Communication method, terminal, and network side device

Abstract

A communication method, a terminal, and a network side device, relating to the field of communications. The communication method comprises: when a terminal UE supports at least two communication modes in a radio resource control (RRC) inactive state, the terminal determines a target communication mode from among the at least two communication modes and, on the basis of the target communication mode, executes a first behavior, wherein the first behavior comprises a UE behavior in the RRC inactive state.

Description

Communication method, terminal and network side device

[0001] Cross-reference to Related Applications

[0002] The present application claims priority to the Chinese Patent Application No. 202411363581.5, filed on September 27, 2024, entitled "Communication method, terminal and network side device", and the Chinese Patent Application No. 202411994566.0, filed on December 31, 2024, entitled "Communication method, terminal and network side device", the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD

[0003] The present application belongs to the field of communication technology, and specifically relates to a communication method, a terminal and a network side device. BACKGROUND

[0004] In a communication system, a terminal can support multiple communication modes to perform Radio Resource Control (RRC) non-connected state communication. Currently, the related art has not considered that the terminal can support multiple communication modes to perform RRC non-connected state communication, resulting in that the performance of the entire communication system such as spectrum efficiency, energy efficiency and the like cannot be improved according to the communication mode supported by the terminal. SUMMARY

[0005] Embodiments of the present application provide a communication method, a terminal and a network side device, which can solve the problem that the performance of the communication system cannot be improved according to the communication mode supported by the terminal.

[0006] In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, which includes: in the case that a terminal UE supports at least two communication modes in a Radio Resource Control (RRC) non-connected state, the terminal determines a target communication mode from the at least two communication modes, and performs a first behavior according to the target communication mode, wherein the first behavior includes a UE behavior in the RRC non-connected state.

[0007] In a second aspect, a communication method is provided, which includes: a core network device sends sixth information of a terminal to a first access network device, wherein the sixth information includes at least one of a communication mode currently used by the terminal in a Radio Resource Control (RRC) non-connected state and a communication mode supported by the terminal in the RRC non-connected state, and the terminal supports at least two communication modes in the RRC non-connected state.

[0008] In a third aspect, a communication method is provided, the method comprising at least one of: receiving or sending, by a first access network device, sixth information, the sixth information comprising at least one of a communication mode in a radio resource control (RRC) non-connected state currently used by a terminal and a communication mode in the RRC non-connected state supported by the terminal; and receiving, by the first access network device, third information sent by the terminal, the third information being used to indicate a communication mode preferred or required by the terminal, wherein the terminal supports at least two communication modes in the RRC non-connected state.

[0009] In a fourth aspect, a communication apparatus is provided, the apparatus comprising: a processing module configured to determine a target communication mode from at least two communication modes in a radio resource control (RRC) non-connected state in a case where a terminal (UE) supports the at least two communication modes in the RRC non-connected state, and perform a first action according to the target communication mode, wherein the first action comprises a UE behavior in the RRC non-connected state.

[0010] In a fifth aspect, a communication apparatus is provided, the apparatus comprising: a first sending module configured to send, to a first access network device, sixth information of a terminal, wherein the sixth information comprises at least one of a communication mode in a radio resource control (RRC) non-connected state currently used by the terminal and a communication mode in the RRC non-connected state supported by the terminal, and the terminal supports at least two communication modes in the RRC non-connected state.

[0011] In a sixth aspect, a communication apparatus is provided, the apparatus comprising: a first communication module configured to receive or send sixth information, the sixth information comprising at least one of a communication mode in a radio resource control (RRC) non-connected state currently used by a terminal and a communication mode in the RRC non-connected state supported by the terminal; and / or a second communication module configured to receive third information sent by the terminal, the third information being used to indicate a communication mode preferred or required by the terminal, wherein the terminal supports at least two communication modes in the RRC non-connected state.

[0012] In a seventh aspect, a communication apparatus is provided, the apparatus being configured to perform the steps of the method of the first aspect, or to implement the steps of the method of the second aspect, or to implement the steps of the method of the third aspect.

[0013] In an eighth aspect, a terminal is provided, the terminal comprising a processor and a memory, the memory storing programs or instructions executable on the processor, the programs or instructions being executed by the processor to implement the steps of the method of the first aspect.

[0014] In a ninth aspect, a terminal is provided, including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the processor is configured to determine, in a case that the terminal supports at least two communication modes in a radio resource control (RRC) non-connected state, a target communication mode from the at least two communication modes, and perform a first action according to the target communication mode, wherein the first action includes a UE behavior in the RRC non-connected state.

[0015] In a tenth aspect, a network-side device is provided, including a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores programs or instructions executable on the processor, and the programs or instructions, when executed by the processor, implement steps of the method according to the second aspect, or the programs or instructions, when executed by the processor, implement steps of the method according to the third aspect.

[0016] In an eleventh aspect, a network-side device is provided, including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is configured to send, to a first access network device, sixth information of a terminal, wherein the sixth information includes at least one of a communication mode in an RRC non-connected state currently used by the terminal and a communication mode in the RRC non-connected state supported by the terminal, and the terminal supports at least two communication modes in the RRC non-connected state.

[0017] In a twelfth aspect, a network-side device is provided, including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is configured to receive or send sixth information, and the sixth information includes at least one of a communication mode in an RRC non-connected state currently used by the terminal and a communication mode in the RRC non-connected state supported by the terminal; and / or, receive third information sent by the terminal, and the third information is used to indicate a communication mode preferred or required by the terminal; wherein the terminal supports at least two communication modes in the RRC non-connected state.

[0018] In a thirteenth aspect, a readable storage medium is provided, and the readable storage medium stores programs or instructions, and the programs or instructions, when executed by a processor, implement steps of the method according to the first aspect, or implement steps of the method according to the second aspect, or implement steps of the method according to the third aspect.

[0019] In a fourteenth aspect, a wireless communication system is provided, including a terminal, a core network device, and an access network device, wherein the terminal is configured to perform steps of the method according to the first aspect, the core network device is configured to perform steps of the method according to the second aspect, and the access network device is configured to perform steps of the method according to the second aspect.

[0020] In a fifteenth aspect, a chip is provided, which includes a processor and a communication interface, the communication interface and the processor are coupled, the processor is configured to run programs or instructions, and implement the method in the first aspect, or implement the method in the second aspect, or implement the method in the third aspect.

[0021] In a sixteenth aspect, a computer program / program product is provided, which is stored in a storage medium, and is executed by at least one processor to implement the steps of the method in the first aspect, the second aspect, or the third aspect.

[0022] In the embodiments of the present application, for a terminal supporting at least two communication modes in an RRC non-connected state, a target communication mode can be selected from the at least two communication modes, and a communication mode of UE behavior in the RRC non-connected state is performed according to the target communication mode, so that the needs of the terminal in different scenarios (coverage, power saving) can be met, and the network side can organically integrate the at least two communication modes by means of the at least two communication modes supported by the terminal, so as to improve the performance of the whole system. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0023] FIG. 1A is a block diagram of a wireless communication system to which embodiments of the present application can be applied.

[0024] FIG. 1B is a structural diagram of a low-power receiver provided by an embodiment of the present application.

[0025] FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0026] FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of a communication method according to another embodiment of the present application.

[0027] FIG. 4 is a flow diagram of a communication method according to another embodiment of the present application.

[0028] FIG. 5 is a structural diagram of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0029] FIG. 6 is a structural diagram of a communication apparatus according to another embodiment of the present application.

[0030] FIG. 7 is a structural diagram of a communication apparatus according to another embodiment of the present application.

[0031] FIG. 8 is a structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0032] FIG. 9 is a structural diagram of a terminal according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0033] FIG. 10 is a structural diagram of a network-side device according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0034] FIG. 11 is a structural diagram of a network-side device according to another embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0035] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly described below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some of the embodiments of the present application, but not all the embodiments of the present application. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all the other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art belong to the scope of protection of the present application.

[0036] The terms "first", "second", and the like in the present application are used to distinguish similar objects, and are not used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that the terms used in this way can be interchanged under appropriate circumstances, so that the embodiments of the present application can be implemented in an order other than that illustrated or described herein, and the objects distinguished by "first", "second" are generally a category and do not limit the number of objects, for example, the first object can be one or more. In addition, "or" in the present application means at least one of the connected objects. For example, the protection scope of "A or B" at least covers three schemes, namely, scheme one: including A and not including B; scheme two: including B and not including A; scheme three: including A and including B. In addition, the terms "A and / or B", "at least one of A and B", "at least one of A or B" also at least cover the above three schemes, respectively. The character " / " generally represents that the objects before and after are in an "or" relationship.

[0037] The term "indication" in the present application can be a direct indication (or explicit indication) or an indirect indication (or implicit indication). The direct indication can be understood as the sender explicitly informing the receiver of the specific information, the operation to be performed or the requested result, etc. in the indication sent by the sender. The indirect indication can be understood as the receiver determining the corresponding information according to the indication sent by the sender, or judging and determining the operation to be performed or the requested result, etc. according to the judgment result.

[0038] It is worth noting that the technology described in the embodiments of the present application is not limited to Long Term Evolution (LTE) / LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) systems, but can also be used in other wireless communication systems, such as Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), Single-carrier Frequency-Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) or other systems. The terms "system" and "network" in the embodiments of the present application are often used interchangeably, and the described technology can be used in the above-mentioned systems and radio technologies, as well as in other systems and radio technologies. The following description describes a New Radio (NR) system for the purpose of example, and NR terminology is used in most of the following description, but these technologies can also be applied to systems other than NR systems, such as 6th Generation (6G) communication systems.

[0039] FIG. 1A shows a block diagram of a wireless communication system to which embodiments of the present application can be applied. The wireless communication system includes a terminal 11 and a network-side device 12. The terminal 11 can be a terminal-side device such as a mobile phone, a Tablet Personal Computer, a Laptop Computer, a notebook computer, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a palmtop computer, a netbook, an Ultra-mobile Personal Computer (UMPC), a Mobile Internet Device (MID), an Augmented Reality (AR) device, a Virtual Reality (VR) device, a robot, a wearable device, a flight vehicle, a Vehicle User Equipment (VUE), a shipboard device, a Pedestrian User Equipment (PUE), a smart home (a home device with a wireless communication function such as a refrigerator, a television, a washing machine, or furniture), a game console, a Personal Computer (PC), a kiosk, or a self-service machine. The wearable device includes a smart watch, a smart bracelet, a smart earphone, smart glasses, smart jewelry (a smart bracelet, a smart necklace, a smart ring, a smart necklace, a smart anklet, a smart necklace, etc.), a smart wristband, smart clothes, etc. The vehicle-mounted device can also be referred to as a vehicle-mounted terminal, a vehicle-mounted controller, a vehicle-mounted module, a vehicle-mounted component, a vehicle-mounted chip, or a vehicle-mounted unit, etc. It should be noted that the specific type of the terminal 11 is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. The network-side device 12 can include an access network device or a core network device. The access network device can also be referred to as a Radio Access Network (RAN) device, a radio access network function, or a radio access network unit. The access network device can include a base station, a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) Access Point (AP), or a Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) node, etc.The base station can be referred to as a Node B (NB), an evolved Node B (eNB), a next generation Node B (gNB), a New Radio Node B (NR Node B), an access point, a relay station (RBS), a serving base station (SBS), a base transceiver station (BTS), a radio base station, a radio transceiver, a basic service set (BSS), an extended service set (ESS), a home Node B (HNB), a home evolved Node B, a transmit / receive point (TRP), or some other suitable terminology in the art, and is not limited to a particular technical terminology, provided that the same technical effect is achieved. It should be noted that in the embodiments of the present application, only the base station in the NR system is taken as an example for introduction, and the specific type of the base station is not limited.

