Communication method and device, and storage medium

Abstract

Provided in the present disclosure are a communication method and device, and a storage medium. The communication method is executed by a terminal, and comprises: determining a first reference signal resource; and before a connected state is entered, sending a first reference signal to a network device on the basis of the first reference signal resource. When in a non-connected state, a terminal can send a first reference signal to a network device, such that the network device determines channel state information on the basis of the first reference signal. It can be ensured that the terminal can perform data scheduling as quickly as possible on the basis of accurate CSI after completing connection establishment, thereby improving the data transmission rate.

Description

A communication method, device and storage medium Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method, device and storage medium. Background Technology

[0002] In New Radio (NR) technology, in order to better obtain channel state information, the terminal needs to measure the Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS) and report the CSI information obtained based on the CSI-RS, or the terminal sends a Sounding Reference Signal (SRS), and the base station measures the SRS to obtain channel state information. Currently, these operations are all performed when the terminal is in connected state.

[0003] Summary of the Invention

[0004] This disclosure proposes a communication method, a communication device, and a storage medium.

[0005] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, a communication method is provided, executed by a terminal, the method comprising: determining a first reference signal resource; and sending a first reference signal to a network device based on the first reference signal resource before entering a connected state.

[0006] In the above method, the terminal can send a first reference signal to the network device when it is in a disconnected state. This allows the network device to determine the channel state information based on the first reference signal, ensuring that the terminal can perform data scheduling as quickly as possible based on accurate CSI after the connection is established, thereby improving the data transmission rate.

[0007] According to a second aspect of the present disclosure, a communication method is provided, performed by a network device, the method comprising: receiving a first reference signal sent by a terminal before entering a connected state.

[0008] In the above method, the network device can receive the first reference signal sent by the terminal in the disconnected state, which makes it easier for the network device to determine the channel state information based on the first reference signal. After the terminal completes the connection establishment, it can quickly perform data scheduling based on the accurate CSI to improve the data transmission rate.

[0009] According to a third aspect of the present disclosure, a terminal is provided, including a processing module for determining a first reference signal resource; and a transceiver module for transmitting a first reference signal to a network device based on the first reference signal resource before entering a connected state.

[0010] According to a fourth aspect of the present disclosure, a network device is provided, including a transceiver module for receiving a first reference signal sent by a terminal before entering a connected state.

[0011] According to a fifth aspect of the present disclosure, a communication device is provided, comprising: one or more processors; wherein the one or more processors are configured to invoke instructions to cause the communication device to perform a method as described in the first aspect of the present disclosure, or to perform a method as described in the second aspect of the present disclosure.

[0012] According to a sixth aspect of the present disclosure, a storage medium is provided that stores instructions which, when executed on a communication device, cause the communication device to perform the method as described in the first aspect, or to perform the method as described in the second aspect of the present disclosure.

[0013] According to a seventh aspect of the present disclosure, a communication system is provided, including a terminal for performing the method as described in the first aspect of the present disclosure; and a network device for performing the method as described in the second aspect of the present disclosure. Attached Figure Description

[0014] The above and / or additional aspects and advantages of this disclosure will become apparent and readily understood from the following description of the embodiments taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0015] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of some communication systems provided in the embodiments of this disclosure;

[0016] Figure 2 is an interactive schematic diagram of a communication method provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0017] Figure 3 is a flowchart illustrating some communication methods provided in the embodiments of this disclosure;

[0018] Figure 4 is a flowchart illustrating some other communication methods provided in the embodiments of this disclosure;

[0019] Figure 5a is a schematic diagram of the structure of a terminal provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0020] Figure 5b is a schematic diagram of the structure of a network device provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0021] Figure 6a is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0022] Figure 6b is a schematic diagram of the structure of a chip provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. Detailed Implementation

[0023] This disclosure provides a communication method, communication device, communication system, and storage medium.

[0024] In a first aspect, embodiments of this disclosure propose a communication method executed by a terminal, the method comprising: determining a first reference signal resource; and sending a first reference signal to a network device based on the first reference signal resource before entering a connected state.

