Communication method and apparatus

Abstract

A communication method and apparatus. The method comprises: a first gateway receiving a first message, wherein the first message comprises an identifier of a target cell; on the basis of an identifier respectively corresponding to at least one access network device and the identifier of the target cell, the first gateway determining an access network device to which the target cell belongs, wherein the length of the identifier of each of the at least one access network device is X bits, the length of the identifier of the target cell is greater than X bits, and the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs is consistent with the first X bits of the identifier of the target cell; and the first gateway sending a second message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs. By using the method, the lengths of identifiers of access network devices managed by a first gateway are consistent, such that on the basis of the identifiers of the access network devices managed by the first gateway and a received identifier of a target cell, the first gateway can accurately determine an access network device to which the target cell belongs.

Description

A communication method and apparatus

[0001] Cross Reference to Related Applications

[0002] This application claims priority to the Chinese Patent Application No. 202411381382.7, filed on September 29, 2024, and entitled "A Communication Method and Apparatus"; and this application claims priority to the Chinese Patent Application No. 202510425622.7, filed on April 2, 2025, and entitled "A Communication Method and Apparatus", the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD

[0003] The present application relates to the field of communication, and in particular, to a communication method and apparatus. BACKGROUND

[0004] Currently, a microcell (femto) base station is a coverage-enhanced node applied to an indoor scenario, and the femto base station can be understood as a new radio (NR) small station. One femto gateway (GW) can manage one or more femto base stations, and each femto base station can have multiple cells.

[0005] In a cell handover scenario, when a source base station determines that a terminal requests to hand over from a cell under the source base station to a target cell under a femto base station, the femto GW receives a handover request message, and the femto GW needs to forward the handover request message to the femto base station to which the target cell belongs. Therefore, how the femto GW forwards the received handover request message to the femto base station to which the target cell belongs is a problem worth paying attention to. SUMMARY

[0006] Embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and apparatus to realize, in a cell handover scenario, that the femto GW forwards the received handover request message to the femto base station to which the target cell belongs.

[0007] In a first aspect, a communication method is provided. The method can be applied to a first gateway, or a module or a chip in the first gateway. The first gateway manages at least one access network device. The method includes the following steps. The first gateway receives a first message. The first message is used to request a terminal to perform a handover from a source cell to a target cell. The first message includes an identifier of the target cell. The first gateway determines an access network device to which the target cell belongs, according to an identifier corresponding to each of the at least one access network device and the identifier of the target cell. The length of the identifier of each of the at least one access network device is X bits. The length of the identifier of the target cell is greater than X bits. X is a positive integer. The identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs is consistent with the first X bits of the identifier of the target cell. The first gateway sends a second message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs. The second message is used to request the terminal to perform the handover from the source cell to the target cell.

[0008] By using the method, the lengths of the identifiers of the access network devices managed by the first gateway are consistent. Therefore, the first gateway can accurately determine the access network device to which the target cell belongs, according to the identifiers of the access network devices managed by the first gateway and the identifier of the target cell received by the first gateway. As a result, the success rate of the cell handover can be improved.

[0009] In a possible design, the first gateway sends first configuration information to the at least one access network device respectively. Each of the first configuration information indicates the identifier of the corresponding access network device.

[0010] In a possible design, the first gateway sends a first notification message to an operation and maintenance management network element. The first notification message includes the identifiers corresponding to the at least one access network device respectively.

[0011] In a possible design, the first gateway sends second configuration information to the at least one access network device respectively. Each of the second configuration information indicates that the length of the identifier of the corresponding access network device is X bits. Alternatively, the first gateway sends a second notification message to the operation and maintenance management network element. The second notification message indicates that the length of the identifier of each of the access network devices is X bits.

[0012] By using the design, each of the access network devices managed by the first gateway can be configured with a corresponding identifier. In addition, the lengths of the identifiers of the access network devices managed by the first gateway are consistent.

[0013] In a second aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which can be applied to an operation and maintenance management network element, or a module or chip in the operation and maintenance management network element. Taking the execution subject of the method as an example, the method includes: the operation and maintenance management network element configures a corresponding identifier for each of at least one access network device managed by a first gateway, wherein the identifiers corresponding to the at least one access network device have the same length, and the operation and maintenance management network element sends the respective identifiers corresponding to the at least one access network device.

[0014] The above method can be used to configure the respective identifiers for the access network devices managed by the first gateway, and make the lengths of the identifiers of the access network devices managed by the first gateway consistent.

[0015] In a possible design, the operation and maintenance management network element receives a second notification message from the first gateway, and the second notification message indicates that the length of the identifier of each of the at least one access network device is X bits; and the operation and maintenance management network element configures the identifier with the length of X bits for each of the at least one access network device when configuring the respective identifiers for the at least one access network device.

[0016] The above design can be used to configure the identifiers with the same length for the access network devices managed by the first gateway.

[0017] In a third aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which can be applied to an access and mobility management network element, or a module or chip in the access and mobility management network element. Taking the execution subject of the method as an example, the method includes: the access and mobility management network element receives a third message, the third message is used to request a terminal to perform handover from a source cell to a target cell, the third message includes an identifier of an access network device to which the target cell belongs, in a case where the access network device to which the target cell belongs is an access network device managed by a first gateway, the access and mobility management network element sends a fourth message to the first gateway, the fourth message is used to request the terminal to perform handover from the source cell to the target cell, the fourth message includes an identifier of the target cell and first indication information, the first indication information indicates a first length, wherein the first length is the length of the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs; or the fourth message includes the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0018] The above method can be used to add the length of the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, or the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, to the third message sent by the access and mobility management network element to the first gateway, so that the first gateway can accurately determine the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the added content, thereby improving the success rate of cell handover.

[0019] In a possible design, the access and mobility management network element receives second indication information, where the second indication information indicates the identity of at least one access network device managed by the first gateway. Before sending the fourth message to the first gateway, the access and mobility management network element determines, according to the second indication information and the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, that the access network device to which the target cell belongs is an access network device managed by the first gateway.

[0020] With the above design, the access and mobility management network element can accurately determine, according to the second indication information and the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, that the access network device to which the target cell belongs is an access network device managed by the first gateway, thereby improving the success rate of cell switching.

[0021] In a fourth aspect, this application provides a communication method, which is applied to a first gateway or a chip or module in the first gateway, and the first gateway manages at least one access network device. Taking the execution subject of the method as the first gateway for example, the method includes the following steps: the first gateway receives a fourth message, the fourth message is used to request a terminal to switch from a source cell to a target cell, the fourth message includes the identity of the target cell and first indication information, the first indication information indicates a first length, the first length is the length of the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, the first gateway determines the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the first length and the identity of the target cell, and the first gateway sends a fifth message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs, the fifth message is used to request the terminal to switch from the source cell to the target cell.

[0022] With the above design, the third message sent by the target access and mobility management network element to the first gateway is added with the length of the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, thereby enabling the first gateway to accurately determine the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the added content, and thereby improving the success rate of cell switching.

[0023] In a possible design, the first length is X bits; when determining the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the first length and the identity of the target cell, the first gateway determines the first X bits of the identity of the target cell as the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0024] In a fifth aspect, this application provides a communication method, which is applied to a first gateway or a chip or module in the first gateway, and the first gateway manages at least one access network device. Taking the execution subject of the method as the first gateway for example, the method includes the following steps: the first gateway receives a fourth message, the fourth message is used to request a terminal to switch from a source cell to a target cell, the fourth message includes the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, and the first gateway sends a fifth message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs, the fifth message is used to request the terminal to switch from the source cell to the target cell.

[0025] By using the method, the target access and mobility management network element adds the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs to the third message sent to the first gateway, and thus the first gateway can accurately determine the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the added content, so that the success rate of cell switching can be improved.

[0026] In a sixth aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which is applied to an access and mobility management network element, or a chip or module in the access and mobility management network element. Taking the case that the method is applied to the access and mobility management network element as an example, the method comprises the following steps: the access and mobility management network element receives second indication information, the second indication information indicating an identifier of at least one access network device managed by a first gateway; the access and mobility management network element also receives a sixth message, the sixth message being used for requesting a terminal to switch from a source cell to a target cell, and the sixth message comprising an identifier of an access network device to which the target cell belongs; and the access and mobility management network element determines, according to the second indication information and the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, that the access network device to which the target cell belongs is an access network device managed by the first gateway, and sends a seventh message to the first gateway, the seventh message being used for requesting the terminal to switch from the source cell to the target cell.

[0027] By using the above design, the access and mobility management network element can accurately determine, according to the second indication information and the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, that the access network device to which the target cell belongs is an access network device managed by the first gateway, so that the success rate of cell switching can be improved.

[0028] In a possible design, the seventh message further comprises an identifier of the target cell and first indication information, the first indication information indicating a first length, wherein the first length is the length of the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs; or the seventh message further comprises the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0029] In a seventh aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which is applied to a source access network device, or a chip or module in the source access network device. Taking the case that the execution subject of the method is the source access network device as an example, the method comprises the following steps: the source access network device determines that a terminal switches from a source cell to a target cell under a first access network device, and then determines a first identifier according to an identifier of the first access network device and / or an identifier of the target cell, the first identifier being used for identifying the first access network device under a gateway; and the source access network device sends an eighth message, the eighth message being used for requesting the terminal to switch from the source cell to the target cell, and the eighth message comprising the first identifier.