[0040] The core network device can also be referred to as a core network node, a core network function, or a core network network element, etc., which includes but is not limited to at least one of the following: a mobility management entity (MME), an access and mobility management function (AMF), a session management function (SMF), a user plane function (UPF), a policy control function (PCF), a policy and charging rules function (PCRF), an edge application server discovery function (EASDF), a unified data management (UDM), a unified data repository (UDR), a home subscriber server (HSS), a centralized network configuration (CNC), a network repository function (NRF), a network exposure function (NEF), a local NEF (L-NEF), a binding support function (BSF), an application function (AF), a location management function (LMF), a gateway mobile location center (GMLC), a network data analytics function (NWDAF), etc. It should be noted that only the core network device in the 5G system is taken as an example for introduction in the embodiments of the present application, and the specific type of the core network device is not limited. If the name of the core network device mentioned in the embodiments of the present application changes in the subsequent protocol version (for example, 6G), it is also within the protection scope of the present application.

[0041] Optionally, the core network device can be implemented by one or more function modules in one device, or can be implemented by multiple devices together, and the embodiments of the present application do not make a specific limitation. It can be understood that the above function modules can be network elements in a hardware device, can be software function modules running on a special hardware, or can be virtualized function modules instantiated on a platform (for example, a cloud platform).

[0042] In order to solve the problem that the performance of the whole communication system cannot be improved due to the lack of a scheme capable of organically integrating different communication modes in the related art, the embodiments of the present application propose a communication scheme capable of organically integrating different communication modes.

[0043] In some embodiments, the integrated communication modes include at least two communication modes in a radio resource control (RRC) non-connected state.

[0044] The at least two communication modes can include but are not limited to at least one of the following:

[0045] 1) a narrowband communication mode and a wideband communication mode;

[0046] 2) a low power wake up signal (LPWUS) communication mode and a non-LPWUS communication mode;

[0047] 3) a low-power wide-area network (LPWA) communication mode and a non-LPWA communication mode;

[0048] 4) a repeated reception mode and a non-repeated reception mode;

[0049] 5) a low-capability communication mode and a non-low-capability communication mode.

[0050] The following introduces a technology related to LPWUS.

[0051] I. Low-power receiver

[0052] Low power receiver, i.e. low power wake up radio (LP-WUR) or almost zero power wake up radio (AZP-WUR). The basic working principle of LP-WUR is that the receiving end contains a first module and a second module, as shown in FIG. 1B. The first module is a main communication module for transmitting and receiving mobile communication data, and the second module is a low power receiving module (also referred to as a low power wake up receiving module) for receiving the wake up signal. The terminal opens the low power receiving module to listen to the LP-WUS and closes the main communication module in the energy saving state. When there is downlink data, the network side device sends a wake up signal to the terminal. After the terminal listens to the wake up signal through the low power receiving module, the terminal triggers the main communication module from being closed to being opened through a series of judgments, and at this time the low power receiving module enters the closed state from the working state. The low power wake up receiving module can be continuously opened or intermittently opened, and can receive the low power wake up signal when opened.

[0053] II. Low power wake up signal LPWUS

[0054] In order to reduce the receiving activity of the terminal in the standby state, so that the radio frequency (RF) and baseband (MODEM) modules are really closed, thereby greatly reducing the power consumption of communication reception, a near "zero" power receiver can be introduced in the receiving module of the terminal. The near "zero" power receiver does not need complex signal detection (such as amplification, filtering, quantization, etc.) of the RF module and signal processing of the MODEM, but only relies on passive matching filtering and small power signal processing.

[0055] On the base station side, by triggering the wake up signal on demand, the near "zero" power receiver can be activated to know the activation announcement, thereby triggering a series of processes inside the terminal, for example, opening the radio frequency transceiver and baseband processing module.

[0056] Such a wake up signal is usually some simple on-off keying signal, so that the receiver can know the wake up announcement through simple energy detection and subsequent possible sequence detection and identification processes. In addition, while the terminal opens the low power wake up receiver to receive the wake up signal, the main receiver module can work at a relatively low power consumption level, thereby realizing power saving through receiving the wake up signal.

[0057] The reception of the low-power wake-up signal can be applied to a terminal in an RRC idle / inactive (RRC_idle / inactive) state and a terminal in an RRC connected state (RRC_connected), thereby achieving terminal energy saving.

[0058] To cover more communication modes in the RRC non-connected state, it can be assumed that the at least two communication modes include a first communication mode and a second communication mode. Correspondingly, in the case that the first communication mode is a narrowband communication mode, the second communication mode can be a wideband communication mode, for example, the narrowband can be 5MHz or less, and the wideband can be 20Mhz or more; in the case that the first communication mode is an LPWUS communication mode, the second communication mode can be a non-LPWUS communication mode, for example, communication with a primary receiver; in the case that the first communication mode is an LPWA communication mode, the second communication mode can be a non-LPWA communication mode, for example, eMBB; in the case that the first communication mode is a repeated reception mode, the second communication mode can be a non-repeated reception mode, for example, in the case of paging reception behavior, the first communication mode can be that the terminal listens to paging multiple times in one paging listening period, and the second communication mode can be that the terminal listens to paging only once in one paging listening period; in the case that the first communication mode is a low-capability communication mode, the second communication mode can be a non-low-capability communication mode, wherein the low capability can include but is not limited to: low antenna capability, low multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) capability, low operating bandwidth, low modulation order, etc.

[0059] The RRC non-connected state includes an RRC idle state or an RRC inactive state.

[0060] Before introducing the specific scheme, the network deployment scenario will be described below by taking the first communication mode as a narrowband communication mode and the second communication mode as a wideband communication mode as an example.

[0061] In a communication system where narrowband communication mode and wideband communication mode are integrated, wideband and narrowband can be deployed in the same band or frequency. From the perspective of reducing network deployment cost, wideband communication mode and narrowband communication mode can be co-sited, and of course, from the perspective of deployment flexibility, non-co-sited deployment is not excluded, for example, in mountainous, forest, farm and other environments, a separate narrowband base station can be deployed to cover LPWA devices within a range of about 10 km. For co-sited deployment scenarios, wideband communication mode and narrowband communication mode can be deployed on different frequencies, or can be deployed on the same frequency and work through time division multiplexing (TDM), or the common signals (such as synchronization signals, system messages, etc.) in the RRC non-connected state are designed in blocks, so that the terminal of the narrowband communication mode can only receive part 1, and the terminal of the wideband communication mode can receive the complete signal (part 2). Based on the above possible network deployment scenarios, there can be wideband cells, narrowband cells, and cells supporting both wideband and narrowband in the network.

[0062] Based on the above network deployment assumptions, some terminals can support both wideband communication mode and narrowband communication mode to improve the performance of the terminal and the network side.

[0063] For example, for a mobile phone, additional support for narrowband communication mode on the basis of supporting wideband communication mode can not bring too much increase in cost and complexity, but can ensure basic communication according to the additional coverage provided by the narrowband cell in some cases (such as areas with poor wideband coverage).

[0064] For another example, a wideband cell can enter a sleep mode according to the dynamic changes of the service, and the terminal needs to wake up the cell before camping on it. If the terminal can camp on a narrowband cell at this time, the terminal does not need to frequently wake up the sleeping wideband cell due to the medium and high mobility in the RRC non-connected state, and when the service of the terminal appears, the terminal accesses through the wideband cell, thereby improving the energy efficiency of the network and the terminal.

[0065] Extending to other communication modes in the RRC non-connected state, there can be cells in the network that only support the first communication mode, cells that only support the second communication mode, and cells that support both the first communication mode and the second communication mode. Correspondingly, some terminals can only support the first communication mode, some terminals can only support the second communication mode, and some terminals can support both the first communication mode and the second communication mode.

[0066] Based on the above network deployment assumptions, the embodiment of the present application proposes a communication method, which will be described in detail below by some embodiments and application scenarios.

[0067] As shown in FIG. 2, the communication method proposed by an embodiment of the present application can include:

[0068] Step 201, in the case that a terminal UE supports at least two communication modes in RRC non-connected state, the terminal determines a target communication mode from the at least two communication modes, and performs a first behavior according to the target communication mode, wherein the first behavior includes UE behavior in RRC non-connected state.

[0069] In some embodiments, the target communication mode is the communication mode used by the terminal in RRC non-connected state, or in other words, the target communication mode is the communication mode used by the terminal in RRC non-connected state. Further, the target communication mode can be the communication mode initially used by the terminal in RRC non-connected state, or the target communication mode can be the communication mode currently used by the terminal in RRC non-connected state.

[0070] In an implementation, the at least two communication modes are different in at least one of the following features: bandwidth, receiver type, coverage level, coverage enhancement level, number of times of receiving a signal, number of times of transmitting a signal, number of transmission antennas, and number of receiving antennas.

[0071] It should be noted that the coverage level can be the number of times of transmitting or receiving required to reach a certain coverage target. Or the number of times of transmitting or receiving required to enhance M dB compared to a certain coverage target.

[0072] It can be understood that the at least two communication modes can be different in only one of the above features, or can be completely different or partially different in combination of the features (for example, the coverage level and the number of transmission antennas of the two communication modes are different).

[0073] For ease of understanding, the following is an example: for example, the at least two communication modes include a first communication mode, a second communication mode, and a third communication mode, the first communication mode, the second communication mode, and the third communication mode are different only in coverage level, and the coverage levels of the first communication mode, the second communication mode, and the third communication mode are X1, X2, and X3 respectively.

[0074] For example, the first communication mode, the second communication mode, and the third communication mode are different only in the number of receiving antennas, and the number of receiving antennas of the first communication mode, the second communication mode, and the third communication mode are 1, 2, and 4 respectively.

[0075] For example, the first communication manner, the second communication manner and the third communication manner have differences in coverage level and number of receiving antennas, such as, in the first communication manner, the coverage level is X1 and the number of receiving antennas is 1, in the second communication manner, the coverage level is X2 and the number of receiving antennas is 2, and in the third communication manner, the coverage level is X3 and the number of receiving antennas is 4.

[0076] For example, the first communication manner, the second communication manner and the third communication manner have differences in coverage level, number of receiving antennas and bandwidth, such as, in the first communication manner, the bandwidth is 3MHz, the coverage level is X1 and the number of receiving antennas is 2, in the second communication manner, the bandwidth is 5MHz, the coverage level is X2 and the number of receiving antennas is 4, and in the third communication manner, the bandwidth is 5MHz, the coverage level is X1 and the number of receiving antennas is 2.

[0077] The at least two communication manners can include, but are not limited to, at least one of the following:

[0078] 1) a narrowband communication manner and a wideband communication manner;

[0079] 2) a low power wake up signal (LPWUS) communication manner and a non-LPWUS communication manner;

[0080] 3) a low-power wide-area network (LPWA) communication manner and a non-LPWA communication manner;

[0081] 4) a repeated receiving manner and a non-repeated receiving manner;

[0082] 5) a low-capability communication manner and a non-low-capability communication manner.

[0083] The first behavior can include, but is not limited to, at least one of the following:

[0084] Cell selection;

[0085] Cell reselection;

[0086] Paging reception;

[0087] Initial access;

[0088] System information reception;

[0089] Communication of small data, including reception of small data by the terminal and / or transmission of small data by the terminal, wherein the small data includes signaling and / or data.

[0090] The following describes the execution of the first behavior according to the target communication manner through several specific embodiments.

[0091] In some embodiments, the first behavior comprises cell selection, and the target communication mode is a target communication mode, wherein performing the first behavior according to the target communication mode can comprise:

[0092] the terminal performing cell search on a frequency corresponding to the target communication mode;

[0093] if the terminal searches for a suitable cell on the frequency corresponding to the target communication mode, camping on the cell.

[0094] In some embodiments, the first behavior comprises cell selection, and the target communication mode is a target communication mode, wherein performing the first behavior according to the target communication mode can comprise:

[0095] the terminal performing cell search on a frequency corresponding to the target communication mode;

[0096] if the terminal does not search for a suitable cell on the frequency corresponding to the target communication mode, switching the target communication mode to another communication mode and performing cell selection in the another communication mode.

[0097] In the case where the target communication mode is a first communication mode, the another communication mode after switching can be a second communication mode.

[0098] For example, assuming that the first communication mode is a narrowband communication mode and the second communication mode is a wideband communication mode, in the case where the target communication mode is the first communication mode, the terminal can perform cell search using the narrowband communication mode, specifically, the terminal searches for the strongest cell corresponding to each frequency on a frequency supporting narrowband, and once the terminal finds a suitable narrowband cell, the terminal camps on the cell; if the terminal does not find a suitable cell in the narrowband communication mode, the target communication mode can be switched to the wideband communication mode, and then the terminal searches for the strongest cell corresponding to each frequency on a frequency supporting wideband, and once the terminal finds a suitable wideband cell, the terminal camps on the cell.

