

[0092] For NGSO, according to whether the satellite beam moves with the satellite, it can be further divided into Earth Moving Cell and Earth Fixed Cell. For Earth Moving Cell, the cell is moving relative to the ground, and the satellite beam pointing follows the satellite movement; for Earth Fixed Cell, the cell is fixed relative to the ground within a certain time, and the satellite antenna can use its beamforming ability to point the beam to a certain area fixed on the ground within a certain time.

[0093] By deploying a large number of satellites in low orbits and medium-high orbits, an NTN network is formed.

[0094] According to the working mode, satellites can be generally divided into two categories. The first type is transparent, the satellite forwards the information of the cell of the ground network device (such as gNB), and the role of the satellite is wireless frequency filtering, frequency conversion and amplification, that is, the satellite mainly acts as a layer 1 relay (L1 relay), regenerates the physical layer signal, and does not have other higher protocol layers. The second type is regenerative, the satellite has the processing function of the base station. In the regenerative working mode, it can be further divided into regenerative satellites without inter-satellite links, that is, there is no inter-satellite link (ISL) between satellites; regenerative satellites with inter-satellite links, that is, there is an interface between satellites for direct data interaction, wherein the inter-satellite link is an Xn interface; and a satellite only has the DU processing function of the base station, and the satellite acts as a DU in this scenario.

[0095] NTN can effectively solve the demand of people in remote areas such as deserts, oceans, grasslands and the like to access the network, and in urban clusters, the coverage effect of the ground base station is better than that of the satellite base station. As shown in FIG. 2, when the terminal device is located in urban cluster 1, the coverage effect of the ground base station is better than that of the satellite base station, when the terminal device moves from urban cluster 1 to a remote area such as an ocean / lake / desert, the coverage effect of the satellite base station is better than that of the ground base station, and when the terminal device moves from the remote area to urban cluster 2, the coverage effect of the ground base station is better than that of the satellite base station.

[0096] During the movement of the terminal device, it is expected to access the network with the best network quality and the best coverage, so cell switching between the ground base station and the satellite base station will occur.

[0097] However, cell switching requires the source cell and the target cell to maintain connection and complete interaction. In the ground network, the ground base stations can be connected through an Xn interface or an NG interface. As shown in FIG. 3, taking a 5G base station (gNB) as an example, the gNBs are connected through an Xn interface, and the gNB and the access and mobility management function (AMF) / user plane function (UPF) are connected through an NG interface. Similarly, in the satellite network, the satellite base stations are also connected through an Xn interface or an NG interface.

[0098] In the satellite network and ground network fusion networking, due to the high-speed movement of the satellite, the covered ground area will change all the time, and a large number of terminal devices perform handover, so that the base station needs to make a handover indication to ensure that the satellite cell / ground cell has good handover signal quality. However, the relative position of the satellite base station and the ground base station changes, and the satellite base station and the ground base station are difficult to maintain Xn connection all the time, which makes it difficult to select a suitable target cell, and the target cell cannot be informed of the completion of handover preparation, and the terminal device cannot be informed of the target cell by issuing a handover command, and finally the satellite cell and the ground cell cannot complete handover. Therefore, how to solve the problem of not being able to complete the satellite cell and the ground cell handover is an urgent problem to be solved.

[0099] Therefore, the embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, which connects the ground base station and the satellite base station through the control device, and completes the functions of adjacent area determination indication, interconnection following the satellite base station, and handover decision indication, so as to effectively solve the problem of satellite cell and ground cell handover.

[0100] In order to better understand the embodiments of the present application, the following points are explained before the embodiments of the present application are introduced.

[0101] Firstly, in the embodiments of the present application, the first, second and various numbers are only for the convenience of description and do not limit the scope of the embodiments of the present application. For example, different indication information is distinguished. For another example, the first network area and the second network area are only used to distinguish different areas, and the order is not limited. Those skilled in the art can understand that the words "first", "second" and the like do not limit the number and execution order, and the words "first", "second" and the like do not necessarily mean different.

[0102] Secondly, in the embodiments of the present application, "when", "in the case of", "if" and the like all mean that the device (such as a terminal device or a network device) will make corresponding processing under certain objective circumstances, and are not limited by time. It is not required that the device (such as a terminal device or a network device) must have a judgment action when it is implemented, and it does not mean that there are other limitations.

[0103] Thirdly, in the embodiments of the present application, the words "exemplary" or "for example" are used to mean by way of example, illustration or description. Any embodiment or design scheme described as "exemplary" or "for example" in the embodiments of the present application should not be interpreted as more preferred or more advantageous than other embodiments or design schemes. On the contrary, the use of "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present the relevant concept in a specific manner, so as to facilitate understanding.

[0104] Fourthly, in the embodiments of the present application, "at least one" means one or more, and "multiple" means two or more. The "and / or" describes the association relationship of the associated objects, which means that there can be three kinds of 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, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally represents an "or" relationship between the associated objects before and after it. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions means any combination of multiple items, including any combination of single item or multiple items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can represent a, b, c, a-b, a-c, b-c, or a-b-c, where a, b, and c can be single or multiple.

[0105] Finally, the network architecture and service scenarios described in the embodiments of the present application are used to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application. Those skilled in the art can know that, with the evolution of network architecture and the appearance of new service scenarios, the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application are also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0106] The system architecture related to the embodiments of the present application will be introduced as follows:

[0107] For example, FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a new communication system provided by the embodiments of the present application. As shown in FIG. 4, the communication system includes a control device, a first network device, and at least one second network device. Among them, one of the first network device and the second network device is a ground network device, and the other is a non-ground network device.