[0030] Exemplarily, the eighth message comprises a first container, and the first identifier is carried through the first container. For example, the first container is a source access network device to target access network device transparent container.

[0031] By using the method, the source access network device can determine the temporary identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, i.e., the first identifier, and further enable the first gateway to accurately determine the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the first identifier, thereby improving the success rate of cell switching.

[0032] In a possible design, the source access network device acquires third indication information, where the third indication information indicates that the first identifier corresponds to the identifier of the first access network device; and when determining the first identifier according to the identifier of the first access network device, the first identifier is determined according to the identifier of the first access network device and the third indication information.

[0033] In a possible design, the source access network device acquires third indication information, where the third indication information indicates that the first identifier corresponds to the identifier of at least one cell under the first access network device; and when determining the first identifier according to the identifier of the target cell, the identifier of the target cell is determined to be one of the identifiers of the at least one cell, and then the first identifier is determined according to the identifier of the target cell and the third indication information.

[0034] In a possible design, the source access network device acquires the third indication information in the following manner, but the manner is not limited thereto: receiving the third indication information from an operation and maintenance management network element; or receiving the third indication information from the first access network device; or receiving the third indication information from the terminal.

[0035] By using the above design, the source access network device can acquire the third indication information in multiple manners.

[0036] In an eighth aspect, a communication method is provided, which is applied to a first gateway, or a module or chip in the first gateway, and the execution subject of the method is taken as an example, the method includes: the first gateway receives a ninth message, the ninth message is used to request a terminal to perform cell switching from a source cell to a target cell, and the ninth message includes a first identifier, the first identifier is used to identify an access network device to which the target cell belongs under a gateway, and the access network device to which the target cell belongs is determined according to the first identifier. The first gateway sends a tenth message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs, and the tenth message is used to request the terminal to perform cell switching from the source cell to the target cell.

[0037] By using the method, the first gateway receives the first identifier and can accurately determine the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the first identifier, thereby improving the success rate of cell switching.

[0038] In a possible design, third indication information is acquired, and the third indication information indicates that the first identifier corresponds to an identifier of a first access network device, and the first access network device is one access network device managed by the first gateway; when determining the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the first identifier, the first gateway determines the identifier of the first access network device according to the first identifier and the third indication information, and the first access network device is the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0039] In a ninth aspect, the present application provides a communication apparatus, which can be the first apparatus, or a module or unit (for example, a chip or a chip system or a circuit) corresponding to the method / operation / step / action described in any one of the first aspect to the eighth aspect, or can be used in matching with the first apparatus.

[0040] In a tenth aspect, the present application provides a communication device, including at least one processing element, and at least one storage element for storing programs and data, and the at least one processing element is configured to read and execute the programs and data stored in the storage element, so that the method described in any one of the aspects of the present application is implemented.

[0041] In a possible design, the communication device further includes the at least one storage element.

[0042] In an eleventh aspect, the present application further provides a computer program, when the computer program is run on a computer, the computer program causes the computer to execute the method described in any one of the aspects.

[0043] In a twelfth aspect, the present application provides a communication apparatus, including: an interface circuit and at least one processor; the interface circuit is configured to provide input and / or output of programs or instructions for the at least one processor; and the at least one processor is configured to execute the programs or instructions so that the communication apparatus can implement the method described in any one of the aspects.

[0044] In a possible manner, the communication apparatus includes the at least one memory, and the at least one memory is configured to store the programs or instructions.

[0045] In a thirteenth aspect, the present application provides a computer storage medium, and the computer storage medium stores a software program, and the software program is read and executed by one or more processors, and the software program can implement the method described in any one of the aspects.

[0046] In a fourteenth aspect, the present application provides a computer program product including instructions, and the instructions are run on a computer, and the instructions cause the computer to execute the method described in any one of the aspects.

[0047] In a fifteenth aspect, the present application provides a chip system, the chip system comprising at least one chip and a memory, the at least one chip being configured to read and execute a program stored in the memory to implement the method of any one of the above aspects.

[0048] In a sixteenth aspect, the present application provides a communication system, the communication system comprising a first gateway, a source access network device, a target access network device, a source access network device, an access network device to which a target cell belongs, and an operation and maintenance management network element.

[0049] On the basis of the above-mentioned implementations of the aspects, the present application can be further combined to provide more implementations. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0050] FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of a 5G network architecture based on a service-oriented architecture;

[0051] FIGS. 2A and 2B show schematic diagrams of possible femto network architectures;

[0052] FIG. 3 shows a network architecture diagram based on ORAN;

[0053] FIG. 4 shows a schematic diagram of a possible network architecture of a HeNB;

[0054] FIG. 5 shows a schematic flowchart of a communication method;

[0055] FIG. 6 shows a specific flowchart of the operation and maintenance management network element configuring a corresponding identifier for the first access network device;

[0056] FIG. 7 shows a specific flowchart of the first gateway configuring a corresponding identifier for the first access network device;

[0057] FIG. 8 shows a schematic flowchart of another communication method;

[0058] FIG. 9 shows a schematic flowchart of still another communication method;

[0059] FIG. 10 shows a schematic flowchart of yet another communication method;

[0060] FIG. 11 shows a schematic structural diagram of a communication device;

[0061] FIG. 12 shows a schematic structural diagram of another communication device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0062] The specific implementation manners of the present application are exemplarily described below in combination with the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. However, the implementation manners of the present application can also include combining the embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the present application, such as adopting other embodiments and making structural changes. Therefore, the detailed description of the following embodiments should not be understood in a limiting sense. The terms used in the embodiment part of the present application are only used to explain the specific embodiments of the present application, and are not intended to limit the present application.

[0063] The embodiments of the present application can be applied to various communication systems, such as a global system for mobile communications (GSM) system, a code division multiple access (CDMA) system, a wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) system, a general packet radio service (GPRS), a long term evolution (LTE) system, an LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) system, an LTE time division duplex (TDD), a universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), a worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WIMAX) communication system, a 5th generation (5G) system or NR, or a future communication system or other similar communication system, etc.

[0064] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a 5G network architecture based on a service-based architecture. The 5G network architecture shown in FIG. 1 can include terminals, access network devices, and core network devices. The terminals access a data network (DN) through the access network devices and the core network devices. The core network devices include various network functions (NFs) or network elements, for example, including some or all of the following network elements: a unified data management (UDM) network element, a unified data repository (UDR) network element, an application function (AF) network element, a policy control function (PCF) network element, an access and mobility management function (AMF) network element, a session management function (SMF) network element, a user plane function (UPF) network element, a network repository function (NRF) network element, a network slice selection function (NSSF) network element, an authentication server function (AUSF) network element, and the like.

[0065] The access network device can be a radio access network (RAN) device. For example, a base station, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), a transmission reception point (TRP), a next generation NodeB (gNB) in a 5G mobile communication system, a next generation NodeB in a 6th generation (6G) mobile communication system, a base station in a future mobile communication system, or an access node in a wireless fidelity (WiFi) system, etc. The access network device can also be a module or unit that completes part of the functions of a base station, for example, a central unit (CU) or a distributed unit (DU). The wireless access network device can be a macro base station, a micro base station, or an indoor station, and can also be a relay node, a donor node, etc. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific technology and specific device form of the wireless access network device.

[0066] The terminal can be a user equipment (UE), a mobile station, a mobile terminal, etc. The terminal can be widely used in various scenarios, such as device-to-device (D2D), vehicle to everything (V2X) communication, machine-type communication (MTC), internet of things (IOT), virtual reality, augmented reality, industrial control, autonomous driving, remote medical treatment, smart power grid, smart furniture, smart office, smart wear, smart transportation, smart city, etc. The terminal can be a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a computer with wireless transceiver function, a wearable device, a vehicle, an urban air vehicle (such as a pilotless plane, a helicopter, etc.), a ship, a robot, a mechanical arm, a smart home device, etc.

[0067] The access network device and the terminal can be fixed in position or movable. The access network device and the terminal can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; can also be deployed on the water surface; can also be deployed on an airplane, a balloon, and a man-made satellite in the air. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the application scenarios of the access network device and the terminal.

[0068] Some core network devices are briefly introduced below:

[0069] AMF network element, referred to as AMF, contains functions of performing mobility management, access authentication / authorization, etc. In addition, it is also responsible for delivering user policy between terminal and PCF.

[0070] SMF network element, referred to as SMF, contains functions of performing session management, execution of control policy issued by PCF, selection of UPF, allocation of internet protocol (IP) address of terminal, etc.

[0071] UPF network element, referred to as UPF, as an interface with data network, contains functions of completing user plane data forwarding, session / stream level-based charging statistics, bandwidth limitation, etc.

[0072] UDM network element, referred to as UDM, contains functions of performing management of subscription data, user access authorization, etc.

[0073] UDR network element, referred to as UDR, contains functions of accessing data of types of subscription data, policy data, application data, etc.

[0074] NEF network element, referred to as NEF, is used for supporting opening of capabilities and events.

[0075] AF network element, referred to as AF, delivers requirements of application side to network side, for example, quality of service (QoS) requirement or user state event subscription, etc. AF can be a third party functional entity or an application server deployed by an operator.

[0076] PCF network element, referred to as PCF, contains policy control functions of charging, QoS bandwidth guarantee and mobility management for session and service flow level, terminal policy decision, etc.

[0077] NRF network element, referred to as NRF, can be used to provide network element discovery function, and provide network element information corresponding to network element type based on request of other network elements. The NRF network element also provides network element management services, such as network element registration, update, deregistration, and network element state subscription and push, etc.