[0099] The target communication mode can be determined by at least one of the following:

[0100] protocol agreement;

[0101] network side device configuration;

[0102] subscriber identity module (SIM) card pre-configuration.

[0103] In some embodiments, the terminal can perform cell search according to at least two communication modes supported, and at least two of the first type of cell, the second type of cell and the third type of cell can be found at the same time, wherein the first type of cell is a cell supporting only the first communication mode, the second type of cell is a cell supporting only the second communication mode, and the third type of cell is a cell supporting both the first communication mode and the second communication mode. In this case, the terminal can select a suitable cell to camp on in at least one of the following ways:

[0104] The terminal selects a suitable cell to camp on by itself;

[0105] The terminal selects a suitable cell to camp on according to the priority information of the first type of cell, the second type of cell and the third type of cell agreed by the protocol, for example, it is agreed that the UE should camp on a cell supporting wideband first, and if the terminal cannot find a suitable wideband cell, it can camp on a suitable narrowband cell;

[0106] The terminal selects a suitable cell to camp on according to the priority information of the first type of cell, the second type of cell and the third type of cell configured by the core network device, so as to improve the control flexibility of the network. This method can also be equivalent to that the terminal preferentially uses the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state (or the initial / default communication mode in the RRC non-connected state) during cell selection.

[0107] Among them, the suitable cell, i.e. the cell that can provide normal service, needs to meet the following conditions:

[0108] 1) Meet the cell selection criteria (S criteria);

[0109] 2) It is not a forbidden cell, i.e. the cell state is not "barred";

[0110] 3) The tracking area where the cell is located does not belong to "Forbidden Tracking Areas";

[0111] 4) The cell is in the Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) selected by the UE or the registered PLMN or the equivalent PLMN.

[0112] The cell selection criteria (S criteria) are briefly introduced as follows.

[0113] S criteria are met, i.e.:

[0114] Srxlev>0 (signal power is greater than 0) and Squal>0 (signal quality is greater than 0).

[0115] Srxlev = Qrxlevmeas - (Qrxlevmin + Qrxlevminoffset) - Pcompensation - Qoffsettemp,

[0116] Qrxlevmeas: measured RSRP value of the cell;

[0117] Qrxlevmin: minimum received level; this parameter indicates the minimum received level of a cell, increasing the value of a certain cell makes it more difficult to meet the S rule, and it is more difficult to become a suitable cell, the difficulty of selecting the cell by the UE increases, and vice versa.

[0118] Qrxlevminoffset: cell minimum received level offset. This parameter is only used when the UE is camped on a Virtual Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) and cell selection is triggered due to periodic search for high priority PLMN. Increasing the value of a certain cell makes it more difficult to meet the S rule, and it is more difficult to become a suitable cell, the difficulty of selecting the cell by the UE increases, and vice versa.

[0119] Pcompensation = max(PEMAX1 - PPowerClass, 0) (dB) is used to punish the UE that does not reach the maximum power of the cell. Wherein, PEMAX1 is the maximum TX power allowed to be used by the UE in the cell. PPowerClass is the transmission power capability of the UE.

[0120] Qoffsettemp: temporary offset applied to the cell, used for connection failure control.

[0121] Squal = Qqualmeas - (Qqualmin + Qqualminoffset) - Qoffsettemp,

[0122] Qqualmeas: measured Reference Signal Received Quality (RSRQ) value of the cell;

[0123] Qqualmin: minimum received signal quality; this parameter indicates the minimum received signal quality required for cell selection, and is used to control the difficulty of cell selection. This parameter is issued in System Information Block 5 (SIB5). Increasing the value of a certain cell makes it more difficult to meet the S rule, and it is more difficult to become a suitable cell, the difficulty of selecting the cell by the UE increases, and vice versa.

[0124] Qqualminoffset: minimum received signal received quality offset value; this parameter indicates the cell minimum received signal received quality offset, which is applied to the cell selection criterion (S-criterion) formula, and is used only when the UE is camped on a VPLMN and cell selection is triggered due to periodic search for high priority PLMN. Increasing this value for a certain cell makes it more difficult for the cell to meet the S-criterion, and it is more difficult for the cell to become a suitable cell, and the difficulty of selecting the cell increases, and vice versa.

[0125] When the terminal is in the RRC non-connected state, the terminal needs to continuously monitor the signal quality of the neighboring cell and the current cell after cell selection, in order to camp on a cell with higher priority or better channel quality. When the signal quality and frequency point of the neighboring cell meet the S-criterion and meet certain reselection decision criteria, the UE will camp on the cell.

[0126] In an embodiment, if the at least two communication modes are two communication modes, the other communication mode is a communication mode other than the target communication mode among the two communication modes.

[0127] In another embodiment, if the at least two communication modes include at least three communication modes, the other mode is a communication mode other than the target communication mode among the at least three communication modes, and the other communication mode is specifically which communication mode can be a protocol agreement or UE implementation.

[0128] In some embodiments, the at least two communication modes supported by the terminal include a first communication mode and a second communication mode, and the first behavior includes cell reselection, wherein performing the first behavior according to the target communication mode can include:

[0129] The terminal receives at least one of first configuration information and second configuration information sent by a network side device, wherein the first configuration information is used for a terminal supporting the first communication mode to perform cell reselection, and the second configuration information is used for a terminal supporting the second communication mode to perform cell reselection;

[0130] The terminal determines target configuration information according to the target communication mode, wherein the target configuration information is at least one of the first configuration information and the second configuration information;

[0131] The terminal performs cell reselection according to the target configuration information.

[0132] Wherein, the terminal determining the target configuration information according to the target communication mode can include:

[0133] If the target communication mode is the first communication mode, the target configuration information is determined as the first configuration information;

[0134] If the target communication mode is the second communication mode, the target configuration information is determined as the second configuration information.

[0135] If the target communication mode includes the first communication mode and the second communication mode, the target configuration information includes the first configuration information and the second configuration information.

[0136] In an implementation, the terminal can receive configuration information corresponding to each of the at least two communication modes sent by the network side, and the configuration information corresponding to each communication mode is configuration information for supporting the terminal to perform cell reselection in the each communication mode.

[0137] In a case where the terminal supports the first communication mode and the second communication mode simultaneously, the target communication mode can include the first communication mode and the second communication mode, and accordingly, the terminal determining the target configuration information according to the target communication mode can include at least one of the following:

[0138] Mode 1: the terminal autonomously determines the first configuration information or the second configuration information as the target configuration information, that is, the terminal autonomously determines which set of configuration information to use, such as the terminal autonomously determining which set of configuration information to use according to current power and other state information of the terminal. It should be noted that in this mode, the network side device considers that the terminal can work in any communication mode, and therefore, paging of the terminal needs to be sent on resources corresponding to the two communication modes, for example, on wideband resources and narrowband resources.

[0139] Mode 2: the terminal determines one of the first configuration information and the second configuration information as the target configuration information according to a protocol.

[0140] Mode 3: the terminal can simultaneously use the two sets of configuration information (the first configuration information and the second configuration information) for cell reselection, and the priorities of different frequencies or cells in the two sets of configuration information can be compared.

[0141] Further, the terminal performs cell reselection according to the target configuration information, including:

[0142] The terminal determines priority information of a first neighbor cell, a second neighbor cell and a third neighbor cell according to the target configuration information and / or a protocol, and performs cell reselection according to the priority information of the first neighbor cell, the second neighbor cell and the third neighbor cell, wherein the first neighbor cell supports only the first communication mode, the second neighbor cell supports only the second communication mode, and the third neighbor cell supports the first communication mode and the second communication mode simultaneously.

[0143] The priority information of the first neighboring cell, the second neighboring cell and the third neighboring cell can be determined by at least one of the following:

[0144] 1) The frequency priority parameters of the frequencies where the first neighboring cell, the second neighboring cell and the third neighboring cell are located, which are included in the target configuration information; for example, the first neighboring cell, the second neighboring cell and the third neighboring cell are located on frequencies A, B and C respectively, and the frequency priority parameters of the frequencies A, B and C included in the target configuration information are X1, X2 and X3. Further, the frequency where the cell currently camped by the terminal is also provided with a priority parameter (configured by the network side or a default priority when not configured), and when the priority of the frequency where a certain one of the first neighboring cell, the second neighboring cell and the third neighboring cell is higher than the priority of the frequency where the cell currently camped by the terminal, the terminal reselects to the cell using the high frequency priority cell reselection criterion. When the priority of the frequency where a certain one of the first neighboring cell, the second neighboring cell and the third neighboring cell is equal to the priority of the frequency where the cell currently camped by the terminal, the terminal reselects to the cell using the same frequency priority cell reselection criterion. When the priority of the frequency where a certain one of the first neighboring cell, the second neighboring cell and the third neighboring cell is lower than the priority of the frequency where the cell currently camped by the terminal, the terminal reselects to the cell using the low frequency priority cell reselection criterion.

[0145] 2) The cell priority parameters of the first neighboring cell, the second neighboring cell and the third neighboring cell included in the target configuration information; for example, the cell priority parameters of the first neighboring cell, the second neighboring cell and the third neighboring cell included in the target configuration information are Y1, Y2 and Y3, and the terminal can also compare the sizes of Y1, Y2 and Y3 to determine the relative priorities among the three cells when the frequency priorities are the same, where Y1, Y2 and Y3 can be the offset values used in the R criterion.

[0146] 3) The cell priority rules of the first neighboring cell, the second neighboring cell and the third neighboring cell agreed by the protocol. For example, the protocol can agree that a wideband cell is superior to a narrowband cell, and for another example, the protocol can agree that a cell supporting both modes is superior to a cell supporting only a single mode.

[0147] Since the target configuration information includes at least one of the first configuration information and the second configuration information, according to the above 1) and 2), the network side device can configure the priority parameters of different types of cells / frequencies for the terminal, regardless of whether the terminal supports the second communication mode, the first communication mode or both, for example:

[0148] Manner 1: For a neighbor cell supporting both communication manners, the cell information or frequency information of the neighbor cell is configured in the first configuration information and the second configuration information; the network can configure different priority parameters for different frequencies to achieve the purpose of adjusting the priority of different types of cells. This manner can also be considered as non-explicit configuration, or transparent to the UE.

[0149] Manner 2: The network separately configures the cell information or frequency information of the neighbor cell supporting both communication manners, and the configuration is used for the terminal supporting all communication manners to perform cell reselection. Compared with the first configuration information and the second configuration information, the configuration can define a priority rule. The priority can be agreed by the protocol, for example, it is agreed that the priority of this configuration is the highest. Alternatively, the priority can be configured by the network, and the network can also configure different priority rules for terminals of different communication manners.

[0150] Among them, the terminal obtains the first configuration information and / or the second configuration information in multiple ways, or the first configuration information and / or the second configuration information can be sent by the network side device in multiple ways.

[0151] In some embodiments, the first configuration information and / or the second configuration information can be carried by system information.

[0152] For example, for a cell supporting both the first communication manner and the second communication manner, the system information can include a first part (part 1) and a second part (part 2), and the first part and the second part are respectively sent by the network side device, wherein the first part is receivable by a terminal supporting the first communication manner, and the second part is receivable by a terminal supporting the second communication manner. In this case, the first configuration information can be carried in the first part, and the second configuration information can be carried in the second part. For a terminal supporting both communication manners, the first configuration information can be carried in the first part, and the second configuration information can be carried in the second part.

[0153] For example, for a cell supporting both the first communication mode and the second communication mode, the system information can include a first part (part 1) and a second part (part 2), which are respectively sent by the network side device, wherein the first part is receivable by both the terminal supporting the first communication mode and the terminal supporting the second communication mode, and the second part is receivable by the terminal supporting the second communication mode. In this case, for the purpose of reducing signaling overhead, the first configuration information and the second configuration information can have common configurations and respective dedicated configurations. For example, frequency information (including frequency point, frequency priority) and cell identification information can be respectively configured, while the quality / power threshold for high-priority frequency point cell reselection, the neighbor cell offset for same-priority cell reselection, and the quality / power threshold for low-priority cell reselection can be common configurations. The common configurations are carried in part 1, the dedicated configurations corresponding to the first communication mode are carried in part 1, and the dedicated configurations corresponding to the second communication mode are carried in part 2.