[0108] Among them, the control device can also be called a control node, a control apparatus, a control entity, etc., and can be set up in a ground area where ground cells and non-ground cells are likely to be switched, connected with the first network device and at least one second network device, and used to realize cell switching between the ground network device and the non-ground network device, having functions such as executing switching decision and issuing switching command.

[0109] The control device can real-time record and refresh the information (such as position, moving speed, etc.) of the non-ground network device, calculate the angle of the antenna of the non-ground network device according to the information of the non-ground network device, and adjust the beam pointing direction so that the beam is directed to multiple non-ground network devices, thereby ensuring that the control device always maintains wireless connection with the non-ground network device. The control device and the ground network device are in a relatively static relationship, and the control device can always maintain connection with the ground network device through physical connection, wireless connection, etc.

[0110] In one possible structure, as shown in FIG. 7, the control device can include a first transceiver module for communicating with the ground network device, a second transceiver module for communicating with the non-ground network device, and a processing module. The first transceiver module can be connected to the ground network device at all times through physical connection, wireless connection, etc., the second transceiver module can adjust the beam direction to the non-ground network device in real time to maintain the connection with the non-ground network device at all times, and the processing module can be used to perform the switching decision.

[0111] Taking the non-ground network device as an example, the second transceiver module can include an ephemeris management module, a control antenna module, and a satellite following module. The ephemeris management module supports functions such as input and refresh of satellite ephemeris, which is transmitted to the satellite following module in real time. The satellite following module calculates the angle of the antenna aiming at the satellite and transmits the result to the control antenna module. The control antenna module supports the ability to quickly adjust the beam direction and supports the satellite switching scenario. It can adjust the beam direction to point to multiple satellite directions, thereby ensuring that the control device is always wirelessly connected to the satellite (which can also be understood as being connected to the network device deployed on the satellite).

[0112] It should be understood that the transceiver module in the embodiments of the present application can also be referred to as an interaction module, a communication module, etc., and no limitation is made in this regard. The processing module can also be referred to as a decision module, a decision processing module, etc., and no limitation is made in this regard.

[0113] The control node is a network node located on the ground. For example, it can be in the form of a base station, including a high-speed data processing module, a medium radio frequency module, a control antenna module, an interface module supporting connection between the non-ground network device and the ground network device, etc., supporting high-speed data calculation and processing.

[0114] The first network device is a network device corresponding to a source cell accessed by the terminal device, which can also be referred to as a source network device of the terminal device, and no limitation is made in this regard. The at least one second network device is a network device selectable in the cell switching of the terminal device, which includes a network device corresponding to a target cell accessed by the terminal device (hereinafter referred to as a target network device), and can also be referred to as a candidate target network device of the terminal device, and no limitation is made in this regard.

[0115] The ground network device is a network node located on the ground, which is generally arranged at a position close to the ground. For example, the ground network device can be installed on or in a building or a tower. The ground communication network or the ground network device can also be referred to as being located on land or on the ground, and can additionally or alternatively include a network or device implemented on or in water.

[0116] The non-terrestrial network device is not a network node located on the ground, which can be deployed on an air platform or a satellite, or other forms of network devices deployed in the high sky, and can be similar in structure and function to the ground network device. Among them, the air platform can include at least one of the following: satellite, unmanned aerial vehicle, hot air balloon, airplane, or other aircraft. For example, examples of ground network devices include network devices carried by or otherwise implemented in unmanned aerial vehicles, as high-altitude platforms (HAPs), and as satellites. It should be understood that in the embodiments of the present application, the non-terrestrial network device is mainly taken as an example of a network device deployed on a satellite.

[0117] It should be pointed out that the scheme in the embodiments of the present application can also be applied to other communication systems, and the corresponding names can also be replaced by the names of the corresponding functions in other communication systems.

[0118] For example, FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a switching scenario applicable to the embodiments of the present application, taking the ground network device as a ground base station and the non-terrestrial network device as a satellite base station as an example. The control device is connected with the satellite base station, for example, the control device can be directly connected with the satellite base station through a physical link, or indirectly connected with the satellite base station through a measurement and control gateway, or indirectly connected with the satellite base station through a core network. The control device is also always connected with the ground base station located in the edge coverage area of the ground network. Through the switching decision made by the control device, the terminal device can be switched from the satellite base station to the ground base station, or from the ground base station to the satellite base station.

[0119] The communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below in conjunction with FIG. 6.

[0120] For example, FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application. The communication method takes the communication between the network device and the control device shown in FIG. 4 as an example for illustration. Of course, the subject performing the actions of the network device in the method can also be a device / module in the network device, such as a chip, processor, processing unit, etc. in the network device; and the subject performing the actions of the control device in the method can also be a device / module in the control device, such as a chip, processor, processing unit, etc. in the control device, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0121] As shown in FIG. 6, the communication method includes:

[0122] S601, the first network device sends first cell information to the control device. Correspondingly, the control device receives the first cell information from the first network device.

[0123] The first network device is a network device corresponding to a source cell accessed by the terminal device. In a case where the terminal device located in a coverage range of the source cell needs to perform cell switching, the first network device can send first cell information to the control device. The first cell information can be used to indicate a cell state of the source cell, neighboring cell information, and the like.

[0124] In the embodiments of the present application, the first network device can be in the following two cases:

[0125] Case 1: The first network device is a ground network device.

[0126] That is, the source cell accessed by the terminal device is a cell corresponding to the ground network device (referred to as a ground cell), or the type of the source cell is a ground cell type. The first cell information can include at least one of the neighboring cell information of the source cell, the load state of the source cell, and the information of the terminal device to be switched in the source cell.