[0025] In the above embodiments, the terminal can send a first reference signal to the network device when it is in a disconnected state, so that the network device can determine the channel state information based on the first reference signal. This can ensure that the terminal can perform data scheduling as soon as possible based on accurate CSI after the connection is established, thereby improving the data transmission rate.

[0026] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the first reference signal is a detection reference signal SRS.

[0027] In the above embodiments, the type of the first reference signal can be determined, which facilitates the terminal to send the first reference signal.

[0028] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, determining the first reference signal resource includes at least one of the following: determining the first reference signal resource based on a protocol predefined definition; determining the first reference signal resource based on a first message sent by a network device, wherein the first message includes configuration information of one or more first reference signal resources; determining the first reference signal resource based on a first message and a second message sent by a network device, wherein the first message includes configuration information of one or more first reference signal resources, and the second message is used to trigger the transmission of a first reference signal on at least one first reference signal resource in the first message.

[0029] In the above embodiments, a first reference signal resource can be determined, which facilitates the terminal to send a first reference signal on the first reference signal resource.

[0030] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the second message includes at least one of the following: an SRS request in a first downlink control information (DCI), the first DCI being a downlink DCI corresponding to a random access feedback (RAR) in a first type of random access procedure; an SRS request in a second DCI, the second DCI being an uplink DCI corresponding to a random access feedback uplink grant (RAR) in a first type of random access procedure; an SRS request in a third DCI, the third DCI being a downlink DCI corresponding to a contention resolution confirmation information (CRAC) in a first type of random access procedure; and an SRS request in a fourth DCI, the fourth DCI being a downlink DCI corresponding to a downlink message (RAR) in a second type of random access procedure.

[0031] In the above embodiments, the second message can be determined, which facilitates the terminal in determining the first reference signal resource for sending the first reference signal based on the second message.

[0032] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, determining the first reference signal resource based on the first message sent by the network device includes: determining the first reference signal resource based on the mapping relationship between one or more first reference signal resources included in the first message and the synchronization signal / physical broadcast channel block (SSB).

[0033] In the above embodiments, a first reference signal resource can be determined, which facilitates the terminal to send a first reference signal on the first reference signal resource.

[0034] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, determining the first reference signal resource based on the first message and the second message sent by the network device includes: determining the first reference signal resource based on the mapping relationship between one or more first reference signal resources included in the first message and the codepoints of the second message.

[0035] In the above embodiments, a first reference signal resource can be determined, which facilitates the terminal to send a first reference signal on the first reference signal resource.

[0036] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the first message includes at least one of the following: a system message; a downlink message during random access; a Radio Resource Control (RRC) message sent by the network device when the terminal enters the deactivation state from the connected state.

[0037] In the above embodiments, a first message can be determined, which facilitates the determination of a first reference signal resource based on the first message, and facilitates the terminal to send a first reference signal on the first reference signal resource.

[0038] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes: sending a random access preamble to a network device on the time-frequency resources corresponding to the random access timing RO, wherein the RO or the preamble corresponds to a first type of random access procedure, or a second type of random access procedure, or a first feature, and the first feature corresponds to sending a first reference signal.

[0039] In the above embodiments, a random access preamble can be sent to the network device to facilitate the determination of the random access timing.

[0040] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes: determining the RO and / or preamble based on broadcast information or system information.

[0041] In the above embodiments, the RO and / or preamble can be determined to facilitate the determination of random access timing.

[0042] Secondly, embodiments of this disclosure provide a communication method performed by a network device, the method comprising: receiving a first reference signal sent by a terminal before entering a connected state.

[0043] In the above embodiments, the network device can receive the first reference signal sent by the terminal in a disconnected state, which facilitates the network device to determine the channel state information based on the first reference signal. After the terminal completes the connection establishment, it can quickly perform data scheduling based on the accurate CSI to improve the data transmission rate.

[0044] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the first reference signal is a detection reference signal SRS.