[0078] NSSF network element: mainly responsible for network slice selection, determines network slice instances allowed to be accessed by terminal according to slice selection assistance information, subscription information, etc. of terminal.

[0079] AUSF network element: supports access authentication of 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) and non-3GPP.

[0080] It can be understood that the above network element is an example of an implementation manner, and the application does not exclude that a network element or device having the function of the above network element exists in a 6G or newer wireless communication system, has other names, or has other forms.

[0081] It can be understood that the above network element or function can be a network element in a hardware device, a software function running on a special hardware, or a virtualized function instantiated on a platform (for example, a cloud platform). As a possible implementation method, the above network element or function can be implemented by one device, or can be implemented by multiple devices together, or can be a functional module in one device, and the embodiments of the application do not make specific limitations.

[0082] FIGS. 2A and 2B show two possible femto network architecture diagrams.

[0083] In FIG. 2A, the femto base station can be directly connected to the 5G core network (5G core, 5GC).

[0084] In FIG. 2B, the femto base station can be connected to the femto GW first, and then communicate with the 5G core network through the femto GW. One femto GW can connect multiple femto base stations, and one femto base station can only connect one femto GW.

[0085] In the network architecture shown in FIG. 2B, the femto GW acts as a proxy node between the femto base station and the 5G core network. Or it can be understood that the femto GW presents a gNB role to the 5G core network, and presents a 5G core network role to the femto base station. Among them, the femto base station and the network element (for example, AMF) in the 5G core network are not visible to each other, the femto base station and the femto GW establish an NG interface, and the femto GW and the AMF establish an NG interface.

[0086] Exemplarily, the femto GW can only act as a proxy for control plane messages, forwarding control plane messages between the femto base station and the AMF, and not forwarding user plane data, that is, the femto base station directly establishes a user plane tunnel with the UPF to transmit data. Optionally, in addition to acting as a proxy for control plane messages, the femto GW can also act as a proxy for user plane data to implement forwarding of user plane data between the femto base station and the UPF. In the above FIG. 2B, the femto GW does not forward user plane data. In addition, as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the femto network architecture can also include a security gateway (security gateway, SeGW).

[0087] It can be seen that for the network architecture shown in FIG. 2A, the femto base station has little difference from the ordinary base station. For the network architecture shown in FIG. 2B, the 5G core network is not aware of the existence of the femto base station, and can only be aware of the femto GW, which is beneficial to the large-scale deployment of the femto base station, and can reduce the impact on the 5G core network. In the view of the 5G core network, the cell under the femto base station can be understood as the cell under the femto GW.

[0088] It should be noted that the embodiments of the present application can be applicable to the network structure with similar functions in the future in addition to the network architecture of FIG. 2B in the femto network architecture described above, and the present application does not limit this.

[0089] FIG. 3 shows a network architecture based on an open RAN (O-RAN). The network architecture can include the following but is not limited to the following network elements or functional modules: RAN intelligent controller (RIC), gNB-CU, gNB-DU, femto-CU, femto-DU, and femto GW. The RIC can control the gNB-DU and the gNB-CU.

[0090] Currently, in LTE, an architecture similar to the above-mentioned femto network architecture is discussed. As shown in FIG. 4, it is a possible home eNB (HeNB) network architecture. In the HeNB network architecture, a HeNB GW is introduced between the HeNB and the 4G core network, and the HeNB GW acts as a proxy node between the HeNB and the 4G core network. Alternatively, it can be understood that the HeNB GW presents an eNB role to the 4G core network and presents a 4G core network role to the HeNB. The HeNB and the network element (for example, mobility management entity (MME)) in the 4G core network are not visible to each other. The HeNB and the HeNB GW establish an S1 interface, and the HeNB GW and the MME establish an S1 interface.

[0091] The following describes the basic flow of LTE S1 handover and the basic flow of S1 handover in the HeNB network architecture.

[0092] I. Basic flow of LTE S1 handover

[0093] The source eNB sends a first handover request (e.g., HANDOVER REQUIRED) message to the source MME, where the first handover request message carries the identity of the target eNB, which can be carried by a target ID information element. If the source MME determines that the target eNB has no connection with itself, it needs to find the target MME and forward the first handover request message to the target MME, i.e., the source MME is different from the target MME at this time. If the source MME has a connection with the target eNB, the source MME is also the target MME. The following is described only by way of example that the source MME determines that the target eNB has no connection with itself.

[0094] After receiving the first handover request message, the target MME sends a second handover request (e.g., HANDOVER REQUEST) message to the target eNB according to the identity of the target eNB in the first handover request message. It should be noted that the identity of the target eNB is only carried in the first handover request message, and the second handover request message does not carry the identity of the target eNB. The reason is that the target MME sends the second handover request message to the target eNB, and therefore the second handover request message does not carry the identity of the target eNB.

[0095] In addition, in the message transmission process of the source eNB→source MME→target MME→target eNB described above, each message carries an information element, which includes the identity of the target cell under the target eNB selected by the source eNB, e.g., the identity of the target cell is an E-UTRAN cell global identifier (ECGI). The information element is transparently transmitted between the devices described above until it is transmitted to the target eNB, which can determine the target cell according to the identity of the target cell. The core network (e.g., the source MME and the target MME) can view the content in the information element but will not modify it. For example, the information element is a source eNB to target eNB transparent container information element. That is, the identity of the target cell can be carried in the first handover request message and the second handover request message.

[0096] II. Basic flow of S1 handover in HeNB network architecture

[0097] The source eNB sends a first handover request message to the source MME, wherein the first handover request message carries the identity of the target eNB. Here, the target eNB is a HeNB, and the identity of the target eNB is the identity of the HeNB. If the source MME determines that the HeNB GW managing the HeNB has no connection with itself, it needs to find the target MME and forward the first handover request message to the target MME, i.e., the source MME is different from the target MME at this time. If the source MME has a connection with the HeNB GW managing the HeNB, the source MME is also the target MME. The following is described only by taking the case that the source MME determines that the HeNB GW managing the HeNB has no connection with itself as an example.

[0098] After receiving the first handover request message, the target MME sends a second handover request message to the HeNB GW managing the HeNB, and then the HeNB GW forwards the second handover request message to the HeNB. The specific message transmission process is: source eNB→source MME→target MME→HeNB GW→HeNB. Similar to the above-mentioned basic flow of LTE S1 handover, the identity of the HeNB is only carried in the first handover request message, and the second handover request message does not carry the identity of the HeNB. The identity of the target cell under the HeNB can be carried in the first handover request message and the second handover request message. Two problems need to be noted here:

[0099] 1) How does the target MME know to which HeNB GW the second handover request message is sent?

[0100] 2) How does the HeNB GW know to which HeNB the second handover request message is forwarded?

[0101] For question 1), the protocol stipulates that the first 20 bits of the identity of the HeNB are the identity of the HeNB GW managing the HeNB. Therefore, the target MME can obtain the identity of the HeNB GW by taking the first 20 bits of the identity of the HeNB in the first handover request message after receiving the first handover request message.

[0102] For question 2), the HeNB GW can determine the HeNB to which the target cell belongs according to the identity of the target cell. In the HeNB network architecture, the coverage of the HeNB is small, and there is only one cell under the HeNB, and then the protocol stipulates that the ECGI of the cell under the HeNB is directly used to identify the HeNB, i.e., the identity of the HeNB and the identity of the target cell under the HeNB are the same, i.e., both are ECGI. Or it can be understood that, in the HeNB network architecture, there is no separate identity of the HeNB, but the ECGI is directly used to identify the HeNB, and the ECGI is the identity of the HeNB and the identity of the only one cell under the HeNB.

[0103] For example, when the HeNB establishes the S1 interface with the HeNB GW, the HeNB can send an S1 setup request (S1 SETUP REQUEST) message to the HeNB GW, and the S1 setup request message carries the ECGI. Therefore, the HeNB GW can determine the HeNB corresponding to the ECGI according to the identity (i.e., ECGI) of the target cell carried in the second handover request message, and forward the second handover request message to the HeNB.

[0104] For the femto network architecture, the femto base station can generate multiple cells like a normal gNB. When the femto base station establishes the NG interface with the femto GW, the femto base station sends an NG setup request (SETUP REQUEST) message to the femto GW, and the NG setup request message carries the identity of the femto base station. Since the femto base station can generate multiple cells, the identity of the femto base station is different from the identity of the cells under the femto base station, or in other words, the femto base station cannot be identified by the NR cell global identifier (NCGI), and different cells under the femto base station correspond to different NCGIs.

[0105] Therefore, the design of the NG handover in the femto network architecture cannot directly copy the design of the S1 handover in the HeNB network architecture described above, and the femto GW cannot determine to which femto base station to forward the second handover request message based on the identity (e.g., NCGI) of the target cell, which may cause the NG handover to fail.

[0106] For example, assume that the length of the identity of the femto base station adopts the length of the identity of the gNB specified by the protocol, and the length of the identity of the gNB is not fixed, for example, 22-32 bits. The femto GW manages femto base station 1 and femto base station 2, where the identity of femto base station 1 is 23 bits, and the identity of femto base station 2 is 25 bits. The femto GW receives a second handover request message, which includes an NCGI, where the length of the NCGI is 36 bits. If the first 23 bits of the NCGI are the same as the identity of femto base station 1, and the first 25 bits of the NCGI are the same as the identity of femto base station 2, the femto GW cannot determine which femto base station the cell indicated by the received NCGI belongs to.