[0127] Since the scheme of the present application is mainly for cell switching between a ground cell and a non-ground cell, in the case where the first network device is a ground network device, the neighboring cell of the source cell usually includes a cell corresponding to a non-ground network device (referred to as a non-ground cell), or the type of the neighboring cell of the source cell includes a non-ground cell type. Therefore, the neighboring cell information of the source cell can include the identifier of the non-ground cell as the neighboring cell, such as PCI. If the source cell has multiple neighboring cells, the neighboring cell information can be indicated in the form of a list. For example, the neighboring cell information of the source cell can be pre-configured in the first network device.

[0128] The load state of the source cell can feed back the number of users accessing the source cell, the size of the remaining available resources, and the like. The load state can be divided into a high load state and a low load state according to a threshold value. For example, the load state can be measured by a load rate. When the load rate of a cell is greater than or equal to a load rate threshold value, it can be considered that the cell is in a high load state. When the load rate of a cell is less than the load rate threshold value, it can be considered that the cell is in a low load state. If the source cell is in a high load state, load balancing processing can be performed on the source cell, such as transferring part of the terminal devices in the source cell to a low load cell. If the source cell is in a low load state, it can be considered that the current load condition of the source cell is good or normal, and there is no need to perform load balancing processing. For example, the load state of a cell can be determined according to each load state parameter (such as the number of users accessing, the utilization rate of cell resources, and the like), or the load state parameters are converted into a load rate by weighting or other processing to determine whether the cell is in a high load state or a low load state. For example, the load state of the source cell can be indicated by 1 bit. The bit value of 1 can be used to indicate that the load state of the source cell is a high load state, and the bit value of 0 can be used to indicate that the load state of the source cell is a low load state.

[0129] The information of the terminal devices to be handed over in the source cell can include an identifier of each terminal device to be handed over, such as a subscription permanent identifier (SUPI), a subscription concealed identifier (SUCI), and the like. For example, the first network device can determine which terminal devices need to perform handover according to the measurement report result reported by each terminal device in the source cell performing measurement reporting and / or the load state of the source cell. Optionally, the information of the terminal devices to be handed over in the source cell can include location information, received signal strength, and the like of each terminal device to be handed over.

[0130] Case 2: The first network device is a non-terrestrial network device:

[0131] That is, the source cell accessed by the terminal device includes a cell corresponding to the non-terrestrial network device, that is, a non-terrestrial cell, or the type of the source cell includes a non-terrestrial cell type. The first cell information can include at least one of the following: location information of the first network device, a beam scanning range of the first network device, a working state of the first network device, neighbor cell information of the source cell, a load state of the source cell, or information of terminal devices to be handed over in the source cell.

[0132] The location information of the first network device can be used to indicate a relative position or an absolute position of the first network device. For example, the relative position information of the first network device can be a position of the first network device relative to a control device or other reference point, which can be indicated by a coordinate point or a coordinate range, and the like, and is not limited in this regard.

[0133] The beam scanning range of the first network device can be used to represent a signal coverage range or a cell coverage range that can be reached by the first network device using a beam to transmit a signal. For example, the beam scanning range of the first network device can be indicated by an angle or a phase.

[0134] The working state of the first network device is used to feed back whether the first network device is in a normal working state. For example, the working state of the first network device includes a normal working state, a power-off state, a hibernation state, a shutdown state, a fault state, and the like.

[0135] The neighbor cell of the source cell includes a cell corresponding to a terrestrial network device, that is, a terrestrial cell, or the type of the neighbor cell of the source cell includes a terrestrial cell type. The neighbor cell information of the source cell can include an identifier of the terrestrial cell as a neighbor cell, such as a PCI. If the source cell has multiple neighbor cells, the neighbor cell information can be indicated in the form of a list.

[0136] The load status of the source cell is also the load status of the non-terrestrial cell. The specific description of the load status and the information of the terminal device to be handed over in the source cell can be referred to the related description of the load status of the source cell, and details are not described herein.

[0137] In S602, each of the at least one second network device sends second cell information to the control device. Correspondingly, the control device receives the second cell information from each of the at least one second network device.

[0138] In the embodiments of the present application, one of the first network device and the second network device is a terrestrial network device, and the other is a non-terrestrial network device. The second network device is a candidate target network device that can be selected for the terminal device to perform cell handover. One or more second network devices that maintain connection with the control device can periodically send corresponding second cell information to the control device. The second cell information is used to indicate the cell status of the second network device, the neighboring cell information, and the like. Therefore, the control device can obtain the second cell information of each of the one or more second network devices, that is, receive at least one second cell information. The at least one second cell information corresponds to the at least one second network device in a one-to-one manner, or one second cell information corresponds to one second network device.

[0139] For the above case 1:

[0140] That is, in the case where the first network device is a terrestrial network device and the second network device is a non-terrestrial network device, the second cell information can include at least one of the following: the position information of the second network device, the beam scanning range of the second network device, the working status of the second network device, the neighboring cell information of the cell corresponding to the second network device, or the load status of the cell corresponding to the second network device. The neighboring cell of the cell corresponding to the second network device includes a terrestrial cell corresponding to a terrestrial network device, or the type of the neighboring cell of the cell corresponding to the second network device includes a terrestrial cell type. One second network device can correspond to one or more cells, or the coverage range of the second network device can be divided into one or more cells, which is not limited.

[0141] In the case where the first network device is a terrestrial network device and the second network device is a non-terrestrial network device, the specific description of the second cell information can be referred to the related description of the first cell information in S601 when the first network device is a non-terrestrial network device, and details are not described herein.