[0045] In the above embodiments, the type of the first reference signal can be determined, which facilitates the reception of the first reference signal.

[0046] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the first reference signal is sent by the terminal based on the first reference signal resource, and the method further includes: sending a first message and / or a second message to the terminal, wherein the first message and / or the second message are used by the terminal to determine the first reference signal resource, the first message includes configuration information of one or more first reference signal resources, and the second message is used to trigger the transmission of the first reference signal on at least one first reference signal resource in the first message.

[0047] In the above embodiments, a first message and / or a second message can be sent to the terminal to facilitate the terminal in determining the first reference signal resource.

[0048] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the second message includes at least one of the following: an SRS request in a first downlink control information (DCI), wherein the first DCI is a downlink DCI corresponding to a random access feedback (RAR) in a first type of random access procedure; an SRS request in a second DCI, wherein the second DCI is an uplink DCI corresponding to a random access feedback uplink grant (RAR) in a first type of random access procedure; an SRS request in a third DCI, wherein the third DCI is a downlink DCI corresponding to a contention resolution confirmation information in a first type of random access procedure; and an SRS request in a fourth DCI, wherein the fourth DCI is a downlink DCI corresponding to a RAR in a second type of random access procedure.

[0049] In the above embodiments, the second message can be determined, which facilitates the terminal in determining the first reference signal resource for sending the first reference signal based on the second message.

[0050] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the first message includes at least one of the following: a system message; a downlink message during random access; a Radio Resource Control (RRC) message sent by the network device when the terminal enters the deactivation state from the connected state.

[0051] In the above embodiments, a first message can be determined, which facilitates the terminal to determine the first reference signal resource based on the first message, and facilitates the terminal to send the first reference signal on the first reference signal resource.

[0052] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes: receiving a random access preamble sent by a terminal on the time-frequency resources corresponding to the random access timing RO, wherein the RO or the preamble corresponds to a first type of random access procedure, or a second type of random access procedure, or a first feature, and the first feature corresponds to sending a first reference signal.

[0053] In the above embodiments, a random access preamble can be received to facilitate the determination of the random access timing.

[0054] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the RO and / or preamble are determined based on broadcast information or system information.

[0055] In the above embodiments, the RO and / or preamble can be determined to facilitate the determination of random access timing.

[0056] Thirdly, embodiments of this disclosure provide a terminal, including a processing module for determining a first reference signal resource; and a transceiver module for sending a first reference signal to a network device based on the first reference signal resource before entering a connected state.

[0057] Fourthly, embodiments of this disclosure provide a network device including a transceiver module for receiving a first reference signal sent by a terminal before entering a connected state.

[0058] Fifthly, embodiments of this disclosure provide a communication device, which includes: one or more processors; wherein the one or more processors are configured to invoke instructions to cause the communication device to perform the method of any one of the first aspects, or the method of any one of the second aspects.

[0059] In a sixth aspect, embodiments of this disclosure provide a communication system comprising: a terminal and a network device; wherein the terminal is configured to perform the method described in the first aspect and optional implementations thereof, and the network device is configured to perform the method described in the second aspect and optional implementations thereof.

[0060] In a seventh aspect, embodiments of this disclosure provide a storage medium storing computer-executable instructions; after being executed by a processor, the computer-executable instructions are capable of performing the methods described in the first aspect, the optional implementation of the first aspect, the second aspect, and the optional implementation of the second aspect.

[0061] Eighthly, embodiments of this disclosure provide a computer program product, characterized in that it includes a computer program that, when executed by a processor, implements the method as described in either the first or second aspect.

[0062] It is understood that the aforementioned terminals, network devices, communication devices, communication systems, and storage media are all used to execute the methods proposed in the embodiments of this disclosure. Therefore, the beneficial effects they can achieve can be referred to the beneficial effects in the corresponding methods, and will not be repeated here.

[0063] This disclosure provides communication methods, communication devices, communication systems, and storage media. In some embodiments, the terms "communication method" and "information processing method" can be used interchangeably, as can the terms "terminal," "network device," and "communication apparatus," and the terms "information processing system" and "communication system."