[0154] Optionally, part of the content in the first configuration information and / or the second configuration information can also be carried in dedicated signaling (such as RRC release message).

[0155] Based on the above description of cell reselection, the following is an example of cell reselection: assuming that the terminal supports a wideband communication mode (such as eMBB) and a narrowband communication mode (such as LPWA), the terminal resides in cell A, and cell A supports the above two communication modes, then the cell reselection process can include:

[0156] Step 1: the terminal receives the first configuration information and the second configuration information from cell A, wherein the first configuration information is used for the terminal supporting the narrowband communication mode to perform cell reselection, and the second configuration information is used for the terminal supporting the wideband communication mode to perform cell reselection.

[0157] Step 2: the terminal negotiates with the network side device in advance to use the narrowband communication mode, then the terminal resides in the cell based on the narrowband communication mode, performs cell reselection evaluation based on the first configuration information, and performs cell reselection when the cell reselection condition is met. For example, the terminal measures the cells of high-priority narrowband frequencies f1, f2, and if the signal quality of the cell meets the configured cell reselection condition, the terminal reselects to the corresponding narrowband cell.

[0158] It should be noted that after the terminal successfully camps, the cell (serving cell) measurement will be continuously performed. In order to reduce the UE energy consumption caused by measurement as much as possible, the RRC layer calculates the S criterion according to the RSRP / RSRQ measurement result, and compares it with the intra-frequency measurement starting threshold (Sintrasearch) and the inter-frequency measurement starting threshold (Snonintrasearch) as the judgment condition of whether to start the neighbor cell measurement. The UE measures the serving cell signal to detect the serving cell signal strength Srxlev or quality Squal.

[0159] Intra-frequency measurement starting criterion: Srxlev<=Sintrasearch and / or Squal<=Snonintrasearch.

[0160] Inter-frequency measurement starting criterion (for the same priority or lower priority frequency point): Srxlev<=Snonintrasearch and / or Squal<=Sintrasearch.

[0161] In the cell reselection process, in addition to considering the priority information of the cell, the terminal needs to measure the neighbor cell to evaluate the channel quality, and the measurement criterion of the cell reselection is called R criterion. In the neighbor cell satisfying the R criterion, the network can control the UE camping by setting the priority of different frequency points; the UE will select the cell with the best channel quality on a certain frequency point to provide the best service.

[0162] The following describes the case of cell barring (bar) in the cell selection or cell reselection process.

[0163] In some embodiments, the cell can control the camping of terminals of different communication modes according to the load and energy consumption of the cell itself, that is, the cell can control the camping of terminals of different capabilities through different bar parameters. For example, for a cell supporting only narrowband, if the resources are relatively tight, the narrowband cell can need to bar the terminals supporting both modes, and allow the terminals supporting only narrowband communication mode to camp.

[0164] Therefore, optionally, the communication method proposed in the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 can further include:

[0165] In the process of performing cell selection or cell reselection, the terminal determines whether the terminal is allowed to camp in the first cell according to the target communication mode and the first information sent by the first cell; or,

[0166] In the process of performing cell selection or cell reselection, the terminal determines whether the terminal is allowed to camp in the first cell according to the at least two communication modes supported by the terminal and the first information sent by the first cell.

[0167] The first information is used to indicate a condition required for the terminal to be allowed to camp on the first cell, and the condition is related to a communication mode.

[0168] Further, the determining whether the terminal is allowed to camp on the first cell according to the target communication mode and the first information sent by the first cell can include:

[0169] If the first information indicates that the terminal is not allowed to camp on the first cell operating in the target communication mode, it is considered that the terminal is not allowed to camp on the first cell.

[0170] If the first information indicates that the terminal is allowed to camp on the first cell operating in the target communication mode, it is considered that the terminal is allowed to camp on the first cell.

[0171] Further, the determining whether the terminal is allowed to camp on the first cell according to the at least two communication modes supported by the terminal and the first information sent by the first cell can include:

[0172] If the first information indicates that the terminal is not allowed to camp on the first cell supporting at least two communication modes, it is considered that the terminal is not allowed to camp on the first cell.

[0173] If the terminal supports all the communication modes required to be satisfied for the terminal to be allowed to camp on the first cell indicated in the first information, it is considered that the terminal is allowed to camp on the first cell.

[0174] If the terminal supports any one of the communication modes required to be satisfied for the terminal to be allowed to camp on the first cell indicated in the first information, it is considered that the terminal is allowed to camp on the first cell.

[0175] It should be noted that for the terminal supporting at least two communication modes in the RRC non-connected state, the terminal can determine the target communication mode from the at least two communication modes in multiple ways, and one of the ways is introduced as follows.

[0176] In some embodiments, for the terminal supporting at least two communication modes in the RRC non-connected state, the network side device can configure or indicate the target communication mode to the terminal. That is, the terminal can determine the target communication mode from the at least two communication modes, and can include:

[0177] The terminal receives second information sent by the network side device, wherein the second information is used to configure or indicate the target communication mode.

[0178] The second information is indicated by at least one of the following:

[0179] Non-Access Stratum (NAS) message;

[0180] System information;

[0181] Downlink Control Information (DCI);

[0182] Paging message;

[0183] Short message.

[0184] Optionally, before the terminal determines the target communication mode from the at least two communication modes, the method can further include: the terminal reporting UE capability information to a network side device, wherein the UE capability information includes the at least two communication modes supported by the terminal. Specifically, the terminal can report the UE capability information to the network side device through a UE capability information message. The network side device is an access network device or a core network device. When the network side device is an access network device (such as a base station), the access network device can forward the UE capability information to the core network device for use by the core network device when the terminal is in an RRC idle state. In addition, when the UE is in an RRC connected state / RRC INACTIVE state, the core network device also needs to send the UE capability information to the serving base station of the terminal, so that the serving base station uses it when the terminal is in an RRC inactive state. As an implementation manner, the UE capability information can be transparent to the access network device, for example, carried by a container. Optionally, the above process can be a registration process or a tracking area update (TAU) process.

[0185] Optionally, before the terminal receives the second information sent by the network side device, the method can further include:

[0186] The terminal sends third information to the network side device, wherein the third information is used to indicate the target communication mode preferred or required by the terminal.

[0187] Specifically, before the terminal receives the second information sent by the network side device, the terminal reports the target communication mode preferred / suggested by itself to the network side device, and finally determines the communication mode used by the terminal by the network side device; or the terminal reports the communication mode required to be used by itself to the network side, and receives confirmation information from the network side.

[0188] For example, the process of negotiating the target communication mode between the terminal and the network side device can include the following steps:

[0189] Step 1: The terminal reports UE capability information to the network side device, which indicates the communication mode supported by the terminal in the RRC non-connected state. For example, the terminal can report its UE capability information to the network side device through the UE capability information message.

[0190] Optionally, step 2: The terminal reports its preferred / suggested target communication mode to the network side device, or the terminal reports its required target communication mode to the network side.

[0191] Step 3: The terminal receives second information sent by the network side device, wherein the second information is used to configure / indicate / confirm the target communication mode.

[0192] Further, step 4: When the terminal is in the RRC non-connected state, the terminal works according to the target communication mode configured / indicated / confirmed by the second information, for example, performs a first behavior according to the target communication mode configured / indicated / confirmed by the second information, wherein the first behavior can be at least one of UE behaviors such as paging reception, system message reception, and cell reselection.

[0193] If a terminal supporting narrowband communication mode and wideband communication mode initiates initial access (random access) on narrowband resources to perform RRC connection establishment, the access network device can only obtain the UE capability information of the terminal from the core network device after the terminal enters the RRC connected state and AS security is activated. During this period, the terminal will be scheduled as a narrowband terminal, which may increase the access delay of the terminal. However, the terminal has the capability of wideband communication to shorten the access delay, so the terminal can indicate its wideband communication capability to the network side as early as possible in the initial access process and the RRC connection establishment process. Therefore, the target communication mode also includes the communication mode used by the terminal when initiating initial access. For example, the terminal receives a paging message using the narrowband communication mode negotiated in advance in the current cell, and initiates initial access according to the wideband communication mode. Further, the terminal initiates initial access on the resource configured by the network side for the wideband communication mode, wherein the resource includes initial access preamble resources and / or initial access occasion RO resources. In this way, when the network side receives msg 1, it knows that the terminal supports the wideband communication mode. If there is no initial access resource dedicated to the wideband communication mode, the terminal can indicate its wideband communication capability by carrying other information in the initial access process.

[0194] Optionally, the terminal performing initial access according to the wideband communication mode can be determined according to the following manners:

[0195] Manner 1: UE implementation;

[0196] Manner 2: The target communication mode for initiating initial access is negotiated in advance with the network side; or, the terminal listens to the configuration or indication in the system message, or short message, or paging message received by the terminal, indicating that the terminal initiates initial access based on the wideband communication mode.

[0197] In addition, since the coverage of the narrowband is farther, the target communication mode for initiating initial access can also be determined according to the protocol agreement or the criterion configured by the network side. For example, the network side configures a signal quality threshold, in the case that the signal quality of the current cell is greater than or equal to the threshold, the terminal can initiate initial access according to the wideband communication mode, and in the case that the signal quality of the current cell is less than the threshold, the terminal can initiate initial access according to the narrowband communication mode.

[0198] It should be noted that the cell selection, cell reselection, paging reception, system information reception, and initial access of the terminal in the RRC non-connected state can use the same communication mode, or can use different communication modes respectively.

[0199] Optionally, the communication method proposed in the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 can further include:

[0200] The terminal receives fourth information sent by the camped cell, wherein the fourth information is used to instruct the terminal to switch the target communication mode;

[0201] The terminal switches the target communication mode from the first communication mode to another communication mode according to the fourth information.

[0202] The fourth information can be carried by at least one of the following information:

[0203] System information;

[0204] Short message;

[0205] DCI.

[0206] Specifically, if the terminal resides in a cell supporting both communication modes, the cell can also switch the communication mode used by the terminal through broadcast (system information, short message, paging message, DCI). For example, assuming that the first communication mode is a narrowband communication mode and the second communication mode is a wideband communication mode, after the cell bars a terminal supporting only the wideband communication mode, the network wants to send common signals and system information to narrowband terminals or terminals supporting both communication modes using only narrowband. If the terminal supporting both communication modes is configured to use the wideband communication mode, the terminal can be directly changed to the narrowband communication mode by the cell through broadcast, and can continue to reside in the cell without re-negotiation with the core network.

[0207] Optionally, if the terminal has a demand to change the target communication mode, the terminal needs to notify the network side or re-negotiate with the network side. In view of this, the communication method proposed by the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 can further include:

[0208] The terminal sends fifth information to the network side device, wherein the fifth information is used to notify the network side device that the terminal has changed the target communication mode, or the fourth information is used to negotiate to change the target communication mode.

[0209] Taking a more specific example, assuming that the target communication mode is the communication mode used by the terminal when receiving a paging message, the process of negotiating with the network side device to determine the communication mode used when receiving a paging message can include the following steps:

[0210] Step 1: The terminal reports UE capability information to the network side device, wherein the UE capability information is used to indicate the communication mode supported by the terminal for receiving a paging message.

[0211] Step 2: The terminal receives second information sent by the network side device, wherein the second information is used to configure / indicate the communication mode used when receiving a paging message.

[0212] Step 3: In the case that the terminal is in an RRC non-connected state, the terminal receives a paging message according to the communication mode configured / indicated by the second information.

[0213] Step 4: In the case that the terminal is in an RRC non-connected state, the terminal receives fourth information sent by a residing cell, wherein the fourth information is used to indicate the terminal to switch the communication mode used when receiving a paging message. Optionally, the residing cell can notify the terminal to switch the communication mode used when receiving a paging message through system message, short message, or DCI.