[0142] For the above case 2:

[0143] That is, in the case that the first network device is a non-terrestrial network device, the second network device is a terrestrial network device, and the second cell information can include the neighboring cell information of the cell corresponding to the second network device and the load status of the cell corresponding to the second network device, wherein the neighboring cell of the cell corresponding to the second network device includes the cell corresponding to the non-terrestrial network device, that is, the non-terrestrial cell, or the type of the neighboring cell of the cell corresponding to the second network device includes the type of the non-terrestrial cell. In the case that the first network device is a non-terrestrial network device and the second network device is a terrestrial network device, the specific description of the second cell information can refer to the related description of the first cell information in the above S601 when the first network device is a terrestrial network device, and details are not repeated here.

[0144] S603, the control device sends target cell information to the first network device. Correspondingly, the first network device receives the target cell information from the control device.

[0145] The target cell information corresponds to the terminal device, and the target cell information is determined according to the first cell information and at least one second cell information. The network device corresponding to the target cell is one of the at least one second network device. That is, the control device determines the target cell information of the terminal device according to the first cell information and at least one second cell information.

[0146] The control device can perform handover decision according to the obtained first cell information and at least one second cell information. The control device can determine which terminal devices in the source cell need to perform handover according to the first cell information and the current neighboring cell information, so as to select a target cell for the terminal devices that need to perform handover according to one or more second cell information, and determine the target cell information. The network device corresponding to the target cell is one of the at least one second network device, which can be referred to as a target network device. The information of the target cell includes the identifier of the target cell, the identifier of the target network device and the like.

[0147] In a possible design, the control device can also obtain the position information of the terminal device in the source cell, for example, the position information of the terminal device is measured by the first network device and reported to the control device, so that the control device can determine to perform cell handover on the terminal device according to the position information of the terminal device and the first cell information, and determine the target cell information according to the first cell information and at least one second cell information. The position information of the terminal device can be relative position information, such as the position of the terminal device relative to the first network device, or absolute position information, which is not limited. In some possible implementations, the first cell information can include the position information of the terminal device.

[0148] For example, the first network device is a ground network device, the second network device is a non-ground network device, and the control device can determine whether to perform handover for the terminal device in the source cell according to the load state of the source cell in the first cell information. If the source cell is in a high load state, the control device can determine which terminal device needs to perform handover according to the information of the terminal device to be handed over. If the source cell is in a low load state, the control device can determine which terminal device needs to perform handover according to the position information and / or received signal strength of the terminal device to be handed over. The terminal device located at the edge of the source cell or having a small received signal strength can perform cell handover, so that the target cell information of each terminal device is determined according to the neighboring cell information of the source cell and the second cell information of each second network device, for example, the control device selects the cell of the second network device as the target cell, which is in a normal working state, the cell and the source cell are neighboring cells, covers the position of the terminal device, and is in a low load state.

[0149] For another example, the first network device is a non-ground network device, and the second network device is a ground network device. The control device can first determine whether the first network device is in a normal working state according to the working state of the first network device. If the first network device is in an abnormal working state, the control device determines to perform handover for the terminal device in the source cell. If the first network device is in a normal working state, the control device can further determine whether the source cell is in a high load state according to the load state of the source cell. If the source cell is in a high load state, the control device can determine whether the terminal device is located at the edge of the source cell or whether the source cell is moving and cannot cover the terminal device according to the position information, beam scanning range, etc. of the first network device in the first cell information. The control device can determine which terminal device needs to perform handover according to the position of the terminal device and / or the information of the terminal device to be handed over, so as to determine the target cell information of each terminal device according to the neighboring cell information of the source cell and the second cell information of each second network device, for example, the control device can select the cell of the second network device as the target cell, which is in a normal working state, the cell and the source cell are neighboring cells, covers the position of the terminal device, and is in a low load state. If the source cell is in a low load state, the control device can also determine which terminal device needs to perform handover according to the position of the terminal device and / or the information of the terminal device to be handed over, and perform handover for the terminal device with poor received signal quality.

[0150] Therefore, the control device can perform handover decision according to the first cell information of the first network device and the second cell information of each second network device in the at least one second network device (i.e. at least one second cell information), and determine the target cell information of the terminal device needing handover.

[0151] The control device determines the target cell information for the terminal device, and sends the target cell information to the first network device, so that the first network device can complete the handover preparation with the target network device according to the target cell information. It should be understood that when there are multiple terminal devices that need to be handed over, each terminal device can correspond to one target cell information, or the target cell information can include the target cell information of each terminal device in the multiple terminal devices, which is not limited.

[0152] In a possible implementation, the handover preparation between the source network device (the first network device) and the target network device (the second network device) can include that the first network device sends a handover request to the control device, and correspondingly, the control device receives the handover request from the first network device, sends the handover request to the network device corresponding to the target cell, and the handover request is used to request to hand over the terminal device to the target cell. The network device corresponding to the target cell receives the handover request from the control device, sends a handover request response to the control device, and correspondingly, the control device receives the handover request response from the network device corresponding to the target cell, and sends the handover request response to the first network device.

[0153] That is, the first network device sends a handover request to the network device corresponding to the target cell (the target network device) through the control device, and correspondingly, the network device corresponding to the target cell sends a handover request to the first network device through the control device, and the handover request is used to request to hand over the terminal device to the target cell.

[0154] The network device corresponding to the target cell judges whether to allow the terminal device to access according to the handover request, and if the judgment result is to allow, sends a handover request response to the first network device through the control device, and correspondingly, the first network device receives the handover request response from the network device corresponding to the target cell through the control device, and the handover request response is used to confirm the access of the terminal device. At this time, the handover request response can also be called a handover request confirmation.

[0155] That is, the control device transmits or forwards the handover request and the handover request response, so that the ground network device and the non-ground network device complete the handover preparation. The specific description of the handover request and the handover request response can be referred to the related description in the handover process shown in FIG. 1, which is not described here.