[0107] It should be noted that in the present application, NCGI, cell global identity (CGI), and NR cell identity (NCI) can be replaced with each other.

[0108] In addition, in the S1 handover procedure in the HeNB network architecture, the target MME can obtain the HeNB GW identifier according to the first 20 bits of the HeNB identifier (i.e., ECGI) in the first handover request message after receiving the first handover request message.

[0109] The ECGI is composed of an eNB ID and a cell ID, and the first 20 bits of the ECGI can represent the eNB ID. Therefore, the first 20 bits of the ECGI of at least one HeNB managed by the same HeNB GW can be set as the HeNB GW ID (the HeNB GW is regarded as a special eNB in the 4G core network), so that the target MME can determine the corresponding HeNB GW based on the first 20 bits of the ECGI.

[0110] In the femto network architecture, there are multiple cells under the femto base station, and the NCGI cannot be used to identify the femto base station. How to design the identifier of the femto base station has not been determined. Therefore, how the target AMF determines the femto GW that manages the femto base station based on the identifier of the femto base station is also a problem worth attention.

[0111] Based on the above, the present application provides a communication method for realizing that, in a cell handover scenario, a femto GW forwards a received handover request message to a femto base station to which a target cell belongs. The communication method and device are further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It can be understood that, in the embodiments shown in FIGS. 5, 8, 9, and 10, the first gateway, at least one access network device managed by the first gateway, the operation and maintenance management network element, and the source access and mobility management network element and the target access and mobility management network element are taken as examples of the interactive execution subject. However, the present application does not limit the interactive execution subject. The above-mentioned devices can also be implemented by modules (such as circuits, chips, or chip systems, etc.) in the devices, or logical nodes, logical modules, or software capable of realizing all or part of the functions of the devices.

[0112] In each of the following embodiments, a source access network device determines a terminal to handover from a source cell to a target cell, wherein the source cell is a cell under the source access network device, and the target cell is a cell under a target access network device. The target access network device to which the target cell belongs (i.e., the target access network device) is an access network device managed by a first gateway, wherein the first gateway can manage at least one access network device, for example, the first gateway can be a femto GW, and the access network device managed by the first gateway can be a femto base station. The source access network device can communicate with a source access and mobility management network element, and the first gateway can communicate with a target access and mobility management network element, wherein the source access and mobility management network element can be the same as or different from the target source access and mobility management network element, which is not limited in the present application. For example, if there is an interface between the source access and mobility management network element and the first gateway, such as an NG interface, the source access and mobility management network element is the same as the target access and mobility management network element.

[0113] As shown in FIG. 5, the present application provides a communication method, which comprises:

[0114] S501: The target access and mobility management network element sends a first message to the first gateway, and correspondingly, the first gateway receives the first message from the target access and mobility management network element.

[0115] The first message is used to request the terminal to handover from the source cell to the target cell, and the first message comprises an identifier of the target cell.

[0116] Exemplarily, the first message does not comprise an identifier of the target access network device. For example, the first message can be a HANDOVER REQUEST.

[0117] Exemplarily, before the first gateway receives the first message, the cell handover process further comprises the following steps: the source access network device determines the terminal to handover from the source cell to the target cell, and the source access network device sends a first handover request message to the source access and mobility management network element, wherein the first handover request message comprises the identifier of the target cell and the identifier of the target access network device, and the first handover request message is used to request the terminal to handover from the source cell to the target cell. For example, the first handover request message can be a HANDOVER REQUIRED.

[0118] If there is an interface between the source access and mobility management network element and the first gateway, i.e., the source access and mobility management network element is the same as the target access and mobility management network element, the source access and mobility management network element sends the first message to the first gateway.

[0119] If there is no interface between the source access and mobility management network element and the first gateway, that is, the source access and mobility management network element is different from the target access and mobility management network element, the source access and mobility management network element sends a first handover request message to the target access and mobility management network element, and further, after receiving the first handover request message, the target access and mobility management network element sends a first message to the first gateway. In FIG. 5, the case that the source access and mobility management network element is different from the target access and mobility management network element is taken as an example for illustration.

[0120] S502: The first gateway determines the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the identifier of each of the at least one access network device and the identifier of the target cell.

[0121] The length of the identifier of each of the at least one access network device is X bits, the length of the identifier of the target cell is greater than X bits, X is a positive integer, and the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs is consistent with the first X bits of the identifier of the target cell. For example, the value of X can be one fixed value in a range from and including 22 to and including 32, which is not limited in the present application.

[0122] That is, in the scheme provided in the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the identifiers of the respective access network devices managed by the first gateway have the same length, or in other words, the lengths of the identifiers of the respective access network devices managed by the first gateway are consistent.

[0123] In a possible implementation, the first gateway can match the identifier of each of the at least one access network device with the identifier of the target cell, determine the identifier of the access network device that matches the identifier of the target cell, that is, the identifier of the access network device that is consistent with the first X bits of the identifier of the target cell, and then determine that the identifier of the access network device is the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs. At this time, the first gateway can not need to determine or know the length of the identifier of the access network device, and when it is determined that one of the identifiers of the respective access network devices stored by the first gateway is consistent with the first X bits of the identifier of the target cell, it is determined that the identifier of the access network device is the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0124] In another possible implementation, the first gateway knows the value of X, and then determines that the first X bits of the identifier of the target cell is the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs. For example, if the identifier of the target cell is NCGI, the length of the identifier of the target cell is 36 bits, and the value of X is 22, the first gateway can determine that the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs is the first 22 bits of NCGI.

[0125] S503: The first gateway sends a second message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs, and correspondingly, the access network device to which the target cell belongs receives the second message from the first gateway.

[0126] The second message is used to request the terminal to switch from the source cell to the target cell.

[0127] Exemplarily, the second message includes the identifier of the target cell. The access network device to which the target cell belongs can determine the target cell according to the identifier of the target cell in the second message, and then the access network device to which the target cell belongs performs admission control, and if it agrees to access the terminal, it replies to the first gateway with a handover request acknowledgement message.

[0128] It should be noted that in the present application, in the case of the access network device being a femto base station (or femto node), the identifier of the access network device can use the base station identifier (gNB ID) in the existing protocol, or a new identifier (such as femto ID) can be defined to identify the femto base station, and the present application does not limit this.

[0129] With the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, since the identifiers of the access network devices managed by the first gateway are of the same length, the first gateway can accurately determine the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the identifier of the target cell received and the identifier of the access network device managed by the first gateway, thereby improving the success rate of cell switching.

[0130] The following describes how to configure the identifier of the access network device for the first gateway managed access network device. It can be understood that the following possible implementation mode 1 and possible implementation mode 2 are only examples and are not limiting of the present application. The following only describes the configuration of the identifier for the first access network device as an example, wherein the first access network device is any one of the at least one access network device managed by the first gateway.

[0131] Possible implementation mode 1:

[0132] The operation and maintenance management network element configures the identifier for the first access network device. The identifier of the access network device managed by the first gateway is of a first length, and exemplarily, the first length is X bits.

[0133] As shown in FIG. 6 is a specific flowchart of the operation and maintenance management network element configuring the identifier for the first access network device:

[0134] S601: The operation and maintenance management network element configures the identifier of the first access network device for the first access network device.

[0135] In a possible design, the first length can be agreed by a protocol or preconfigured. The operation and maintenance management network element determines, based on the preconfigured information, that the first access network device is an access network device managed by the first gateway, and configures the first access network device with the identifier with the first length.

[0136] In another possible design, the operation and maintenance management network element learns the first length through signaling.

[0137] Possible example a: Before the operation and maintenance management network element configures the first access network device with the identifier of the first access network device, the first gateway sends, to at least one access network device managed by the first gateway, a second configuration information respectively, where each second configuration information indicates that the length of the identifier of the corresponding access network device is the first length, and the at least one access network device includes the first access network device. The identifiers of the access network devices managed by the first gateway all have the first length. Further, the first access network device sends, to the operation and maintenance management network element, first information indicating the first length. Further, the operation and maintenance management network element can configure the first access network device with the identifier with the first length according to the first information.

[0138] Possible example b: Before the operation and maintenance management network element configures the first access network device with the identifier of the first access network device, the first gateway sends, to the operation and maintenance management network element, a second notification message indicating that the length of the identifier of the access network device managed by the first gateway is the first length. The identifiers of the access network devices managed by the first gateway all have the first length. Further, the operation and maintenance management network element configures the first access network device with the identifier with the first length according to the second notification message.

[0139] S602: The operation and maintenance management network element sends, to the first access network device, the identifier of the first access network device.

[0140] Optionally, S603: The first access network device sends, to the first gateway, the identifier of the first access network device, so that the first gateway learns the identifier of the first access network device.

[0141] For example, the first access network device sends, to the first gateway, an interface establishment request message, where the interface establishment request message includes the identifier of the first access network device. For example, the interface establishment request message is an NG setup request (NG SETUP REQUEST) message.

[0142] Possible implementation 2:

[0143] The first gateway configures the access network devices managed by the first gateway with corresponding identifiers. The identifiers of the access network devices managed by the first gateway have the first length, and the first length is X bits, for example.

[0144] As shown in FIG. 7, a specific flowchart for the first gateway configuring corresponding identifiers for the first access network device is shown as follows:

[0145] S701: The first gateway determines that the identifier of the access network device managed by the first gateway is of a first length.