[0214] It can be understood that when the terminal supporting at least two communication modes camps on a cell also supporting the at least two communication modes, different UE behaviors (such as paging reception and initial access) of the terminal in the RRC non-connected state can use different communication modes respectively.

[0215] For example, the terminal can only negotiate with the network side device the communication mode used when receiving a paging message, and the receiving mode of other system messages can be left to UE implementation or further determined according to network broadcast configuration.

[0216] For another example, in addition to determining the communication mode used when receiving a paging message, the network can also configure the communication mode used when the terminal initiates initial access through broadcast. Specifically, assuming that the terminal receives a paging message according to a narrowband communication mode, if the network side broadcasts second information indicating that the terminal supporting two communication modes initiates initial access on a wideband resource, the terminal initiates initial access on the wideband resource. More specifically, the network side device can indicate, through a system message, a short message or the like, the resource on which the terminal supporting at least two communication modes initiates initial access.

[0217] The communication method proposed in the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 can select a target communication mode from the at least two communication modes supported by the terminal in the RRC non-connected state, and perform the communication mode of the UE behavior in the RRC non-connected state according to the target communication mode, so that the needs of the terminal in different scenarios (coverage, power saving) can be met, and the network side can organically integrate the at least two communication modes supported by the terminal, thereby improving the performance of the entire system.

[0218] The above-described communication method applied to the terminal side is provided by the embodiments of the present application. The communication method applied to the network side device provided by the embodiments of the present application is described below.

[0219] Before introducing the communication method applied to the network side device, the network deployment is first described by way of example.

[0220] Assuming that there is a terminal supporting at least two communication modes in the RRC non-connected state in the network, the at least two communication modes can include a first communication mode and a second communication mode, and the first communication mode is a narrowband communication mode and the second communication mode is a wideband communication mode, then the corresponding network deployment mode can be as follows:

[0221] Wideband and narrowband are deployed on the same band or frequency. From the perspective of reducing network deployment costs, wideband and narrowband communication modes can be co-sited, and from the perspective of deployment flexibility, non-co-sited deployment is also not ruled out, for example, in mountainous, forested, farmland, and other environments, a separate narrowband base station can be deployed to cover LPWA devices within a range of about 10 km. For co-sited deployment scenarios, wideband and narrowband communication modes can be deployed on different frequencies, or can be deployed on the same frequency and work through time division multiplexing (TDM), or the common signals (such as synchronization signals, system messages, etc.) in the RRC non-connected state are designed in blocks, so that the terminal of the narrowband communication mode can only receive part 1, and the terminal of the wideband communication mode can receive the complete signal (part 2). Based on the above possible network deployment scenarios, there can be wideband cells, narrowband cells, and cells that support both wideband and narrowband in the network. Accordingly, some terminals can only support narrowband communication mode, some terminals can only support wideband communication mode, and some terminals can support both narrowband and wideband communication modes.

[0222] For other RRC non-connected state communication modes, there can be cells that only support the first communication mode, cells that only support the second communication mode, and cells that support both the first and second communication modes in the network. Accordingly, some terminals can only support the first communication mode, some terminals can only support the second communication mode, and some terminals can support both the first and second communication modes.

[0223] Based on the above assumptions of network deployment, as shown in FIG. 3, another embodiment of the application proposes a communication method, which can include:

[0224] Step 301: The core network device sends sixth information of the terminal to the first access network device, wherein the sixth information includes at least one of the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state currently used by the terminal and the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state supported by the terminal, and the terminal supports at least two communication modes in the RRC non-connected state.

[0225] In an embodiment, the at least two communication modes are different in at least one of the following characteristics: bandwidth, receiver type, coverage level, coverage enhancement level, number of signal repetitions, number of signal repetitions, number of transmission antennas, and number of receiving antennas.

[0226] In an embodiment, the at least two communication modes can include, but are not limited to, at least one of the following:

[0227] 1) narrowband communication mode and wideband communication mode;

[0228] 2) Low Power Wake Up Signal (LPWUS) communication mode and non-LPWUS communication mode;

[0229] 3) Low-Power Wide-Area Network (LPWA) communication mode and non-LPWA communication mode;

[0230] 4) repeated reception mode and non-repeated reception mode;

[0231] 5) low capability communication mode and non-low capability communication mode.

[0232] Optionally, the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state currently used by the terminal includes a communication mode used by the terminal when currently receiving a paging.

[0233] If the sixth information includes the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state currently used by the terminal, the purpose of the core network device sending the sixth information of the terminal to the first access network device is to inform the first access network device to use the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state currently used by the terminal to page the terminal.

[0234] If the sixth information includes the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state currently used by the terminal and the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state supported by the terminal, the purpose of the core network device sending the sixth information of the terminal to the first access network device is to determine, by the base station, whether to adjust the paging reception capability of the terminal. When the demand of the network side changes, the network side can dynamically adjust the paging reception mode of the terminal.

[0235] Optionally, before step 301, the method shown in FIG. 3 can further include: the core network device receiving, from the terminal or a second access network device, at least one of the following:

[0236] UE capability information of the terminal, the UE capability information including a communication mode in the RRC non-connected state supported by the terminal;

[0237] a communication mode in the RRC non-connected state preferred or required by the terminal to use.

[0238] Optionally, the second access network device can be the same as or different from the first access network device.

[0239] Optionally, before step 301, the method can further include:

[0240] the core network device sending second information to the terminal, the second information being used for configuring or instructing a communication mode in the RRC non-connected state used by the terminal.

[0241] The second information can be indicated by at least one of the following:

[0242] a NAS message;

[0243] system information;

[0244] DCI;

[0245] a paging message;

[0246] a short message.

[0247] The communication method proposed in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, since the terminal supports at least two communication modes in the RRC non-connected state and reports the capability and the currently used communication mode in the RRC non-connected state to the core network device, the network can organically integrate the at least two communication modes supported by the terminal, so as to improve the performance of the whole system.

[0248] As shown in FIG. 4, the communication method proposed in another embodiment of the present application can include at least one of the following:

[0249] Step 401, the first access network device receives or sends the sixth information, the sixth information includes at least one of the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state currently used by the terminal and the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state supported by the terminal.

[0250] Step 402, the first access network device receives the third information sent by the terminal, the third information is used to indicate the communication mode preferred or required by the terminal.

[0251] The terminal supports at least two communication modes in the RRC non-connected state.

[0252] In an implementation mode, the at least two communication modes are different in at least one of the following features: bandwidth, receiver type, coverage level, coverage enhancement level, signal repetition receiving times, signal repetition sending times, transmission antenna number and receiving antenna number.

[0253] In an implementation mode, the at least two communication modes can include but are not limited to at least one of the following:

[0254] 1) narrowband communication mode and wideband communication mode;

[0255] 2) low power wake up signal (LPWUS) communication mode and non-LPWUS communication mode;

[0256] 3) a low-power wide-area network (LPWA) communication manner and a non-LPWA communication manner;

[0257] 4) a repeated reception manner and a non-repeated reception manner;

[0258] 5) a low-capability communication manner and a non-low-capability communication manner.

[0259] The communication manner in the RRC non-connected state currently used by the terminal can include a communication manner used by the terminal when the terminal currently receives a paging.

[0260] In some embodiments, step 401 can include:

[0261] The first access network device receives sixth information sent by the core network device or the second access network device; or,

[0262] The first access network device sends the sixth information to the core network device or the second access network device.

[0263] Optionally, the method shown in FIG. 4 can further include at least one of the following:

[0264] The first access network device sends first information to the terminal, the first information being used to indicate a condition required for the terminal to allow camping on the first cell, the condition being related to a communication manner;

[0265] The first access network device sends second information to the terminal, the second information being used to configure or indicate a communication manner used by the terminal in the RRC non-connected state;

[0266] The first access network device sends fourth information to the terminal, the fourth information being used to instruct the terminal to switch a communication manner used by the terminal in the RRC non-connected state.

[0267] The second information can be indicated by at least one of the following:

[0268] a NAS message;

[0269] system information;

[0270] DCI;

[0271] a paging message;

[0272] a short message.

[0273] The fourth information can be carried by at least one of the following information:

[0274] system information;

[0275] a short message;

[0276] a paging message;

[0277] DCI.

[0278] Optionally, the method shown in FIG. 4 can further include:

[0279] The first access network device receives fifth information sent by the terminal, where the fifth information is used to inform the first access network device that the terminal has changed the target communication mode, or the fifth information is used to negotiate to change the target communication mode.

[0280] Optionally, the at least two communication modes include a first communication mode and a second communication mode, and the method shown in FIG. 4 can further include:

[0281] The first access network device sends at least one of first configuration information and second configuration information to the terminal, where the first configuration information is used to support a terminal supporting the first communication mode to perform cell reselection, and the second configuration information is used to support a terminal supporting the second communication mode to perform cell reselection.

[0282] For example, assuming that the first communication mode is a narrowband communication mode and the second communication mode is a wideband communication mode, when a terminal camps on a cell supporting both the narrowband communication mode and the wideband communication mode, the cell can provide the terminal with the first configuration information and the second configuration information. Of course, a narrowband cell can provide a terminal supporting both communication modes with the second configuration information in addition to the first configuration information, and a wideband cell can provide a terminal supporting both communication modes with the first configuration information in addition to the second configuration information.

[0283] Further, when the terminal supports the second communication mode, the terminal performs cell reselection according to the second configuration information; and when the terminal supports the first communication mode, the terminal performs cell reselection according to the first configuration information. In this way, a terminal supporting different communication modes can more efficiently reselect a cell matching the communication mode, reducing power consumption and time delay in the cell reselection process. For example, when the terminal supports the wideband communication mode, the terminal performs cell reselection according to the cell reselection information of a wideband cell provided by a current cell, i.e., the second configuration information; and when the terminal supports the narrowband communication mode, the terminal performs cell reselection according to the cell reselection information of a narrowband cell provided by a current cell, i.e., the first configuration information.

[0284] Optionally, the method shown in FIG. 4 can further include:

[0285] The first access network device receives the UE capability information reported by the terminal, wherein the UE capability information comprises a communication mode supported by the terminal in an RRC non-connected state.

[0286] The communication method proposed by the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 can promote the performance of the whole system, because the terminal supports at least two communication modes in an RRC non-connected state, and the first access network device indicates the terminal's capability and the currently used communication mode in an RRC non-connected state to the core network device or the second access network device, so that the network can organically integrate the at least two communication modes supported by the terminal.

[0287] The execution subject of the communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application can be a virtual device. The embodiment of the present application takes the method of executing the communication method by the virtual device as an example to illustrate the communication device provided by the embodiment of the present application.

[0288] As shown in FIG. 5, an embodiment of the present application proposes a communication device 500, which can be applied to a terminal. The communication device 500 can comprise a processing module 501 configured to determine a target communication mode from at least two communication modes in an RRC non-connected state supported by a terminal UE, and perform a first behavior according to the target communication mode, wherein the first behavior comprises a UE behavior in an RRC non-connected state.

[0289] In some embodiments, the target communication mode is a communication mode used by the terminal in an RRC non-connected state, or in other words, the target communication mode is a communication mode used by the terminal in an RRC non-connected state. Further, the target communication mode can be a communication mode initially used by the terminal in an RRC non-connected state, or the target communication mode can be a communication mode currently used by the terminal in an RRC non-connected state.

[0290] In an implementation, the at least two communication modes are different in at least one of the following features: bandwidth, receiver type, coverage level, coverage enhancement level, number of times of receiving a signal, number of times of transmitting a signal, number of transmission antennas, and number of receiving antennas.

[0291] In an implementation, the at least two communication modes can comprise, but are not limited to, at least one of the following:

[0292] 1) narrowband communication mode and wideband communication mode;

[0293] 2) low power wake up signal (LPWUS) communication mode and non-LPWUS communication mode;

[0294] 1) narrowband communication mode and wideband communication mode;

[0293] 2) low power wake up signal (LPWUS) communication mode and non-LPWUS communication mode;

[0294] 3) a low-power wide-area network (LPWA) communication manner and a non-LPWA communication manner;

[0295] 4) a repeated reception manner and a non-repeated reception manner;

[0296] 5) a low-capability communication manner and a non-low-capability communication manner.