[0156] After completing the handover preparation, the first network device can send a handover command to the terminal device, and the handover command is used to command the terminal device to hand over to the target cell, so that the terminal device can access the target cell according to the handover command. The specific implementation can be referred to the related description in the handover process shown in FIG. 1, which is not described here.

[0157] In the communication method shown in FIG. 6, the control device maintains the connection between the ground network device and the non-ground network device, and the control device can perform handover decision for the terminal device according to the received first cell information of the first network device corresponding to the source cell and the second cell information of at least one second network device, one of the first network device and the second network device being the ground network device and the other being the non-ground network device, determine whether the terminal device needs to perform cell handover and the target cell information of the handover, and send the target cell information to the first network device, so as to ensure the implementation of the cell handover between the ground cell and the non-ground cell.

[0158] Therefore, the embodiment of the present application also provides a communication method applied to the above control device, in which the first cell information from the first network device is received, and at least one second cell information is received, the first network device being the network device corresponding to the source cell accessed by the terminal device, the at least one second cell information corresponding to at least one second network device one by one, one of the first network device and the second network device being the ground network device and the other being the non-ground network device; and the target cell information corresponding to the terminal device is sent to the first network device, the target cell information being determined according to the first cell information and the at least one second cell information, and the network device corresponding to the target cell being one of the at least one second network device.

[0159] In the above embodiment, the specific description of the first network device and the first cell information can be referred to the related description in S601, the specific description of the second network device and the second cell information can be referred to the related description in S602, and the specific implementation of the determination and sending of the target cell information can be referred to the related description in S603, which will not be described here. Therefore, the control device connects the first network device and the at least one second network device, obtains the first cell information and the at least one second cell information, and determines the target cell information of the terminal device according to the first cell information and the at least one second cell information, so as to implement the cell handover between the ground cell and the non-ground cell.

[0160] In some possible implementations, the handover decision process performed by the control device, such as the determination of the target cell information, can be implemented by the first network device, that is, the first network device can obtain the at least one second cell information from the control device, perform handover decision according to the locally obtained first cell information and the at least one second cell information, and determine the target cell information, and the specific implementation process is similar to the above, which will not be described here.

[0161] For example, in the scenario shown in FIG. 5, the cell handover process between the ground base station and the satellite base station is implemented based on the method shown in FIG. 6 as follows:

[0162] In a scenario where the terminal device is handed over from a ground base station (source base station) to a satellite base station (target base station), the terminal device performs measurement and reports a measurement report according to the measurement configuration as described in S101 and S102, the source base station can generate first cell information according to the measurement report, a load state, and the like, and send the first cell information to the control device, and at least one satellite base station connected to the control device also periodically sends second cell information to the control device respectively, so that the control device can perform handover decision according to the first cell information and the at least one second cell information, determine target cell information, and send the target cell information to the source base station, thereby realizing handover preparation and a handover process.

[0163] Similarly, in a scenario where the terminal device is handed over from a satellite base station (source base station) to a ground base station (target base station), the terminal device performs measurement and reports a measurement report according to the measurement configuration as described in S101 and S102, the source base station can generate first cell information according to the measurement report, a load state, its position, a beam scanning configuration, its own working state, and the like, and send the first cell information to the control device, and at least one ground base station connected to the control device also periodically sends second cell information to the control device respectively, so that the control device can perform handover decision according to the first cell information and the at least one second cell information, determine target cell information, and send the target cell information to the source base station, thereby realizing handover preparation and a handover process.

[0164] It can be understood that the method and / or steps implemented by the network device (the first network device or the second network device) in each of the above embodiments can also be implemented by a component (for example, a processor, a chip, a chip system, a circuit, a logic module, or software) available for the network device; the method and / or steps implemented by the control device can also be implemented by a component (for example, a processor, a chip, a chip system, a circuit, a logic module, or software) available for the control device.

[0165] The above mainly introduces the schemes provided in the present application. Correspondingly, the present application also provides a communication apparatus, which is used to implement various methods in the above method embodiments. The communication apparatus can be the network device in the above method embodiments, or a device containing the network device, or a component available for the network device, such as a chip or a chip system. Alternatively, the communication apparatus can be the control device in the above method embodiments, or a device containing the control device, or a component available for the control device, such as a chip or a chip system.

[0166] It should be understood that, in order to achieve the above functions, the communication device comprises hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to the respective functions. Those skilled in the art should easily realize that, in combination with the units and algorithm steps of the examples described in the embodiments disclosed herein, the present application can be realized in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a certain function is realized in the form of hardware or computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to realize the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of the present application.

[0167] The embodiments of the present application can divide the functional modules of the communication device according to the method embodiments described above. For example, each functional module can be divided according to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The integrated module can be realized in the form of hardware or software functional module. It should be noted that the division of modules in the embodiments of the present application is illustrative, and is only a logical functional division. Actual implementation can have another division manner.

[0168] Taking the communication device as the control device in the method embodiments described above, Fig. 7 is a structural schematic diagram of a communication device provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Fig. 7, the communication device 700 comprises a processing module 701, a first transceiver module 702 and a second transceiver module 703. The processing module 701 is configured to perform the processing functions of the control device in the method embodiments described above, such as performing the process of determining the target cell information. The first transceiver module 702 is configured to perform the transceiving function between the control device and the first network device in the method embodiments described above, such as performing S601 and S603. The second transceiver module 703 is configured to perform the transceiving function between the control device and the second network device in the method embodiments described above, such as performing S602.

[0169] In some embodiments, the first transceiver module 702 and the second transceiver module 703 can be combined into one transceiver module, and no limitation is made in this regard.