[0146] S702: The first gateway sends first configuration information to the first access network device, and the first configuration information indicates the identifier of the first access network device.

[0147] Optionally, S703A: The first access network device can send the identifier of the first access network device to the operation and maintenance management network element, so that the operation and maintenance management network element learns the identifier of the first access network device.

[0148] S703B: The first gateway can send the identifier of the first access network device to the operation and maintenance management network element, so that the operation and maintenance management network element learns the identifier of the first access network device. For example, the first gateway can send a first notification message to the operation and maintenance management network element, and the first notification message includes at least one identifier corresponding to at least one access network device, and the at least one identifier corresponding to the at least one access network device includes the identifier of the first access network device. Wherein, the first gateway can send the identifier of one or more access network devices at a time, which is not limited in the present application.

[0149] By using the above possible implementation manner 1 or 2, before the cell handover process, the corresponding identifier can be configured for each access network device managed by the first gateway, and the length of the identifier of each access network device managed by the first gateway is consistent.

[0150] As shown in FIG. 8, the present application further provides a communication method, which comprises:

[0151] S801: The target access and mobility management network element receives a third message, and the third message is used to request the terminal to switch from a source cell to a target cell, and the third message includes an identifier of an access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0152] Exemplarily, the third message further includes an identifier of the target cell.

[0153] In one possible instance, if the target access and mobility management network element is the same as the source access and mobility management network element, the source access network device determines that the terminal switches from the source cell to the target cell, and the source access network device sends the third message to the target access and mobility management network element, for example, the third message can be HANDOVER REQUIRED.

[0154] In another possible example, if the target access and mobility management network element is different from the source access and mobility management network element, the source access network device determines that the terminal is handed over from the source cell to the target cell, and sends a first handover request message to the source access and mobility management network element, where the first handover request message comprises an identifier of the target cell and an identifier of the target access network device, and the first handover request message is used to request the terminal to be handed over from the source cell to the target cell. For example, the first handover request message can be HANDOVER REQUIRED. Further, the source access and mobility management network element sends a third message to the target access and mobility management network element, where the third message is basically the same as the content of the first handover request message. FIG. 8 takes the example that the source access and mobility management network element is different from the target access and mobility management network element.

[0155] S802: In the case that the access network device to which the target cell belongs is the access network device managed by the first gateway, the target access and mobility management network element sends a fourth message to the first gateway, where the fourth message is used to request the terminal to be handed over from the source cell to the target cell.

[0156] The fourth message comprises an identifier of the target cell and first indication information, and the first indication information indicates a first length, where the first length is the length of the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs. In addition, the fourth message can not comprise the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0157] Alternatively, the fourth message comprises the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, and in addition, the fourth message further comprises the identifier of the target cell.

[0158] For example, before the target access and mobility management network element sends the fourth message to the first gateway, the target access and mobility management network element can further determine whether the access network device to which the target cell belongs is the access network device managed by the first gateway, or in other words, the target access and mobility management network element can further determine which gateway the access network device to which the target cell belongs belongs to, or in other words, the target access and mobility management network element can further determine whether the fourth message can be directly sent to the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0159] In a possible implementation, the target access and mobility management network element receives second indication information, where the second indication information indicates the identifier of at least one access network device managed by the first gateway. For example, the first gateway can send the second indication information to the target access and mobility management network element, where the second indication information can indicate that the identifier of the first gateway corresponds to the identifier of the at least one access network device, or the second indication information indicates that the identifier of the first gateway has a mapping relationship or an association relationship with the identifier of the at least one access network device. The first gateway saves the identifier of the at least one access network device managed by the first gateway.

[0160] The target access and mobility management network element can determine, according to the second indication information and the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs in the third message, that the access network device to which the target cell belongs is the access network device managed by the first gateway. Illustratively, the target access and mobility management network element determines that the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs is one of the identities of the at least one access network device managed by the first gateway, and then determines the identity of the first gateway, that is, determines that the access network device to which the target cell belongs is the access network device managed by the first gateway.

[0161] For example, the gateway A manages three access network devices, namely the access network device a, the access network device b and the access network device c. The gateway A can send the second indication information to the AMF1, and the second indication information indicates that the identities of the three access network devices correspond to the identity of the gateway A. Further, when the third message received by the AMF1 includes the identity of the access network device a, the AMF1 can determine the identity of the gateway A according to the identity of the access network device a and the second indication information, and send the fourth message to the gateway A.

[0162] S803A: If the fourth message includes the identity of the target cell and the first indication information, the first gateway determines, according to the first length and the identity of the target cell, the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs,

[0163] Illustratively, if the first length is X bits, the first gateway determines that the first X bits of the identity of the target cell are the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, and X is a positive integer.

[0164] S804A: The first gateway sends a fifth message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs, and the fifth message is used to request the terminal to switch from the source cell to the target cell.

[0165] Illustratively, the first gateway can send the fifth message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs determined in S803A.

[0166] The fifth message further includes the identity of the target cell, and specific contents can also be referred to in the above S503.

[0167] Illustratively, the fifth message can not include the first indication information. That is, the first indication information is deleted by the first network element before the first gateway sends the fifth message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs. The above design can reduce the signaling overhead.

[0168] S803B: If the fourth message includes the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, the first gateway sends a fifth message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs, and the fifth message is used to request the terminal to switch from the source cell to the target cell.

[0169] Exemplarily, since the fourth message comprises the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, the first gateway can directly send the fifth message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0170] The fifth message can further comprise the identifier of the target cell, and details can be referred to the related content in S503.

[0171] Exemplarily, the fifth message can not comprise the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs. That is, before the first gateway sends the fifth message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs, the first network element can delete the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs. The above design can reduce the signaling overhead.

[0172] It can be understood that S803A and S804A are two parallel implementation manners with S803B.

[0173] With the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the target access and mobility management network element adds the length of the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs or the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs to the third message sent to the first gateway, so that the first gateway can accurately determine the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the added content, thereby improving the success rate of cell switching.

[0174] As shown in FIG. 9, the present application further provides a communication method, which comprises:

[0175] S901: The source access network device determines that a terminal switches from a source cell to a target cell under a first access network device.

[0176] S902: The source access network device determines a first identifier according to the identifier of the first access network device and / or the identifier of the target cell.

[0177] Exemplarily, the first identifier is used to identify the first access network device under a gateway, or the first identifier is the identifier of the first access network device under the gateway. In addition, the first identifier can also be referred to as a temporary identifier or a local identifier of the first access network device, and the present application does not limit this. For example, the first identifier is a temporary identifier allocated by the first gateway for the first access network device, or the first identifier can also be preconfigured.

[0178] The possible implementation manners of the source access network device determining the first identifier are described below:

[0179] Possible implementation manner one: The source access network device obtains third indication information, and the third indication information indicates that the first identifier corresponds to the identifier of the first access network device, and then the source access network device determines the first identifier according to the identifier of the first access network device and the third indication information when determining the first identifier according to the identifier of the first access network device.

[0180] Possible implementation manner two: the source access network device acquires third indication information, the third indication information indicates that the first identifier corresponds to the identifier of the at least one cell under the first access network device, and then the source access network device determines the target cell identifier as one of the identifiers of the at least one cell under the first access network device when determining the first identifier according to the identifier of the target cell, and then determines the first identifier.

[0181] The following further describes possible implementation manners of how the source access network device acquires the third indication information:

[0182] Possible implementation manner X: the source access network device receives the third indication information from an operation and maintenance management network element.

[0183] In an example, the first gateway can respectively assign corresponding temporary identifiers to at least one access network device managed by the first gateway, where the at least one access network device includes the first access network device, and the first gateway assigns the temporary identifier for the first access network device as the first identifier. For example, the first gateway can assign corresponding temporary identifiers to each access network device managed by the first gateway through a next generation application protocol (NGAP). Then, the first access network device can send the first identifier to an operation and maintenance management network element. Next, the operation and maintenance management network element can send third indication information to the access network devices within the management range of the operation and maintenance management network element, where the third indication information indicates that the first identifier corresponds to the identifier of the first access network device. It can be understood that in the above example, the operation and maintenance management network element can also be replaced by a RIC, and the first access network device (or the CU of the first access network device) sends the first identifier to the RIC through an E2 interface, and the RIC sends the third indication information to the access network devices (or the CUs or DUs of the access network devices) within the management range of the RIC.

[0184] In another example, the first gateway can allocate a corresponding temporary identifier to each of the at least one access network device managed by the first gateway, wherein the at least one access network device includes the first access network device, and the temporary identifier allocated by the first gateway to the first access network device is the first identifier. The first gateway can send the temporary identifier corresponding to each of the at least one access network device to the operation and maintenance management network element. Then, the operation and maintenance management network element can send third indication information to the access network device within the management range of the operation and maintenance management network element, wherein the access network device within the management range of the operation and maintenance management network element includes the source access network device. The third indication information indicates that the first identifier corresponds to the identifier of the first access network device, and the third indication information can also indicate that the identifiers of the at least one access network device correspond to the at least one temporary identifier one by one. It can be understood that in the above example, the operation and maintenance management network element can also be replaced by the RIC, and the first gateway (or the CU of the first gateway) sends the first identifier to the RIC through the E2 interface, and the RIC sends the third indication information to the access network device within the management range of the RIC (or the CU or DU of the access network device within the management range of the RIC).

[0185] Possible implementation manner Y: The source access network device receives the third indication information from the first access network device.

[0186] For example, the source access network device can receive the third indication information from the first access network device through the Xn interface.