[0297] The first behavior can include, but is not limited to, at least one of the following:

[0298] Cell selection;

[0299] Cell reselection;

[0300] Paging reception;

[0301] Initial access;

[0302] System information reception;

[0303] Small data communication, including terminal reception of small data and / or terminal transmission of small data, wherein the small data includes signaling and / or data.

[0304] The following describes the processing module 501 performing the first behavior according to the target communication manner through several specific embodiments.

[0305] In some embodiments, the first behavior includes cell selection, and the target communication manner is a target communication manner, wherein the processing module 501 can be configured to:

[0306] Perform cell search on a frequency corresponding to the target communication manner;

[0307] If a suitable cell is searched on the frequency corresponding to the target communication manner, camp on the cell.

[0308] In some embodiments, the first behavior includes cell selection, and the target communication manner is a target communication manner, wherein the processing module 501 can be configured to:

[0309] Perform cell search on a frequency corresponding to the target communication manner;

[0310] If a suitable cell is not searched on the frequency corresponding to the target communication manner, switch the target communication manner to another communication manner, and perform cell selection in the another communication manner.

[0311] In the case where the target communication manner is a first communication manner, the another communication manner after switching can be a second communication manner.

[0312] The target communication mode can be determined by at least one of the following:

[0313] a protocol agreement;

[0314] a network side device configuration;

[0315] a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card pre-configuration.

[0316] In an implementation, the other communication mode can be determined by a protocol agreement or terminal implementation.

[0317] In an implementation, if the at least two communication modes are two communication modes, the other communication mode is a communication mode other than the target communication mode among the two communication modes.

[0318] In another implementation, if the at least two communication modes include at least three communication modes, the other mode is a communication mode other than the target communication mode among the at least three communication modes, and the other communication mode is specifically which communication mode can be determined by a protocol agreement or UE implementation.

[0319] In some embodiments, the at least two communication modes supported by the terminal include a first communication mode and a second communication mode, and the first behavior includes cell reselection, wherein the processing module 501 can be configured to:

[0320] receive at least one of first configuration information and second configuration information sent by a network side device, wherein the first configuration information is used for a terminal supporting the first communication mode to perform cell reselection, and the second configuration information is used for a terminal supporting the second communication mode to perform cell reselection;

[0321] determine target configuration information according to the target communication mode, wherein the target configuration information is at least one of the first configuration information and the second configuration information;

[0322] perform cell reselection according to the target configuration information.

[0323] If the target communication mode is the first communication mode, the target configuration information is determined to be the first configuration information; if the target communication mode is the second communication mode, the target configuration information is determined to be the second configuration information; and if the target communication mode includes the first communication mode and the second communication mode, the target configuration information is determined to include the first configuration information and the second configuration information.

[0324] In an implementation, the communication apparatus 500 can comprise a receiving module, which can receive configuration information corresponding to each of the at least two communication modes sent by a network side, the configuration information corresponding to each of the communication modes being configuration information for supporting the terminal in each of the communication modes to perform cell reselection.

[0325] Further, in the processing module 501, the cell reselection according to the target configuration information can comprise:

[0326] determining priority information of a first neighbor cell, a second neighbor cell and a third neighbor cell according to the target configuration information and / or a protocol agreement, and performing cell reselection according to the priority information of the first neighbor cell, the second neighbor cell and the third neighbor cell, wherein the first neighbor cell supports only the first communication mode, the second neighbor cell supports only the second communication mode, and the third neighbor cell supports both the first communication mode and the second communication mode.

[0327] The priority information of the first neighbor cell, the second neighbor cell and the third neighbor cell can be determined by at least one of the following:

[0328] 1) a frequency priority parameter of a frequency where the first neighbor cell, the second neighbor cell and the third neighbor cell are located, which is contained in the target configuration information;

[0329] 2) a cell priority parameter of the first neighbor cell, the second neighbor cell and the third neighbor cell, which is contained in the target configuration information;

[0330] 3) a cell priority rule of the first neighbor cell, the second neighbor cell and the third neighbor cell agreed by a protocol.

[0331] The first configuration information and / or the second configuration information can be acquired by the communication apparatus 500 in multiple ways, or in other words, the first configuration information and / or the second configuration information can be sent by a network side device in multiple ways.

[0332] In some embodiments, the first configuration information and / or the second configuration information can be carried by system information.

[0333] Optionally, the communication apparatus proposed in the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 can further comprise:

[0334] a first determining module, configured to determine whether the terminal is allowed to camp on a first cell according to a first information sent by the first cell and the target communication mode during the process of performing cell selection or cell reselection; or

[0335] The second judging module is configured to determine whether the terminal is allowed to camp on the first cell according to at least two communication modes supported by the terminal and first information sent by the first cell in a process of performing cell selection or cell reselection.

[0336] The first information is used to indicate a condition required for the terminal to be allowed to camp on the first cell, and the condition is related to a communication mode.

[0337] Further, the first judging module is specifically configured to:

[0338] If the first information indicates that the terminal is prohibited from camping on the first cell operating in the target communication mode, it is considered that the terminal is not allowed to camp on the first cell.

[0339] If the first information indicates that the terminal is allowed to camp on the first cell operating in the target communication mode, it is considered that the terminal is allowed to camp on the first cell.

[0340] Further, the second judging module is specifically configured to:

[0341] If the first information indicates that the terminal is prohibited from camping on the first cell supporting at least two communication modes, it is considered that the terminal is prohibited from camping on the first cell.

[0342] If the terminal supports all communication modes indicated in the first information and required for the terminal to be allowed to camp on the first cell, it is considered that the terminal is allowed to camp on the first cell.

[0343] If the terminal supports any one of all communication modes indicated in the first information and required for the terminal to be allowed to camp on the first cell, it is considered that the terminal is allowed to camp on the first cell.

[0344] In some embodiments, the processing module 501 is specifically configured to determine a target communication mode from the at least two communication modes by receiving second information sent by the network side device, wherein the second information is used to configure or indicate the target communication mode.

[0345] The second information is indicated by at least one of the following:

[0346] a Non-Access Stratum (NAS) message;

[0347] system information;

[0348] Downlink Control Information (DCI);

[0349] paging message;

[0350] short message.

[0351] Optionally, the communication apparatus 500 further comprises a capability reporting module, configured to report UE capability information to a network side device before the processing module 501 determines the target communication mode from the at least two communication modes, wherein the UE capability information comprises the at least two communication modes supported by the terminal.

[0352] Optionally, the communication apparatus 500 further comprises a first sending module, configured to send third information to the network side device before receiving the second information sent by the network side device, wherein the third information is used to indicate the target communication mode preferred or required by the terminal.

[0353] Optionally, the communication apparatus 500 further comprises:

[0354] a second sending module, configured to receive fourth information sent by a camped cell, wherein the fourth information is used to indicate the target communication mode to be switched by the terminal;

[0355] a communication mode switching module, configured to switch the target communication mode from the first communication mode to another communication mode according to the fourth information.

[0356] The fourth information can be carried by at least one of the following information:

[0357] system information;

[0358] short message;

[0359] DCI.

[0360] Optionally, if the terminal has a demand to change the target communication mode, the terminal needs to notify the network side or negotiate with the network side again. In view of this, the communication apparatus 500 further comprises:

[0361] a third sending module, configured to send fifth information to the network side device, wherein the fifth information is used to notify the network side device that the terminal has changed the target communication mode, or the fourth information is used to negotiate to change the target communication mode.

[0362] As shown in FIG. 6, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus 600, which can be applied to a core network device. The apparatus 600 can include a first sending module 601 configured to send sixth information of a terminal to a first access network device, wherein the sixth information includes at least one of a communication mode in a radio resource control (RRC) non-connected state currently used by the terminal and a communication mode in the RRC non-connected state supported by the terminal, and the terminal supports at least two communication modes in the RRC non-connected state.

[0363] In an embodiment, the at least two communication modes are different in at least one of the following: bandwidth, receiver type, coverage level, coverage enhancement level, number of times of receiving a signal, number of times of sending a signal, number of transmission antennas, and number of receiving antennas.

[0364] In an embodiment, the at least two communication modes can include, but are not limited to, at least one of the following:

[0365] 1) a narrowband communication mode and a wideband communication mode;

[0366] 2) a low power wake up signal (LPWUS) communication mode and a non-LPWUS communication mode;

[0367] 3) a low-power wide-area network (LPWA) communication mode and a non-LPWA communication mode;

[0368] 4) a repeated receiving mode and a non-repeated receiving mode;

[0369] 5) a low-capability communication mode and a non-low-capability communication mode.

[0370] Optionally, the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state currently used by the terminal includes a communication mode used by the terminal when receiving a paging.

[0371] If the sixth information includes the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state currently used by the terminal, the first sending module 601 sends the sixth information of the terminal to the first access network device, so as to inform the first access network device to use the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state currently used by the terminal to page the terminal.

[0372] If the sixth information includes the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state currently used by the terminal and the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state supported by the terminal, the first sending module 601 sends the sixth information of the terminal to the first access network device, so as to determine, by the base station, whether to adjust the paging receiving capability of the terminal. When the demand of the network side changes, the network side can dynamically adjust the paging receiving mode of the terminal.

[0373] Optionally, the communication apparatus 600 further includes a first receiving module, configured to receive, from the terminal or the second access network device, at least one of the following before sending the fifth information to the network side device:

[0374] UE capability information of the terminal, the UE capability information including the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state supported by the terminal;

[0375] a communication mode in the RRC non-connected state preferred or required by the terminal.

[0376] Optionally, the communication apparatus 600 further includes a second sending module, configured to send, to the terminal, second information before sending the fifth information to the network side device, the second information being used for configuring or indicating the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state used by the terminal.

[0377] The second information can be indicated by at least one of the following:

[0378] a NAS message;

[0379] system information;

[0380] DCI;

[0381] a paging message;

[0382] a short message.

[0383] As shown in FIG. 7, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus 700, which can be applied to a first access network device, and the apparatus 700 can include at least one of the following: a first communication module 701 and a second communication module 702.

[0384] The first communication module 701 is configured to receive or send sixth information, the sixth information including at least one of the following: a communication mode in a radio resource control (RRC) non-connected state currently used by the terminal and a communication mode in the RRC non-connected state supported by the terminal.

[0385] The second communication module 702 is configured to receive third information sent by the terminal, the third information being used for indicating a communication mode preferred or required by the terminal.

[0386] The terminal supports at least two communication modes in an RRC non-connected state.

[0387] In an implementation, at least one of the following features of the at least two communication modes is different: bandwidth, receiver type, coverage level, coverage enhancement level, number of times of signal repeated reception, number of times of signal repeated transmission, number of transmission antennas, and number of receiving antennas.

[0388] In an implementation, the at least two communication modes can include, but are not limited to, at least one of the following:

[0389] 1) narrowband communication mode and wideband communication mode;

[0390] 2) low power wake up signal (LPWUS) communication mode and non-LPWUS communication mode;

[0391] 3) low-power wide-area network (LPWA) communication mode and non-LPWA communication mode;

[0392] 4) repeated reception mode and non-repeated reception mode;

[0393] 5) low-capability communication mode and non-low-capability communication mode.

[0394] The communication mode in the RRC non-connected state currently used by the terminal can include a communication mode used when the terminal currently receives a paging.

[0395] In some embodiments, the first communication module 701 can be configured to:

[0396] receive sixth information sent by the core network device or the second access network device; or

[0397] send the sixth information to the core network device or the second access network device.

[0398] Optionally, the communication apparatus 700 can further include at least one of the following:

[0399] a third communication module configured to send first information to the terminal, the first information being used to indicate a condition required for the terminal to allow camping on the first cell, the condition being related to a communication mode;

[0400] a fourth communication module configured to send second information to the terminal, the second information being used to configure or indicate a communication mode used by the terminal in an RRC non-connected state;

[0401] The fifth communication module is configured to send fourth information to the terminal, where the fourth information is used to instruct the terminal to switch a communication mode used by the terminal in an RRC non-connected state.

[0402] The second information can be indicated by at least one of the following:

[0403] a NAS message;

[0404] system information;

[0405] DCI;

[0406] a paging message;

[0407] a short message.