[0170] Taking the communication device as the first network device in the method embodiments described above, Fig. 8 is a structural schematic diagram of a communication device provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Fig. 8, the communication device 800 comprises a processing module 801 and a first transceiver module 802. The processing module 801 is configured to perform the processing functions of the first network device in the method embodiments described above. The first transceiver module 802 is configured to perform the transceiving function between the first network devices in the method embodiments described above.

[0171] With the communication apparatus as the second network device in the method embodiments, FIG. 9 is a structural schematic diagram of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 9, the communication apparatus 900 includes a processing module 901 and a second transceiver module 902. The processing module 901 is configured to perform the processing functions of the second network device in the method embodiments. The second transceiver module 902 is configured to perform the transceiving functions between the first network devices in the method embodiments.

[0172] In a possible design, the first transceiver module and the second transceiver module in the embodiments of the present application can include a receiving module and a sending module (not shown in FIGS. 7-9). The sending module and the receiving module are respectively configured to implement the sending function and the receiving function of the communication apparatus.

[0173] In a possible design, the communication apparatus can further include a storage module (not shown in FIGS. 7-9), which stores programs or instructions. When the processing module executes the programs or instructions, the communication apparatus can perform the functions of the devices in the method shown in FIG. 6.

[0174] In some embodiments, the processing module involved in the communication apparatus can be implemented by a processor or a processor-related circuit component, and can be a processor or a processing unit; and the transceiver module can be implemented by a transceiver or a transceiver-related circuit component, and can be a transceiver or a transceiving unit.

[0175] Exemplarily, FIG. 10 is a structural schematic diagram of another communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application. The communication apparatus can be the control device or the first network device or the second network device in the method embodiments, or can be a chip (system) or other components or assemblies that can be arranged in the control device or the first network device or the second network device. As shown in FIG. 10, the communication apparatus 1000 can include a processor 1001. In a possible design, the communication apparatus 1000 can further include a memory 1002 and / or a transceiver 1003. The processor 1001 is coupled with the memory 1002 and the transceiver 1003, for example, through a communication bus.

[0176] The components of the communication apparatus 1000 will be specifically introduced below in combination with FIG. 10:

[0177] The processor 1001 is a control center of the communication device 1000, which can be one processor or collectively refer to multiple processing elements. For example, the processor 1001 includes one or more central processing units (CPUs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), or one or more integrated circuits configured to perform the functions of the embodiments of the present application, such as one or more digital signal processors (DSPs), or one or more field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs).

[0178] In one possible design, the processor 1001 can perform various functions of the communication device 1000 by running or executing software programs stored in the memory 1002 and calling data stored in the memory 1002.

[0179] In a specific implementation, as an example, the processor 1001 can include one or more CPUs, such as CPU0 and CPU1 shown in FIG. 10.

[0180] In a specific implementation, as an example, the communication device 1000 can also include multiple processors, such as the processor 1001 and the processor 1004 shown in FIG. 10. Each of the processors can be a single-core processor or a multi-core processor. The processor herein can refer to one or more devices, circuits, and / or processing cores for processing data (e.g., computer program instructions).

[0181] The memory 1002 is configured to store software programs for performing the schemes of the present application and to be controlled by the processor 1001 to perform the schemes. The specific implementation can refer to the above method embodiments, which will not be repeated here.

[0182] In a possible design, the memory 1002 can be a read-only memory (ROM) or another type of static storage device that can store static information and instructions, a random access memory (RAM) or another type of dynamic storage device that can store information and instructions, an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or another optical disk storage, an optical disk storage (including a compact disc, a laser disc, an optical disc, a digital versatile disc, a Blu-ray disc, and the like), a magnetic disk storage medium or another magnetic storage device, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer, but is not limited to this. The memory 1002 can be integrated with the processor 1001 or exist independently and be coupled to the processor 1001 through an interface circuit (not shown in FIG. 10) of the communication apparatus 1000, and embodiments of the present application do not make a specific limitation in this regard.

[0183] The transceiver 1003 is configured to communicate with other communication apparatuses. For example, the communication apparatus 1000 is a terminal device, and the transceiver 1003 can be configured to communicate with a network device or another terminal device. For another example, the communication apparatus 1000 is a network device, and the transceiver 1003 can be configured to communicate with a terminal device or another network device.

[0184] In a possible design, the transceiver 1003 can include a receiver and a transmitter (not shown in FIG. 10). The receiver is configured to implement the receiving function, and the transmitter is configured to implement the sending function.

[0185] In a possible design, the transceiver 1003 can be integrated with the processor 1001 or exist independently and be coupled to the processor 1001 through an interface circuit (not shown in FIG. 10) of the communication apparatus 1000, and embodiments of the present application do not make a specific limitation in this regard.

[0186] It should be noted that the structure of the communication apparatus 1000 shown in FIG. 10 does not constitute a limitation on the communication apparatus, and actually, the communication apparatus can include more or fewer components than those shown in the figure, or combine certain components, or have a different component arrangement.

[0187] In addition, the technical effects of the communication apparatus 1000 can refer to the technical effects of the methods described in the above method embodiments, which are not described herein again.

[0188] In a further aspect, the embodiments of the present application further provide a computer program product containing instructions, which, when executed on a communication device, enable the communication device to perform the method according to any one of the embodiments described above.

[0189] In a further aspect, the embodiments of the present application further provide a computer readable storage medium. The computer readable storage medium stores computer programs or instructions, which, when executed on a communication device, enable the communication device to perform the method according to any one of the embodiments described above.

[0190] In a further aspect, the embodiments of the present application further provide a communication system, comprising: a control device, a first network device and a second network device for implementing the method embodiments described above.