[0064] This disclosure is not exhaustive, but merely illustrative of some embodiments, and is not intended to limit the scope of protection of this disclosure. Unless otherwise specified, each step in a particular embodiment can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the steps can be arbitrarily combined. For example, a solution after removing some steps in a particular embodiment can also be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the order of the steps in a particular embodiment can be arbitrarily interchanged. Furthermore, the optional implementation methods in a particular embodiment can be arbitrarily combined; moreover, the embodiments can be arbitrarily combined, for example, some or all steps of different embodiments can be arbitrarily combined, and a particular embodiment can be arbitrarily combined with the optional implementation methods of other embodiments.

[0065] In each of the disclosed embodiments, unless otherwise specified or in case of logical conflict, the terminology and / or descriptions of the embodiments are consistent and can be referenced by each other. Technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments based on their inherent logical relationships.

[0066] The terminology used in the embodiments of this disclosure is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to limit the scope of this disclosure.

[0067] In this embodiment of the disclosure, unless otherwise stated, elements expressed in the singular form, such as "a," "an," "the," "the," "the," "the," "the," "the," "this," etc., can mean "one and only one," or "one or more," "at least one," etc. For example, when using articles such as "a," "an," "the," etc. in translation, the noun following the article can be understood as either a singular expression or a plural expression.

[0068] In the embodiments disclosed herein, "multiple" refers to two or more.

[0069] In some embodiments, the terms “at least one of”, “at least one of”, “at least one of”, “one or more”, “a plurality of”, “multiple”, etc., may be used interchangeably.

[0070] The descriptions in this disclosure, such as "at least one of A, B, C..." or "A and / or B and / or C...", include the case where any one of A, B, C... exists alone, as well as the case where any combination of any of A, B, C... exists alone. Each case can exist alone. For example, "at least one of A, B, C" includes the cases of A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B combination, A and C combination, B and C combination, and A and B and C combination. For example, A and / or B includes the cases of A alone, B alone, and A and B combination.

[0071] In some embodiments, the notation "in one case A, in another case B" or "in response to one case A, in response to another case B" may include the following technical solutions depending on the situation: A is executed regardless of B, i.e., A is executed in some embodiments; B is executed regardless of A, i.e., B is executed in some embodiments; A and B are selectively executed, i.e., A and B are selected for execution in some embodiments; A and B are both executed, i.e., A and B are executed in some embodiments. The same applies when there are more branches such as A, B, and C.

[0072] The prefixes "first," "second," etc., used in the embodiments of this disclosure are merely for distinguishing different descriptive objects and do not impose restrictions on the position, order, priority, quantity, or content of the descriptive objects. The description of the descriptive objects is found in the claims or the context of the embodiments, and the use of prefixes should not constitute unnecessary restrictions. For example, if the descriptive object is a "field," the ordinal numbers preceding "field" in "first field" and "second field" do not restrict the position or order of the "fields." "First" and "second" do not restrict whether the "fields" they modify are in the same message, nor do they restrict the order of "first field" and "second field." Similarly, if the descriptive object is a "level," the ordinal numbers preceding "level" in "first level" and "second level" do not restrict the priority between "levels." Furthermore, the number of descriptive objects is not limited by ordinal numbers and can be one or more. For example, in "first device," the number of "devices" can be one or more. Furthermore, the objects modified by different prefixes can be the same or different. For example, if the object being described is "device", then "first device" and "second device" can be the same device or different devices, and their types can be the same or different. Similarly, if the object being described is "information", then "first information" and "second information" can be the same information or different information, and their content can be the same or different.

[0073] In some embodiments, “including A,” “containing A,” “for indicating A,” and “carrying A” can be interpreted as directly carrying A or indirectly indicating A.

[0074] In some embodiments, the terms “in response to…”, “in response to determining…”, “in the case of…”, “when…”, “if…”, “if…”, etc., can be used interchangeably.