[0408] The fourth information can be carried by at least one of the following information:

[0409] system information;

[0410] a short message;

[0411] a paging message;

[0412] DCI.

[0413] Optionally, the communication apparatus 700 can further include a sixth communication module configured to receive fifth information sent by the terminal, where the fifth information is used to inform the first access network device that the terminal has changed the target communication mode, or the fifth information is used to negotiate to change the target communication mode.

[0414] Optionally, the at least two communication modes include a first communication mode and a second communication mode, and the communication apparatus 700 can further include a seventh communication module configured to send at least one of first configuration information and second configuration information to the terminal, where the first configuration information is used to support a terminal supporting the first communication mode to perform cell reselection, and the second configuration information is used to support a terminal supporting the second communication mode to perform cell reselection.

[0415] Optionally, the communication apparatus 700 can further include an eighth communication module configured to receive UE capability information reported by the terminal, where the UE capability information includes a communication mode supported by the terminal in an RRC non-connected state.

[0416] The communication apparatus 500 provided in the embodiments of the present application can implement each process implemented by the method embodiments of FIG. 2 and achieve the same technical effects; the communication apparatus 600 provided in the embodiments of the present application can implement each process implemented by the method embodiments of FIG. 3 and achieve the same technical effects; the communication apparatus 700 provided in the embodiments of the present application can implement each process implemented by the method embodiments of FIG. 4 and achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, details are not described herein.

[0417] As shown in FIG. 8, the embodiments of the present application further provide a communication device 800, which includes a processor 801 and a memory 802, and the memory 802 stores programs or instructions executable on the processor 801. For example, when the communication device 800 is a terminal, the programs or instructions are executed by the processor 801 to implement each step of the above communication method embodiments and achieve the same technical effects. When the communication device 800 is a network side device, the programs or instructions are executed by the processor 801 to implement each step of the above communication method embodiments and achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, details are not described herein.

[0418] The embodiments of the present application further provide a terminal, which includes a processor and a communication interface, the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is configured to run programs or instructions to implement steps in the method embodiments shown in FIG. 2. The terminal embodiments correspond to the above terminal side method embodiments, and each implementation process and implementation manner of the above method embodiments can be applicable to the terminal embodiments and achieve the same technical effects. The terminal can be the communication apparatus shown in FIG. 5. Specifically, FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a hardware structure of a terminal implementing the embodiments of the present application.

[0419] The terminal 900 includes, but is not limited to, at least part of the components such as a radio frequency unit 901, a network module 902, an audio output unit 903, an input unit 904, a sensor 905, a display unit 906, a user input unit 907, an interface unit 908, a memory 909, and a processor 910.

[0420] Those skilled in the art can understand that the terminal 900 can further include a power supply (such as a battery) for supplying power to each component, and the power supply can be logically connected to the processor 910 through a power management system, so as to realize functions such as management of charging, discharging, and power consumption management through the power management system. The terminal structure shown in FIG. 9 does not constitute a limitation on the terminal, and the terminal can include more or fewer components than those shown, or combine certain components, or have different component arrangements, which are not described herein.

[0421] It should be understood that in the embodiments of the present application, the input unit 904 can include a graphics processor 9041 and a microphone 9042, and the graphics processor 9041 processes image data of a still picture or a video obtained by an image capture device (such as a camera) in a video capture mode or an image capture mode. The display unit 906 can include a display panel 9061, which can be configured in the form of a liquid crystal display, an organic light-emitting diode, etc. The user input unit 907 includes at least one of a touch panel 9071 and other input devices 9072. The touch panel 9071 is also called a touch screen. The touch panel 9071 can include two parts of a touch detection device and a touch controller. The other input devices 9072 can include, but are not limited to, a physical keyboard, function keys (such as volume control keys, on-off keys, etc.), a trackball, a mouse, a joystick, and the like, which will not be described here.

[0422] In the embodiments of the present application, after the radio frequency unit 901 receives the downlink data from the network side device, it can be transmitted to the processor 910 for processing. In addition, the radio frequency unit 901 can send uplink data to the network side device. Generally, the radio frequency unit 901 includes, but is not limited to, an antenna, an amplifier, a transceiver, a coupler, a low noise amplifier, a duplexer, etc.

[0423] The memory 909 can be used to store software programs or instructions and various data. The memory 909 can mainly include a first storage area storing programs or instructions and a second storage area storing data, wherein the first storage area can store an operating system, application programs or instructions required by at least one function (such as a sound playing function, an image playing function, etc.), etc. In addition, the memory 909 can include a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory. The non-volatile memory can be a Read-Only Memory (ROM), a Programmable ROM (PROM), an Erasable PROM (EPROM), an Electrically EPROM (EEPROM), or a flash memory. The volatile memory can be a Random Access Memory (RAM), a Static RAM (SRAM), a Dynamic RAM (DRAM), a Synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), a Double Data Rate SDRAM (DDR SDRAM), an Enhanced SDRAM (ESDRAM), a Synch link DRAM (SLDRAM), and a Direct Rambus RAM (DRRAM). The memory 909 in the embodiments of the present application includes but is not limited to these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0424] The processor 910 can include one or more processing units; optionally, the processor 910 integrates an application processor and a modem processor, wherein the application processor mainly processes operations related to an operating system, a user interface, and an application program, and the modem processor mainly processes wireless communication signals, such as a baseband processor. It can be understood that the above-mentioned modem processor can also not be integrated into the processor 910.

[0425] The processor 910 is configured to determine a target communication mode from at least two communication modes in a case where a terminal UE supports the at least two communication modes in a radio resource control (RRC) non-connected state, and perform a first behavior according to the target communication mode, wherein the first behavior includes a UE behavior in the RRC non-connected state.

[0426] The terminal proposed in the embodiments of the present application can support at least two communication modes in the RRC non-connected state, and determine a target communication mode (a communication mode used by the terminal in the RRC non-connected state), so that the needs of the terminal in different scenarios (coverage, power saving) can be met, and the network side can organically integrate the at least two communication modes supported by the terminal, so as to improve the performance of the entire system.

[0427] It can be understood that the implementation processes of the implementation manners mentioned in the embodiments can refer to the related descriptions of the method embodiments, and achieve the same or corresponding technical effects. To avoid repetition, they will not be described here again.

[0428] The embodiments of the present application also provide a network side device, which includes a processor and a communication interface, the communication interface and the processor are coupled, and the processor is used to run programs or instructions to realize the steps of the method embodiments shown in FIG. 2. The network side device embodiments correspond to the network side device method embodiments described above. The implementation processes and implementation manners of the method embodiments described above can be applied to the network side device embodiments, and the same technical effects can be achieved.

[0429] Specifically, the embodiments of the present application also provide a network side device, which can be a communication device shown in FIG. 7. As shown in FIG. 10, the network side device 1000 includes an antenna 101, a radio frequency device 102, a baseband device 103, a processor 104 and a memory 105. The antenna 101 is connected with the radio frequency device 102. In the uplink direction, the radio frequency device 102 receives information through the antenna 101, and sends the received information to the baseband device 103 for processing. In the downlink direction, the baseband device 103 processes the information to be sent and sends it to the radio frequency device 102. The radio frequency device 102 processes the received information and sends it out through the antenna 101.

[0430] The method performed by the network side device in the above embodiments can be implemented in the baseband device 103, which includes a baseband processor.

[0431] The baseband device 103 may, for example, include at least one baseband board, and a plurality of chips are arranged on the baseband board, as shown in FIG. 10. One of the chips is, for example, a baseband processor, which is connected with the memory 105 through a bus interface to call programs in the memory 105 and perform the operations of the network side device shown in the above method embodiments.

[0432] The network side device may, for example, also include a network interface 106, which is, for example, a common public radio interface (CPRI).

[0433] Specifically, the network side device 1000 of the embodiment of the present application further includes instructions or programs stored in the storage 105 and executable on the processor 104, the processor 104 invokes the instructions or programs in the storage 105 to execute the method performed by each module shown in FIG. 7 and achieve the same technical effects, to avoid repetition, details are not described herein.

[0434] The embodiment of the present application further provides a network side device. As shown in FIG. 11, the network side device 1100 includes a processor 1101, a network interface 1102 and a storage 1103. The network side device can be the communication device shown in FIG. 6. The network interface 1102 is, for example, a common public radio interface (CPRI).

[0435] Specifically, the network side device 1100 of the embodiment of the present application further includes instructions or programs stored in the storage 1103 and executable on the processor 1101, the processor 1101 invokes the instructions or programs in the storage 1103 to execute the method performed by each module shown in FIG. 6 and achieve the same technical effects, to avoid repetition, details are not described herein.

[0436] The embodiment of the present application further provides a readable storage medium, the readable storage medium stores programs or instructions, the programs or instructions are executed by a processor to implement each process of the above communication method embodiment, and the same technical effects can be achieved, to avoid repetition, details are not described herein.

[0437] The processor is the processor in the terminal in the above embodiments. The readable storage medium includes a computer readable storage medium, such as a computer readable only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk or an optical disk, etc. In some examples, the readable storage medium can be a non-transitory readable storage medium.

[0438] The embodiment of the present application further provides a chip, the chip includes a processor and a communication interface, the communication interface and the processor are coupled, the processor is used to run programs or instructions to implement each process of the above communication method embodiment, and the same technical effects can be achieved, to avoid repetition, details are not described herein.

[0439] It should be understood that the chip mentioned in the embodiment of the present application can also be referred to as a system chip, a system chip, a chip system or a system on chip, etc.

[0440] The embodiment of the present application further provides a computer program / program product stored in a storage medium, which is executed by at least one processor to implement the processes of the communication method embodiments and achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, details are not described herein.

[0441] The embodiment of the present application further provides a communication system, which comprises a terminal and a network side device. The terminal can be used to execute the steps of the communication method shown in FIG. 2. The network side device can be used to execute the steps of the communication method shown in FIG. 3 or FIG. 4.

[0442] It should be noted that, in this document, the terms "comprising", "including", or any other variant thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions, so that processes, methods, articles, or devices that include a series of elements not only include those elements, but also include other elements not explicitly listed, or further include elements inherent to such processes, methods, articles, or devices. Without more limitations, the element defined by the statement "including a" does not exclude the presence of another identical element in the process, method, article, or device including the element. In addition, it should be pointed out that the scope of the methods and devices in the embodiments of the present application is not limited to performing functions in the order shown or discussed, but can also include performing functions in a substantially simultaneous manner or in reverse order, for example, the described method can be performed in an order different from that described, and various steps can also be added, omitted or combined. In addition, features described with reference to certain examples can be combined in other examples.

[0443] From the above description of the embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the above-mentioned embodiment methods can be realized by means of computer software products and general hardware platforms, of course, they can also be realized by hardware. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium (such as ROM, RAM, magnetic disc, optical disc, etc.), which includes a plurality of instructions for making the terminal or network side device execute the method described in each embodiment of the present application.

[0444] The embodiments of the present application are described above in combination with the drawings, but the present application is not limited to the above-mentioned specific embodiments, which are only illustrative and not restrictive. Those skilled in the art can make many forms of embodiments under the inspiration of the present application without departing from the scope of the present application and the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A communication method, the method comprising: in a case that a terminal UE supports at least two communication modes in a radio resource control (RRC) non-connected state, the terminal determines a target communication mode from the at least two communication modes, and performs a first behavior according to the target communication mode, wherein the first behavior comprises a UE behavior in the RRC non-connected state.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, at least one of the following features of the at least two communication modes is different: bandwidth, receiver type, coverage level, coverage enhancement level, number of times of signal reception, number of times of signal transmission, number of transmission antennas, and number of receiving antennas.

3. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein, the at least two communication modes comprise at least one of the following: a narrowband communication mode and a wideband communication mode; a low power wake-up signal (LPWUS) communication mode and a non-LPWUS communication mode; a low power wide area (LPWA) communication mode and a non-LPWA communication mode; a repeated reception mode and a non-repeated reception mode; a low capability communication mode and a non-low capability communication mode.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein, the first behavior comprises at least one of the following: cell selection; cell reselection; paging reception; initial access; system information reception; communication of small data.