[0187] For example, if the Xn interface has been established between the source access network device and the first access network device, the first access network device can send the third indication information to the source access network device, and the third indication information indicates that the first identifier corresponds to the identifier of the first access network device, or the third indication information indicates that the first identifier corresponds to the identifier of at least one cell under the first access network device. The first access network device can send an Xn interface establishment request message or an Xn interface establishment response message to the source access network device, and the above message can carry the third indication information.

[0188] In an example, the first gateway can allocate a corresponding temporary identifier to each of the at least one access network device managed by the first gateway, wherein the at least one access network device includes the first access network device, and the temporary identifier allocated by the first gateway to the first access network device is the first identifier.

[0189] Possible implementation manner Z: The source access network device receives the third indication information from the terminal.

[0190] In an example, the first gateway can allocate a corresponding temporary identifier to each of the at least one access network device managed by the first gateway, wherein the at least one access network device includes the first access network device, and the temporary identifier allocated by the first gateway to the first access network device is the first identifier.

[0191] Exemplarily, each cell under the first access network device can broadcast a system message carrying the third indication information. For example, the system message is a system information block 1 (SIB1), and the SIB1 broadcasted by each cell carries the first identifier and the CGI of the corresponding cell.

[0192] For example, the first access network device manages cell a and cell b, and the SIB1 broadcasted by cell a carries the CGI and the first identifier of cell a. The SIB1 broadcasted by cell b carries the CGI and the first identifier of cell b.

[0193] Based on the existing automatic neighbor relationship (ANR) mechanism, after detecting the physical cell identifier (PCI) of a cell under the first access network device, the terminal sends the PCI of the cell to the source access network device. For example, the terminal can receive the master information block (MIB) broadcasted by the cell, wherein the MIB includes the PCI of the cell. If the source access network device finds that the cell is not currently configured as a neighbor cell of the terminal, the source access network device instructs the terminal to perform neighbor CGI measurement. For example, the source access network device can maintain the correspondence between the CGI and the PCI of the neighbor cell. If it is judged that the PCI reported by the terminal does not have a corresponding CGI maintained, the cell is considered to be a misconfigured neighbor cell, and the terminal is instructed to measure the SIB1 of the cell, wherein the SIB1 includes the CGI of the cell and the temporary identifier of the access network device corresponding to the cell, i.e., the first identifier.

[0194] Further, the terminal can receive the SIB1 broadcasted by the cell, and report the first identifier in the SIB1 and the CGI of the cell to the source access network device, and the source access network device configures the cell as its own neighbor cell. That is, the third indication information can be carried by the system message sent by the cell under the first access network device, and then measured by the terminal under the source access network device and reported to the source access network device.

[0195] S903: The source access network device sends an eighth message to the source access and mobility management network element.

[0196] The eighth message is used for the terminal to request to switch from the source cell to the target cell, and the eighth message includes the first identifier.

[0197] Exemplarily, the eighth message can further include the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, and the identifier of the target cell. For example, the eighth message can be HANDOVER REQUIRED.

[0198] Exemplarily, the eighth message comprises a first container, and the first identifier is carried by the first container, and the first container can be transparently transmitted to the first gateway.

[0199] For example, the first container is a transparent container from the source access network device to the target access network device, that is, the identifier of the target cell and the first identifier can be carried by the same container.

[0200] S904: The source access and mobility management network element sends a ninth message to the first gateway.

[0201] The ninth message is used to request the terminal to switch from the source cell to the target cell, and the ninth message comprises the first identifier.

[0202] Exemplarily, the ninth message can further comprise the identifier of the target cell, but the ninth message does not comprise the identifier of the target access network device.

[0203] In a possible instance, if the target access and mobility management network element is the same as the source access and mobility management network element, the source access and mobility management network element sends the ninth message to the first gateway, for example, the ninth message can be a HANDOVER REQUEST. In FIG. 9, the case that the source access and mobility management network element is the same as the target access and mobility management network element is taken as an example for description.

[0204] In another possible instance, if the target access and mobility management network element is different from the source access and mobility management network element, the source access and mobility management network element sends the ninth message to the first gateway through the target access and mobility management network element.

[0205] S905: The first gateway determines the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the first identifier.

[0206] Exemplarily, the first gateway can obtain third indication information, wherein the third indication information indicates that the first identifier corresponds to the identifier of the first access network device, and when determining the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the first identifier, the first gateway can determine the identifier of the first access network device according to the first identifier and the third indication information.

[0207] In a possible implementation manner, the first gateway respectively allocates a corresponding temporary identifier to at least one access network device managed by the first gateway, and then the first gateway can save the correspondence between the identifier of the at least one access network device and the corresponding temporary identifier. That is, the first gateway can save the third indication information.

[0208] In another possible implementation manner, the first gateway can also obtain the third indication information from other devices, for example, the first gateway can obtain the third indication information from an operation and maintenance management network element.

[0209] S906: The first gateway sends a tenth message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0210] The tenth message is used to request the terminal to switch from the source cell to the target cell.

[0211] Exemplarily, the tenth message can further include the identifier of the target cell, and details can be referred to the related content in S503.

[0212] With the embodiment shown in FIG. 9, the source access network device can determine the temporary identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, i.e., the first identifier, so that the first gateway can accurately determine the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the first identifier, thereby improving the success rate of cell switching.

[0213] As shown in FIG. 10, the present application provides a communication method, which includes:

[0214] S1001: The target access and mobility management network element receives second indication information, which indicates the identifier of at least one access network device managed by the first gateway.

[0215] In a possible implementation, the target access and mobility management network element receives second indication information, which indicates the identifier of at least one access network device managed by the first gateway. Exemplarily, the first gateway can send the second indication information to the target access and mobility management network element, where the second indication information can indicate that the identifier of the first gateway corresponds to the identifier of the at least one access network device, or the second indication information indicates that the identifier of the first gateway has a mapping relationship or an association relationship with the identifier of the at least one access network device. The second indication information can be carried in an interface establishment message (e.g., NG SETUP REQUEST) or an interface establishment response message (e.g., NG SETUP RESPONSE) between the first gateway and the target access and mobility management network element. The identifier of the first gateway can be represented by gNB ID, or a new identifier specially used to identify the gateway node (e.g., GW ID) can be defined, or the IP address of the first gateway can be used, which is not limited in the present application.

[0216] S1002: The target access and mobility management network element receives a sixth message, which is used to request the terminal to switch from the source cell to the target cell, and the sixth message includes the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0217] Exemplarily, the sixth message further includes the identifier of the target cell.

[0218] In a possible example, if the target access and mobility management network element is the same as the source access and mobility management network element, the source access network device determines that the terminal switches from the source cell to the target cell, and the source access network device sends a sixth message to the target access and mobility management network element, for example, the sixth message can be a HANDOVER REQUIRED.

[0219] In another possible example, if the target access and mobility management network element is different from the source access and mobility management network element, the source access network device determines that the terminal switches from the source cell to the target cell, and the source access network device sends a first handover request message to the source access and mobility management network element, the first handover request message includes an identifier of the target cell and an identifier of the target access network device, and the first handover request message is used to request the terminal to switch from the source cell to the target cell. For example, the first handover request message can be a HANDOVER REQUIRED. Further, the source access and mobility management network element sends a sixth message to the target access and mobility management network element, the sixth message is basically the same as the content of the first handover request message. In FIG. 10, an example in which the source access and mobility management network element is different from the target access and mobility management network element is described.

[0220] S1003: The target access and mobility management network element determines, according to the second indication information and the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, that the access network device to which the target cell belongs is the access network device managed by the first gateway.

[0221] For example, the target access and mobility management network element determines that the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs is one of the identifiers of the at least one access network device managed by the first gateway, and then determines that the access network device to which the target cell belongs is the access network device managed by the first gateway.

[0222] For example, the gateway A manages three access network devices, which are the access network device a, the access network device b and the access network device c, and the gateway A can send the second indication information to the AMF1, the second indication information indicates that the identifiers of the three access network devices correspond to the identifier of the gateway A. Further, when the sixth message received by the AMF1 includes the identifier of the access network device a, the AMF1 can determine the identifier of the gateway A according to the identifier of the access network device a and the second indication information, and send a seventh message to the gateway A.

[0223] S1004: The target access and mobility management network element sends a seventh message to the first gateway, and the seventh message is used to request the terminal to switch from the source cell to the target cell.

[0224] The seventh message includes the identifier of the target cell.

[0225] Exemplarily, the seventh message further comprises first indication information, the first indication information indicating a first length, wherein the first length is a length of the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs; or the seventh message further comprises the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0226] In combination with the content of the seventh message, further reference can be made to the content of the fourth message and the corresponding processing flow in the embodiment shown in Fig. 8.

[0227] With the embodiment shown in Fig. 10, the target access and mobility management network element can accurately determine that the access network device to which the target cell belongs is the access network device managed by the first gateway according to the second indication information and the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, thereby improving the success rate of cell handover. In addition, the embodiment shown in Fig. 10 can also be combined with the embodiments shown in Figs. 5, 8 and 9.

[0228] It can be understood that, in order to implement the functions in the above embodiments, each device comprises corresponding hardware structure and / or software module for executing each function. Those skilled in the art should easily realize that, in combination with the units and method steps of each example described in the embodiments disclosed in the present application, the present application can be realized in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a certain function is executed by hardware or computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application scenario and design constraints of the technical solution.