[0075] In some embodiments, the terms “greater than,” “greater than or equal to,” “not less than,” “more than,” “more than or equal to,” “not less than,” “higher than,” “higher than or equal to,” “not lower than,” and “above” can be used interchangeably, as can the terms “less than,” “less than or equal to,” “not greater than,” “less than,” “less than or equal to,” “not more than,” “lower than,” “lower than or equal to,” “not higher than,” and “below”.

[0076] In some embodiments, devices, etc., can be interpreted as physical or virtual, and their names are not limited to the names recorded in the embodiments. Terms such as “device”, “equipment”, “circuit”, “network element”, “node”, “function”, “unit”, “section”, “system”, “network”, “chip”, “chip system”, “entity”, and “subject” can be used interchangeably.

[0077] In some embodiments, the terms "access network device (AN device)," "radio access network device (RAN device)," "base station (BS)," "radio base station," "fixed station," "node," "access point," "transmission point (TP)," "reception point (RP)," "transmission / reception point (TRP)," "panel," "antenna panel," "antenna array," "cell," "macro cell," "small cell," "femto cell," "pico cell," "sector," "cell group," "carrier," "component carrier," and "bandwidth part (BWP)" can be used interchangeably.

[0078] In some embodiments, the terms "terminal", "terminal device", "user equipment (UE)", "user terminal", "mobile station (MS)", "mobile terminal (MT)", "subscriber station", "mobile unit", "subscriber unit", "wireless unit", "remote unit", "mobile device", "wireless device", "wireless communication device", "remote device", "mobile subscriber station", "access terminal", "mobile terminal", "wireless terminal", "remote terminal", "handset", "user agent", "mobile client", and "client" can be used interchangeably.

[0079] In some embodiments, access network devices, core network devices, or network devices can be replaced by terminals. For example, embodiments of this disclosure can also be applied to structures that replace communication between access network devices, core network devices, or network devices and terminals with communication between multiple terminals (e.g., also referred to as device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X), etc.). In this case, the structure can also be configured such that the terminal has all or part of the functions of the access network device. Furthermore, terms such as "uplink" and "downlink" can be replaced with terms corresponding to communication between terminals (e.g., "sidelink"). For example, uplink channel, downlink channel, etc., can be replaced with sidelink channel, uplink link, downlink link, etc., can be replaced with sidelink link.

[0080] In some embodiments, the terminal may be replaced by an access network device, a core network device, or a network device. In this case, the access network device, core network device, or network device may also be configured to have all or some of the functions of the terminal.

[0081] In some embodiments, the names of information, etc., are not limited to the names described in the embodiments. Terms such as "information", "message", "signal", "signaling", "report", "configuration", "indication", "instruction", "command", "channel", "parameter", "domain", "field", "symbol", "symbol", "codebook", "codeword", "codepoint", "bit", "data", "program", and "chip" can be used interchangeably.

[0082] In some embodiments, the terms "uplink", "uplink", and "physical uplink" can be used interchangeably, as can the terms "downlink", "downlink", and "physical downlink", as well as the terms "sidelink", "sidelink", "sidelink communication", "sidelink communication", "direct connection", "direct link", "direct communication", and "direct link communication".

[0083] In some embodiments, the terms “downlink control information (DCI),” “downlink (DL) assignment,” “DL DCI,” “uplink (UL) grant,” and “UL DCI” can be used interchangeably.

[0084] In some embodiments, terms such as "physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH)" and "DL data" can be used interchangeably, as can terms such as "physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH)" and "UL data".

[0085] In some embodiments, the terms “radio”, “wireless”, “radio access network (RAN)”, “access network (AN)”, and “RAN-based” can be used interchangeably.

[0086] In some embodiments, the terms "synchronization signal (SS)," "synchronization signal block (SSB)," "reference signal (RS)," "pilot," and "pilot signal" can be used interchangeably.