5. The method of any one of claims 1-4, wherein, the first behavior comprises cell selection, and the performing the first behavior according to the target communication mode comprises: the terminal performs cell search on a frequency corresponding to the target communication mode; if the terminal searches for a suitable cell on the frequency corresponding to the target communication mode, the terminal camps on the cell.

6. The method of any one of claims 1-5, wherein, the first behavior comprises cell selection, and the performing the first behavior according to the target communication mode comprises: the terminal performs cell search on a frequency corresponding to the target communication mode; if the terminal does not search for a suitable cell on the frequency corresponding to the target communication mode, the terminal switches the target communication mode to another communication mode and performs cell selection in the another communication mode.

7. The method of claim 5 or 6, wherein, the target communication mode is determined by at least one of the following: protocol agreement, network side device configuration, user identification (SIM) card pre-configuration, or the another communication mode can be determined by protocol agreement or terminal implementation.

8. The method of any one of claims 1-7, wherein, the at least two communication modes comprise a first communication mode and a second communication mode, the first behavior comprises cell reselection, and the performing the first behavior according to the target communication mode comprises: the terminal receives at least one of first configuration information and second configuration information sent by a network side device, wherein the first configuration information is used for a terminal supporting the first communication mode to perform cell reselection, and the second configuration information is used for a terminal supporting the second communication mode to perform cell reselection; the terminal determines target configuration information according to the target communication mode, wherein the target configuration information is at least one of the first configuration information and the second configuration information; the terminal performs cell reselection according to the target configuration information.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein, the determining the target configuration information according to the target communication mode comprises: if the target communication mode is the first communication mode, the target configuration information is determined as the first configuration information. If the target communication mode is the second communication mode, the target configuration information is determined as the second configuration information; If the target communication mode comprises the first communication mode and the second communication mode, the target configuration information is determined as comprising the first configuration information and the second configuration information.

10. The method of claim 8 or 9, wherein, The terminal performs cell reselection according to the target configuration information. The terminal determines priority information of a first neighbor cell, a second neighbor cell and a third neighbor cell according to the target configuration information and / or a protocol agreement, and performs cell reselection according to the priority information of the first neighbor cell, the second neighbor cell and the third neighbor cell, wherein the first neighbor cell supports only the first communication mode, the second neighbor cell supports only the second communication mode, and the third neighbor cell supports both the first communication mode and the second communication mode.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein, The priority information of the first neighbor cell, the second neighbor cell and the third neighbor cell is determined by at least one of the following: a frequency priority parameter of a frequency where the first neighbor cell, the second neighbor cell and the third neighbor cell are located, which is contained in the target configuration information; a cell priority parameter of the first neighbor cell, the second neighbor cell and the third neighbor cell, which is contained in the target configuration information; a cell priority rule of the first neighbor cell, the second neighbor cell and the third neighbor cell, which is agreed by a protocol.

12. The method of any one of claims 1-11, wherein, The method further comprises: In a process of performing cell selection or cell reselection, the terminal determines whether the terminal is allowed to camp on a first cell according to a target communication mode and first information sent by the first cell; or In a process of performing cell selection or cell reselection, the terminal determines whether the terminal is allowed to camp on a first cell according to at least two communication modes supported by the terminal and first information sent by the first cell; The first information is used to indicate a condition required to be met by a terminal to be allowed to camp on the first cell, and the condition is related to a communication mode.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein, The determination of whether the terminal is allowed to camp on the first cell according to the target communication mode and the first information sent by the first cell comprises: If the first information indicates that the first cell prohibits a terminal operating in the target communication mode from camping, it is considered that the terminal is not allowed to camp on the first cell; If the first information indicates that the first cell allows a terminal operating in the target communication mode to camp, it is considered that the terminal is allowed to camp on the first cell.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein, The determination of whether the terminal is allowed to camp on the first cell according to the at least two communication modes supported by the terminal and the first information sent by the first cell comprises: If the first information indicates that the first cell prohibits a terminal supporting at least two communication modes from camping, it is considered that the terminal is prohibited to camp on the first cell; If the terminal supports all the communication modes required to be met by the terminal to be allowed to camp on the first cell, which is indicated in the first information, it is considered that the terminal is allowed to camp on the first cell; The terminal is considered to be allowed to camp on the first cell if the terminal supports any one of all communication modes indicated in the first information and required to be met for allowing the terminal to camp on the first cell.

15. The method of any one of claims 1-14, wherein, the target communication mode is a communication mode used by the terminal when receiving a paging; or, the target communication mode is a communication mode used by the terminal when initiating initial access.

16. The method of any one of claims 1-15, wherein, The method further comprises: reporting, by the terminal, UE capability information to a network side device, wherein the UE capability information comprises the at least two communication modes supported by the terminal.

17. The method of any one of claims 1-16, wherein, determining, by the terminal, a target communication mode from the at least two communication modes, comprises: receiving, by the terminal, second information sent by the network side device, wherein the second information is used to configure or indicate the target communication mode.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein, the second information is indicated by at least one of the following: a non-access stratum (NAS) message; system information; downlink control information (DCI); a paging message; a short message.

19. The method of claim 17 or 18, wherein, Before the terminal receives the second information sent by the network side device, the method further comprises: sending, by the terminal, third information to the network side device, wherein the third information is used to indicate the target communication mode preferred or required by the terminal.

20. The method of any one of claims 1-19, wherein, The method further comprises: receiving, by the terminal, fourth information sent by a camped cell, wherein the fourth information is used to indicate the terminal to switch the target communication mode; switching, by the terminal, the target communication mode from a first communication mode to another communication mode according to the fourth information.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein, the fourth information is carried by at least one of the following information: system information; a short message; a paging message; downlink control information (DCI).

22. The method of any one of claims 1-21, wherein, The method further comprises: sending, by the terminal, fifth information to a network side device, wherein the fifth information is used to notify the network side device that the terminal has changed the target communication mode, or the fourth information is used to negotiate to change the target communication mode.

23. A communication method, the method comprising: sending, by a core network device, sixth information of a terminal to a first access network device, wherein the sixth information comprises at least one of a communication mode in a radio resource control (RRC) non-connected state currently used by the terminal and a communication mode in the RRC non-connected state supported by the terminal, and the terminal supports at least two communication modes in the RRC non-connected state.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein, Before the core network device sends the sixth information of the terminal to the access network device, the method further comprises: receiving, by the core network device, at least one of the following from the terminal or a second access network device: UE capability information of the terminal, wherein the UE capability information comprises a communication mode in the RRC non-connected state supported by the terminal; a communication mode in the RRC non-connected state preferred or required to be used by the terminal.

25. The method of claim 23 or 24, wherein, the communication mode in the RRC non-connected state currently used by the terminal comprises a communication mode used by the terminal when currently receiving a paging.

26. The method of any one of claims 23-25, wherein, At least one of the following is different between the at least two communication modes: bandwidth, receiver type, coverage level, coverage enhancement level, number of times of signal repeated reception, number of times of signal repeated transmission, number of transmission antennas, and number of reception antennas.

27. The method of any one of claims 23-26, wherein, The at least two communication modes include at least one of the following: a narrowband communication mode and a wideband communication mode; a low power wake-up signal (LPWUS) communication mode and a non-LPWUS communication mode; a low power wide area (LPWA) communication mode and a non-LPWA communication mode; a repeated reception mode and a non-repeated reception mode; a low capability communication mode and a non-low capability communication mode.

28. The method of claim 24, wherein, Before the core network device sends the sixth information of the terminal to the first access network device, the method further includes: The core network device sends second information to the terminal, the second information being used for configuring or indicating a communication mode used by the terminal in an RRC non-connected state.

29. A communication method, the method including at least one of the following: The first access network device receives or sends sixth information, the sixth information including at least one of a communication mode currently used by the terminal in an RRC non-connected state and a communication mode supported by the terminal in the RRC non-connected state; The first access network device receives third information sent by the terminal, the third information being used for indicating a communication mode preferred or required by the terminal to use; wherein The terminal supports at least two communication modes in an RRC non-connected state.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein, The first access network device receives or sends the sixth information, including: The first access network device receives the sixth information sent by the core network device or the second access network device; or The first access network device sends the sixth information to the core network device or the second access network device.

31. The method of claim 29, wherein, The method further includes at least one of the following: The first access network device sends first information to the terminal, the first information being used for indicating a condition required to be met by the terminal to allow camping on the first cell, the condition being related to a communication mode; The first access network device sends second information to the terminal, the second information being used for configuring or indicating a communication mode used by the terminal in an RRC non-connected state; The first access network device sends fourth information to the terminal, the fourth information being used for indicating the terminal to switch a communication mode used by the terminal in an RRC non-connected state.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein, The second information is indicated by at least one of the following: a non-access stratum (NAS) message; system information; downlink control information (DCI); a paging message; a short message.

33. The method of claim 31, wherein, The fourth information is carried by at least one of the following: system information; a short message; a paging message; downlink control information (DCI).

34. The method of any one of claims 31-33, wherein, The method further includes: The first access network device receives fifth information sent by the terminal, the fifth information being used for notifying the first access network device that the terminal has changed the target communication mode, or the fifth information being used for negotiating to change the target communication mode.

35. The method of any one of claims 29-34, wherein, The at least two communication modes include a first communication mode and a second communication mode, and the method further includes: The first access network device sends at least one of first configuration information and second configuration information to the terminal, wherein the first configuration information is used to support the terminal supporting the first communication mode to perform cell reselection, and the second configuration information is used to support the terminal supporting the second communication mode to perform cell reselection.

36. The method of any one of claims 29-35, wherein, The method further includes: The first access network device receives UE capability information reported by the terminal, wherein the UE capability information includes a communication mode supported by the terminal in an RRC non-connected state.

37. The method of any one of claims 29-36, wherein, At least one of the following characteristics of the at least two communication modes is different: bandwidth, receiver type, coverage level, coverage enhancement level, number of times of receiving a signal repeatedly, number of times of transmitting a signal repeatedly, number of transmission antennas, and number of receiving antennas.

38. The method of any one of claims 29-37, wherein, The at least two communication modes include at least one of the following: a narrowband communication mode and a wideband communication mode; a low-power wake-up signal (LPWUS) communication mode and a non-LPWUS communication mode; a low-power wide area (LPWA) communication mode and a non-LPWA communication mode; a repeated receiving mode and a non-repeated receiving mode; a low-capability communication mode and a non-low-capability communication mode.

39. The method of any one of claims 29-38, wherein, The communication mode currently used by the terminal in the RRC non-connected state includes a communication mode used by the terminal when currently receiving a paging. 40.A communication apparatus, comprising: a processing module configured to determine a target communication mode from at least two communication modes in an RRC non-connected state supported by a terminal (UE), and perform a first behavior according to the target communication mode, wherein the first behavior includes a UE behavior in an RRC non-connected state. 41.A communication apparatus, comprising: a first sending module configured to send sixth information of a terminal to a first access network device, wherein the sixth information includes at least one of a communication mode currently used by the terminal in an RRC non-connected state and a communication mode supported by the terminal in an RRC non-connected state, and the terminal supports at least two communication modes in an RRC non-connected state. 42.A communication apparatus, comprising: a first communication module configured to receive or send sixth information, wherein the sixth information includes at least one of a communication mode currently used by the terminal in an RRC non-connected state and a communication mode supported by the terminal in an RRC non-connected state; and / or a second communication module configured to receive third information sent by a terminal, wherein the third information is used to indicate a communication mode preferred or required by the terminal; wherein the terminal supports at least two communication modes in an RRC non-connected state. 43.A terminal, comprising a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores programs or instructions executable on the processor, and the programs or instructions, when executed by the processor, implement steps of the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 22. 44.A network-side device, comprising a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores programs or instructions executable on the processor, and the programs or instructions, when executed by the processor, implement steps of the communication method according to any one of claims 23 to 39.

45. A readable storage medium, on which a program or instructions are stored, the program or instructions, when executed by a processor, implement the communication method of any one of claims 1 to 22, or implement the steps of the communication method of any one of claims 23 to 39.

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