[0229] Figs. 11 and 12 are structural schematic diagrams of possible communication apparatuses provided by embodiments of the present application. These communication apparatuses can be used to implement the functions of each device in the above method embodiments, and thus can also achieve the beneficial effects possessed by the above method embodiments.

[0230] As shown in Fig. 11, the communication apparatus 1100 comprises a processing unit 1110 and a transceiver unit 1120. The communication apparatus 1100 is used to implement the functions of each device in the above method embodiments.

[0231] When the communication apparatus 1100 is used to implement the functions of the first gateway in the embodiment shown in Fig. 5, the transceiver unit 1120 is configured to:

[0232] The transceiver unit 1120 is configured to receive a first message, the first message being used to request a terminal to hand over from a source cell to a target cell, and the first message comprising an identifier of the target cell.

[0233] The processing unit 1110 is configured to determine an access network device to which a target cell belongs according to an identifier corresponding to each of the at least one access network device and an identifier of the target cell, the length of the identifier of each of the at least one access network device is X bits, the length of the identifier of the target cell is greater than X bits, X is a positive integer, and the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs is consistent with the first X bits of the identifier of the target cell.

[0234] The transceiver unit 1120 is configured to send a second message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs, where the second message is used to request the terminal to perform handover from the source cell to the target cell.

[0235] In a possible design, the transceiver unit 1120 is configured to send, to the at least one access network device respectively, first configuration information, where each of the first configuration information indicates an identifier of a corresponding access network device.

[0236] In a possible design, the transceiver unit 1120 is configured to send, to the operation and maintenance management network element, a first notification message, where the first notification message includes the identifiers corresponding to the at least one access network device respectively.

[0237] In a possible design, the transceiver unit 1120 is configured to send, to the at least one access network device respectively, second configuration information, where each of the second configuration information indicates that the length of the identifier of the corresponding access network device is X bits; or send, to the operation and maintenance management network element, a second notification message, where the second notification message indicates that the length of the identifier of each of the access network devices is X bits.

[0238] When the communication apparatus 1100 is configured to implement the functions of the operation and maintenance management network element in the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, the processing unit 1110 is configured to:

[0239] The processing unit 1110 is configured to configure, for the at least one access network device managed by the first gateway, respective identifiers, where the identifiers corresponding to the at least one access network device respectively have the same length, and send the respective identifiers to the at least one access network device.

[0240] In a possible design, the transceiver unit 1120 is configured to receive, from the first gateway, a second notification message, where the second notification message indicates that the length of the identifier of each of the at least one access network device is X bits; and configure, for the at least one access network device respectively, respective identifiers, where the length of the identifier of each of the at least one access network device is X bits.

[0241] When the communication apparatus 1100 is configured to implement the functions of the target access and mobility management network element in the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the processing unit 1110 is configured to:

[0242] The processing unit 1110 invokes the transceiver unit 1120 to perform receiving a third message, the third message being used to request the terminal to handover from a source cell to a target cell, the third message comprising an identifier of an access network device to which the target cell belongs, and in a case where the access network device to which the target cell belongs is an access network device managed by the first gateway, sending a fourth message to the first gateway, the fourth message being used to request the terminal to handover from the source cell to the target cell, the fourth message comprising an identifier of the target cell and first indication information, the first indication information indicating a first length, wherein the first length is a length of the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs; or the fourth message comprising the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0243] In a possible design, the transceiver unit 1120 is configured to receive second indication information, the second indication information indicating identifiers of at least one access network device managed by the first gateway.

[0244] The processing unit 1110 is configured to, before sending the fourth message to the first gateway, determine, according to the second indication information and the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, that the access network device to which the target cell belongs is an access network device managed by the first gateway.

[0245] When the communication apparatus 1100 is configured to implement the function of the first gateway in the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the transceiver unit 1120 is configured to:

[0246] The transceiver unit 1120 is configured to receive a fourth message, the fourth message being used to request the terminal to handover from a source cell to a target cell, the fourth message comprising an identifier of the target cell and first indication information, the first indication information indicating a first length, the first length being a length of an identifier of an access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0247] The processing unit 1110 is configured to determine, according to the first length and the identifier of the target cell, the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0248] The processing unit 1110 is configured to send a fifth message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs, the fifth message being used to request the terminal to handover from the source cell to the target cell.

[0249] In a possible design, the first length is X bits; and when the processing unit 1110 determines, according to the first length and the identifier of the target cell, the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, the first gateway determines the first X bits of the identifier of the target cell as the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0250] When the communication apparatus 1100 is configured to implement the function of the first gateway in the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the transceiver unit 1120 is configured to:

[0251] The processing unit 1110 invokes the transceiver unit 1120 to receive a fourth message, the fourth message being used to request the terminal to handover from a source cell to a target cell, the fourth message comprising an identifier of an access network device to which the target cell belongs, and send a fifth message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs, the fifth message being used to request the terminal to handover from the source cell to the target cell.

[0252] When the communication apparatus 1100 is used to implement the function of the target access and mobility management network element in the embodiment shown in FIG. 10:

[0253] The transceiver unit 1120 is configured to receive second indication information, the second indication information indicating an identifier of at least one access network device managed by a first gateway, and receive a sixth message, the sixth message being used to request the terminal to handover from a source cell to a target cell, the sixth message comprising an identifier of an access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0254] The processing unit 1110 is configured to determine, according to the second indication information and the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, that the access network device to which the target cell belongs is an access network device managed by the first gateway.

[0255] The transceiver unit 1120 is configured to send a seventh message to the first gateway, the seventh message being used to request the terminal to handover from the source cell to the target cell.

[0256] In a possible design, the seventh message further comprises an identifier of the target cell and first indication information, the first indication information indicating a first length, where the first length is a length of the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs; or the seventh message further comprises the identifier of the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0257] When the communication apparatus 1100 is used to implement the function of the source access network device in the embodiment shown in FIG. 9:

[0258] The processing unit 1110 is configured to determine that the terminal is to handover from a source cell to a target cell under a first access network device, and determine a first identifier according to an identifier of the first access network device and / or an identifier of the target cell, the first identifier being used to identify the first access network device under a gateway.

[0259] The transceiver unit 1120 is configured to send an eighth message, the eighth message being used to request the terminal to handover from the source cell to the target cell, the eighth message comprising the first identifier.

[0260] In a possible design, the transceiver unit 1120 is configured to acquire third indication information, the third indication information indicating that the first identifier corresponds to the identifier of the first access network device.

[0261] The processing unit 1110 is configured to determine the first identifier according to the identifier of the first access network device and the third indication information when the first identifier is determined according to the identifier of the first access network device.

[0262] In a possible design, the transceiver unit 1120 is configured to obtain the third indication information, where the third indication information indicates that the first identifier corresponds to the identifier of the at least one cell under the first access network device.

[0263] The processing unit 1110 is configured to determine the identifier of the target cell as one of the identifiers of the at least one cell when the first identifier is determined according to the identifier of the target cell, and determine the first identifier according to the identifier of the target cell and the third indication information.

[0264] In a possible design, the transceiver unit 1120 is configured to receive the third indication information from an operation and maintenance management network element, or receive the third indication information from the first access network device, or receive the third indication information from the terminal.

[0265] When the communication apparatus 1100 is configured to implement the function of the first gateway in the embodiment shown in FIG. 9, the transceiver unit 1120 is configured to receive a ninth message, where the ninth message is used to request the terminal to perform handover from a source cell to a target cell, and the ninth message includes the first identifier, and the first identifier is used to identify an access network device to which the target cell belongs under the gateway.

[0266] The transceiver unit 1120 is configured to receive a ninth message, where the ninth message is used to request the terminal to perform handover from a source cell to a target cell, and the ninth message includes the first identifier, and the first identifier is used to identify an access network device to which the target cell belongs under the gateway.

[0267] The processing unit 1110 is configured to determine the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the first identifier.

[0268] The transceiver unit 1120 is configured to send a tenth message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs, where the tenth message is used to request the terminal to perform handover from the source cell to the target cell.

[0269] In a possible design, the transceiver unit 1120 is configured to obtain the third indication information, where the third indication information indicates that the first identifier corresponds to the identifier of the first access network device, and the first access network device is one of the access network devices managed by the first gateway.

[0270] The processing unit 1110 is configured to determine the identifier of the first access network device according to the first identifier and the third indication information when the access network device to which the target cell belongs is determined according to the first identifier, and the first access network device is the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

[0271] For more details of the processing unit 1110 and the transceiver unit 1120, refer to the related descriptions in the method embodiments.

[0272] As shown in FIG. 12, the communication apparatus 1200 includes a processor 1210 and an interface circuit 1220. The processor 1210 and the interface circuit 1220 are coupled with each other. It can be understood that the interface circuit 1220 can be a transceiver or an input / output interface. Optionally, the communication apparatus 1200 can further include a memory 1230 for storing instructions executed by the processor 1210 or storing input data required by the processor 1210 for executing instructions or storing data generated after the processor 1210 executes instructions.

[0273] In a possible case, the communication apparatus 1200 can include at least one processor 1210 integrated with the memory 1230, and can further include another memory.

[0274] When the communication apparatus 1200 is used to implement the above-mentioned various embodiments, the processor 1210 is configured to implement the functions of the processing unit 1110, and the interface circuit 1220 is configured to implement the functions of the transceiver unit 1120.

[0275] It can be understood that the processor in the embodiments of the present application can be a central processing unit (CPU), and can also be other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSP), application specific integrated circuits (ASIC), field programmable gate arrays (FPGA) or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components or any combination thereof. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor or any conventional processor.