[0191] In the embodiments described above, all or part of the embodiments can be implemented by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. When implemented by software, all or part of the embodiments can be implemented in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions according to the embodiments of the present application are generated. The computer can be a general purpose computer, a special purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable devices. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer readable storage medium to another computer readable storage medium, for example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from one website, computer, server or data center to another website, computer, server or data center through wired (such as coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (such as infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) mode. The computer readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or data storage device such as one or more servers, data centers, etc. integrated with one or more media. The available media can be magnetic media (such as floppy disk, hard disk, magnetic tape), optical media (such as digital video disk (DVD)), or semiconductor media (such as solid state disk (SSD)) and the like.

[0192] Those skilled in the art can appreciate that the units and algorithm steps of the examples described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether the functions are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. A person skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of the present application.

[0193] Those skilled in the art can clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of description, the specific working process of the system, device and unit described above can refer to the corresponding process in the foregoing method embodiments, which will not be repeated here.

[0194] In several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed system, device and method can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are only schematic, for example, the division of the units is only a logical function division, and actual implementation can have another division manner, 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 coupling or direct coupling or communication connection between the units shown or discussed can be indirect coupling or communication connection through some interface, device or unit, and can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0195] 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, that is, they can be located in one place, or can be distributed on a plurality of network units. Part or all of the units can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the embodiment scheme.

[0196] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application can be integrated in one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically, or two or more units can be integrated in one unit.

[0197] 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 or the part of the present application that essentially contributes to the prior art or the part of the technical solutions can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium, including a plurality of instructions for causing a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or an access network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the method described in each embodiment of the present application. The foregoing storage medium includes: U disk, mobile hard disk, ROM, random access memory RAM, magnetic disk or optical disk and various program code storage media.

[0198] Although the application has been described in connection with various embodiments, persons skilled in the art will understand that modifications can be made to the described embodiments without departing from the scope of the application as defined by the appended claims. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps, and the indefinite articles "a" or "an" do not exclude a plurality. A single processor or other unit can fulfil the functions of several items recited in the claims. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.

Claims

1. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method comprises: receiving first cell information from a first network device, and receiving at least one second cell information, the first network device being a network device corresponding to a source cell accessed by a terminal device, the at least one second cell information corresponding to at least one second network device one by one, one of the first network device and the second network device being a ground network device and the other being a non-ground network device; sending target cell information corresponding to the terminal device to the first network device, the target cell information being determined according to the first cell information and the at least one second cell information, and the network device corresponding to the target cell being one of the at least one second network device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The method further comprises: obtaining position information of the terminal device; determining to perform cell switching on the terminal device according to the position information of the terminal device and the first cell information; determining the target cell information according to the first cell information and the at least one second cell information.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, In the case where the first network device is the ground network device and the second network device is the non-ground network device: the first cell information comprises adjacent cell information of the source cell, load status of the source cell and information of terminal devices to be switched in the source cell, wherein the adjacent cell of the source cell comprises a cell corresponding to a non-ground network device; the second cell information comprises at least one of the following: position information of the second network device, beam scanning range of the second network device, working status of the second network device, adjacent cell information of a cell corresponding to the second network device, or load status of the cell corresponding to the second network device, wherein the adjacent cell of the cell corresponding to the second network device comprises a cell corresponding to a ground network device.

4. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, In the case where the first network device is the non-ground network device and the second network device is the ground network device: the first cell information comprises at least one of the following: position information of the first network device, beam scanning range of the first network device, working status of the first network device, adjacent cell information of the source cell, load status of the source cell, or information of terminal devices to be switched in the source cell, wherein the adjacent cell of the source cell comprises a cell corresponding to a ground network device; and the second cell information comprises adjacent cell information of a cell corresponding to the second network device and load status of the cell corresponding to the second network device, wherein the adjacent cell of the cell corresponding to the second network device comprises a cell corresponding to a non-ground network device.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, The method further comprises: receiving a switching request from the first network device, the switching request being used to request to switch the terminal device to the target cell; sending the switching request to a network device corresponding to the target cell; receiving a switching request response from the network device corresponding to the target cell; sending the switching request response to the first network device.

6. A communication method characterized by comprising: Applied to a first network device, the first network device being a network device corresponding to a source cell accessed by a terminal device, the method comprises: sending first cell information to a control device; receiving target cell information of the terminal device from the control device, one of the first network device and the target network device being a ground network device and the other being a non-ground network device.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein, In a case where the first network device is a ground network device, the first cell information comprises neighboring cell information of the source cell, a load status of the source cell, and information of a terminal device to be handed over in the source cell, wherein the neighboring cell of the source cell comprises a cell corresponding to a non-ground network device.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein, In a case where the first network device is a non-ground network device, the first cell information comprises at least one of the following: position information of the first network device, a beam scanning range of the first network device, an operating status of the first network device, neighboring cell information of the source cell, a load status of the source cell, or information of a terminal device to be handed over in the source cell, wherein the neighboring cell of the source cell comprises a cell corresponding to a ground network device.

9. The method according to any one of claims 6-8, characterized in that, The method further comprises: sending a handover request to the control device, the handover request being used to request to hand over the terminal device to the target cell; receiving a handover request response from the control device.

10. A communication method characterized by comprising: applied to a target network device corresponding to a target cell of a terminal device, the method comprising: sending second cell information to a control device; receiving, by the control device, a handover request from a first network device, the handover request being used to request to hand over the terminal device to the target cell, the first network device being a network device corresponding to a source cell accessed by the terminal device, one of the first network device and the target network device being a ground network device and the other being a non-ground network device; sending, by the control device, a handover request response to the first network device.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein, In a case where the target network device is a non-ground network device, the second cell information comprises at least one of the following: position information of the target network device, a beam scanning range of the target network device, an operating status of the target network device, neighboring cell information of a cell corresponding to the target network device, or a load status of the cell corresponding to the target network device, wherein the neighboring cell of the cell corresponding to the target network device comprises a cell corresponding to a ground network device.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein, In a case where the target network device is a ground network device, the second cell information comprises neighboring cell information of a cell corresponding to the target network device and a load status of the cell corresponding to the target network device, wherein the neighboring cell of the cell corresponding to the target network device comprises a cell corresponding to a non-ground network device.

13. A method of communication, comprising: applied to a first network device corresponding to a source cell accessed by a terminal device, the method comprising: receiving at least one second cell information from a control device, the at least one second cell information corresponding to at least one second network device one by one, one of the first network device and the second network device being a ground network device and the other being a non-ground network device; The target cell information of the terminal device is determined according to the first cell information and the at least one second cell information, and the network device corresponding to the target cell is one of the at least one second network device.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein, In a case where the first network device is the ground network device and the second network device is the non-ground network device: The first cell information includes the neighboring cell information of the source cell, the load state of the source cell, and the information of the terminal device to be handed over in the source cell, wherein the neighboring cell of the source cell includes a cell corresponding to a non-ground network device; The second cell information includes at least one of the following: the position information of the second network device, the beam scanning range of the second network device, the working state of the second network device, the neighboring cell information of the cell corresponding to the second network device, or the load state of the cell corresponding to the second network device, wherein the neighboring cell of the cell corresponding to the second network device includes a cell corresponding to a ground network device.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein, In a case where the first network device is the non-ground network device and the second network device is the ground network device: The first cell information includes at least one of the following: the position information of the first network device, the beam scanning range of the first network device, the working state of the first network device, the neighboring cell information of the source cell, the load state of the source cell, or the information of the terminal device to be handed over in the source cell, wherein the neighboring cell of the source cell includes a cell corresponding to a ground network device; The second cell information includes the neighboring cell information of the cell corresponding to the second network device and the load state of the cell corresponding to the second network device, wherein the neighboring cell of the cell corresponding to the second network device includes a cell corresponding to a non-ground network device.

16. The method according to any one of claims 13-15, characterized by, The method further includes: sending, by the control device, a handover request to the network device corresponding to the target cell according to the target cell information, the handover request being used to request to hand over the terminal device to the target cell; receiving, by the control device, a handover request response from the network device corresponding to the target cell.

17. A communications device, characterized by comprise: a first transceiver module, a second transceiver module, and a processing module; wherein The first transceiver module is configured to receive first cell information from a first network device. The second transceiver module is configured to receive at least one second cell information from at least one second network device, the first network device being a network device corresponding to a source cell accessed by a terminal device, the at least one second cell information corresponding to the at least one second network device in one-to-one manner, one of the first network device and the second network device being a ground network device, and the other being a non-ground network device. The first transceiver module is further configured to send target cell information to the first network device, the target cell information corresponding to the terminal device, the target cell information being determined by the processing module according to the first cell information and the at least one second cell information, and the network device corresponding to the target cell being one of the at least one second network device.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein, The processing module is further configured to obtain position information of the terminal device. The processing module is further configured to determine, according to the location information of the terminal device and the first cell information, to perform cell switching on the terminal device. The processing module is further configured to determine, according to the first cell information and the at least one second cell information, the target cell information.

19. The apparatus of claim 17 or 18, wherein, In a case where the first network device is the ground network device and the second network device is the non-ground network device: The first cell information includes the neighboring cell information of the source cell, the load status of the source cell, and the information of the terminal device to be switched in the source cell, wherein the neighboring cell of the source cell includes a cell corresponding to a non-ground network device; and the second cell information includes at least one of the following: the location information of the second network device, the beam scanning range of the second network device, the working status of the second network device, the neighboring cell information of the cell corresponding to the second network device, or the load status of the cell corresponding to the second network device, wherein the neighboring cell of the cell corresponding to the second network device includes a cell corresponding to a ground network device.

20. The apparatus of claim 17 or 18, wherein, In a case where the first network device is the non-ground network device and the second network device is the ground network device: The first cell information includes at least one of the following: the location information of the first network device, the beam scanning range of the first network device, the working status of the first network device, the neighboring cell information of the source cell, the load status of the source cell, or the information of the terminal device to be switched in the source cell, wherein the neighboring cell of the source cell includes a cell corresponding to a ground network device; and the second cell information includes the neighboring cell information of the cell corresponding to the second network device and the load status of the cell corresponding to the second network device, wherein the neighboring cell of the cell corresponding to the second network device includes a cell corresponding to a non-ground network device.

21. The apparatus of any of claims 17-20, wherein: The first transceiver module is further configured to receive a switching request from the first network device, and to send a switching request response to the first network device, the switching request being used to request to switch the terminal device to the target cell; The second transceiver module is further configured to send the switching request to the network device corresponding to the target cell, and to receive a switching request response from the network device corresponding to the target cell.

22. A communications device, characterized by A module for performing the method of any of claims 1-16.

23. A communications device, characterized by A processor, configured to run a computer program or instructions, so that the method of any of claims 1-16 is implemented.

24. A communication chip, comprising: Instructions stored in a chip, when the chip is run on a communication device, so that the method of any of claims 1-16 is implemented.

25. A communication system, characterized by Comprise: A device for performing the method of any of claims 1-5 and a network device interacting with the device.

26. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer program or instructions are stored in the computer readable storage medium, when the computer program or instructions are executed by a communication device, the method of any of claims 1-16 is implemented.

27. A computer program product, characterised in that, comprising computer program code which, when run on a communications device, the communications device implements the method of any of claims 1-16.

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