[0276] In the present application, another example of providing an apparatus is provided, the notification apparatus includes at least one processor and at least one memory, the at least one processor and the at least one memory are coupled, the at least one memory is configured to store instructions, when the instructions are executed by the at least one processor, the communication apparatus executes the method in the above-mentioned embodiments. Taking the communication apparatus including one processor and one memory as an example, as shown in FIG. 12, the communication apparatus 1200 includes one processor 1210 and one memory 1230. The processor 1210 and the memory 1230 are coupled, and the memory 1230 stores instructions, when the instructions stored in the memory 1230 are executed by the processor 1210, the communication apparatus 1200 executes the method executed by each device in the above-mentioned embodiments.

[0277] The steps of the methods in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented in hardware, or in software that is executable by a processor. The software instructions can be comprised in a software module, which can be stored in a random access memory, a flash memory, a read only memory, a programmable read only memory, an erasable programmable read only memory, an electrically erasable programmable read only memory, a register, a hard disk, a mobile hard disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor, such that the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. The storage medium can also be a component of the processor. The processor and the storage medium can be located in an ASIC. The ASIC can be located in the various devices described above. The processor and the storage medium can also be present as discrete components in the various devices.

[0278] In the above embodiments, the implementation can be wholly or partially in software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, the implementation can be in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer programs or instructions. When loaded and executed by a computer, the computer programs or instructions implement the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present application. The computer can be a general purpose computer, a special purpose computer, a computer network, a network device, a user equipment, or other programmable apparatus. The computer programs or instructions can be stored in a computer readable storage medium, or transferred from one computer readable storage medium to another computer readable storage medium, for example, the computer programs or instructions can be transferred from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center through wired or wireless means. The computer readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device, such as a server, data center, etc., that integrates one or more available media. The available media can be a magnetic medium, such as a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape; an optical medium, such as a digital video disc; or a semiconductor medium, such as a solid state disk. The computer readable storage medium can be a volatile or non-volatile storage medium, or can include both volatile and non-volatile storage media.

[0279] In the various embodiments of the present application, the terms and / or descriptions of different embodiments are consistent and can be mutually referenced if there is no special description and no logical conflict. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their inherent logical relationship.

[0280] In the present application, "at least one" means one or more, "multiple" means two or more. The "and / or" describes the relationship between the associated objects, which means that there can be three kinds of relationships, for example, A and / or B, which can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist together, B exists alone, where A, B can be singular or plural. In the text description of the present application, the character " / ", generally indicates that the associated objects before and after are in an "or" relationship; in the formula of the present application, the character " / ", indicates that the associated objects before and after are in a "division" relationship. "Including at least one of A, B and C" can mean: including A; including B; including C; including A and B; including A and C; including B and C; including A, B and C.

[0281] It can be understood that various numerical numbers involved in the embodiments of the present application are only distinguished for the convenience of description, and are not used to limit the scope of the embodiments of the present application. The size of the serial number of the above processes does not mean the order of execution, and the execution order of the processes should be determined according to its function and inherent logic.

Claims

1. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method is applied to a first gateway, the first gateway manages at least one access network device, and the method comprises: receiving a first message, the first message being used for requesting a terminal to hand over from a source cell to a target cell, and the first message comprising an identity of the target cell; determining an access network device to which the target cell belongs according to identities corresponding to the at least one access network device respectively and the identity of the target cell, the identity of each access network device in the at least one access network device having a length of X bits, the identity of the target cell having a length greater than X bits, X being a positive integer, and the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs being consistent with the first X bits of the identity of the target cell; sending a second message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs, the second message being used for requesting the terminal to hand over from the source cell to the target cell.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The method further comprises: sending first configuration information to the at least one access network device respectively, each first configuration information indicating an identity of a corresponding access network device.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein, The method further comprises: sending a first notification message to an operation and maintenance management network element, the first notification message comprising the identities corresponding to the at least one access network device respectively.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein, The method further comprises: sending second configuration information to the at least one access network device respectively, each second configuration information indicating that the length of the identity of a corresponding access network device is X bits; or sending a second notification message to an operation and maintenance management network element, the second notification message indicating that the length of the identity of each access network device is X bits.

5. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method comprises: configuring respective identities for at least one access network device managed by a first gateway, wherein the identities corresponding to the at least one access network device respectively have the same length; sending respective identities to the at least one access network device.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein, The method further comprises: receiving a second notification message from the first gateway, the second notification message indicating that the length of the identity of each access network device in the at least one access network device is X bits; configuring respective identities for the at least one access network device, comprising: configuring an identity having a length of X bits for each access network device in the at least one access network device.

7. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method is applied to an access and mobility management network element, and the method comprises: receiving a third message, the third message being used for requesting a terminal to hand over from a source cell to a target cell, and the third message comprising an identity of an access network device to which the target cell belongs; in a case where the access network device to which the target cell belongs is an access network device managed by a first gateway, sending a fourth message to the first gateway, the fourth message being used for requesting the terminal to hand over from the source cell to the target cell, the fourth message comprising the identity of the target cell and first indication information, the first indication information indicating a first length, wherein the first length is a length of the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs; or the fourth message comprising the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein, Further comprising: receiving second indication information, the second indication information indicating identities of at least one access network device managed by the first gateway; Before sending the fourth message to the first gateway, the method further comprises: determining, according to the second indication information and the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, that the access network device to which the target cell belongs is an access network device managed by the first gateway.

9. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method is applied to a first gateway that manages at least one access network device, and the method comprises: receiving a fourth message, the fourth message being used to request a terminal to hand over from a source cell to a target cell, the fourth message comprising an identity of the target cell and first indication information, the first indication information indicating a first length, the first length being a length of an identity of an access network device to which the target cell belongs; determining the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the first length and the identity of the target cell; sending a fifth message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs, the fifth message being used to request the terminal to hand over from the source cell to the target cell.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein, The first length is X bits. The determining of the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the first length and the identity of the target cell comprises: determining the first X bits of the identity of the target cell as the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

11. The method of claim 9 or 10, wherein, The fifth message does not comprise the first indication information.

12. A communication method, comprising: The method is applied to a first gateway that manages at least one access network device, and the method comprises: receiving a fourth message, the fourth message being used to request a terminal to hand over from a source cell to a target cell, the fourth message comprising an identity of an access network device to which the target cell belongs; sending a fifth message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the fourth message, the fifth message being used to request the terminal to hand over from the source cell to the target cell, the fifth message not comprising the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

13. A method of communication, comprising: The method is applied to an access and mobility management network element, and the method comprises: receiving second indication information, the second indication information indicating an identity of at least one access network device managed by a first gateway; receiving a sixth message, the sixth message being used to request a terminal to hand over from a source cell to a target cell, the sixth message comprising an identity of an access network device to which the target cell belongs; determining, according to the second indication information and the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs, that the access network device to which the target cell belongs is an access network device managed by the first gateway, and sending a seventh message to the first gateway, the seventh message being used to request the terminal to hand over from the source cell to the target cell.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein, The seventh message further comprises the identity of the target cell and the first indication information, the first indication information indicating a first length, wherein the first length is a length of the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs; or the seventh message further comprises the identity of the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

15. A method of communication, comprising: The method is applied to a source access network device, and the method comprises: determining that a terminal is to hand over from a source cell to a target cell under a first access network device; determine a first identity according to the identity of the first access network device and / or the identity of the target cell, the first identity being used to identify the first access network device under a gateway; send an eighth message, the eighth message being used for the terminal to request handover from the source cell to the target cell, the eighth message comprising the first identity.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein, Further comprising: obtain third indication information, the third indication information indicating that the first identity corresponds to the identity of the first access network device; determine a first identity according to the identity of the first access network device, comprising: determine the first identity according to the identity of the first access network device and the third indication information.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein, Further comprising: obtain third indication information, the third indication information indicating that the first identity corresponds to the identity of at least one cell under the first access network device; determine a first identity according to the identity of the target cell, comprising: if the identity of the target cell is one of the identities of the at least one cell, then determine the first identity.

18. The method of claim 16 or 17, wherein, Obtain third indication information, comprising: receive the third indication information from an operation and maintenance management network element; or, receive the third indication information from the first access network device; or, receive the third indication information from the terminal.

19. A method of communication, comprising: The method is applied to a first gateway, and the method comprises: receive a ninth message, the ninth message being used to request a terminal to handover from a source cell to a target cell, the ninth message comprising a first identity, the first identity being used to identify an access network device to which the target cell belongs under a gateway; determine the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the first identity; send a tenth message to the access network device to which the target cell belongs, the tenth message being used to request the terminal to handover from the source cell to the target cell.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein, Further comprising: obtain third indication information, the third indication information indicating that the first identity corresponds to the identity of the first access network device; determine the access network device to which the target cell belongs according to the first identity, comprising: determine the identity of the first access network device according to the first identity and the third indication information, the first access network device being the access network device to which the target cell belongs.

21. A communications device, characterized by The communication device comprises at least one processor; the at least one processor is configured to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 20.

22. A communications device, characterized by The computer readable storage medium comprises a program, when the program is executed on a device, the device executes the method according to any one of claims 1 to 20.

23. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer program product comprises a program or instructions, when the program or instructions are executed by a device, the device executes the method according to any one of claims 1 to 20.

24. A computer program product, characterised in that, ​

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