[0087] In some embodiments, terms such as “moment,” “point in time,” “time,” and “time location” can be used interchangeably, as can terms such as “duration,” “segment,” “time window,” “window,” and “time.”

[0088] In some embodiments, “get,” “obtain,” “get,” “receive,” “transmit,” “bidirectional transmission,” and “send and / or receive” can be used interchangeably and can be interpreted as receiving from other entities, obtaining from protocols, processing and obtaining on their own, or autonomously implementing, among other meanings.

[0089] In some embodiments, terms such as “send,” “transmit,” “report,” “distribute,” “transfer,” “bidirectional transmission,” “send and / or receive” can be used interchangeably.

[0090] In some embodiments, "pre-defined" or "pre-set" can be interpreted as pre-specified in an agreement or the like, or as a device or the like performing a pre-set action.

[0091] In some embodiments, determining can be interpreted as judging, deciding, judging, calculating, computing, processing, deriving, investigating, searching, looking up, searching, querying, ascertaining, receiving, transmitting, inputting, outputting, accessing, resolving, selecting, choosing, establishing, comparing, assuming, expecting, considering, broadcasting, notifying, communicating, forwarding, configuring, reconfiguring, allocating, mapping, assigning, etc., but is not limited to these.

[0092] In some embodiments, the determination or judgment can be made by a value represented by 1 bit (0 or 1), or by a true or false value (boolean), or by a comparison of numerical values ​​(e.g., a comparison with a predetermined value), but is not limited thereto.

[0093] In some embodiments, "network" can be interpreted as devices included in a network (e.g., access network devices, core network devices, etc.).

[0094] In some embodiments, "not expecting to receive" can be interpreted as not receiving on time domain resources and / or frequency domain resources, or as not performing subsequent processing on the data after receiving it; "not expecting to send" can be interpreted as not sending, or as sending but not expecting the receiver to respond to the sent content.

[0095] In some embodiments, the acquisition of data, information, etc., may comply with the laws and regulations of the country where the location is situated.

[0096] In some embodiments, data, information, etc., may be obtained after obtaining user consent. To address the above-mentioned problems, this disclosure proposes an information indication method, a communication device, a communication system, and a storage medium.

[0097] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 1, the communication system 100 may include a terminal 101 and a network device 102.

[0098] In some embodiments, the terminal includes, but is not limited to, at least one of the following: mobile phone, wearable device, Internet of Things device, car with communication function, smart car, tablet computer, computer with wireless transceiver function, virtual reality (VR) terminal device, augmented reality (AR) terminal device, wireless terminal device in industrial control, wireless terminal device in self-driving, wireless terminal device in remote medical surgery, wireless terminal device in smart grid, wireless terminal device in transportation safety, wireless terminal device in smart city, and wireless terminal device in smart home.

[0099] In some embodiments, the access network device is, for example, a node or device that connects a terminal to a wireless network. The access network device may include, but is not limited to, at least one of the following in a 5G communication system: evolved Node B (eNB), next-generation eNB (ng-eNB), next-generation Node B (gNB), node B (NB), home node B (HNB), home evolved node B (HeNB), radio backhaul device, radio network controller (RNC), base station controller (BSC), base transceiver station (BTS), base band unit (BBU), mobile switching center, base station in 6th generation mobile networks (6G), open RAN, cloud RAN, base station in other communication systems, and access node in a wireless fidelity (WiFi) system.

[0100] In some embodiments, the technical solutions of this disclosure can be applied to the Open RAN architecture. In this case, the interfaces between or within access network devices involved in the embodiments of this disclosure can be transformed into internal interfaces of Open RAN. The processes and information interactions between these internal interfaces can be implemented by software or programs.

[0101] In some embodiments, the access network device may be composed of a central unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU). The CU may also be called a control unit. The CU-DU structure can separate the protocol layer of the access network device. Some of the protocol layer functions are centrally controlled by the CU, while the remaining part or all of the protocol layer functions are distributed in the DU and centrally controlled by the CU. However, this is not the only possibility.

[0102] In some embodiments, a core network device may be a single device comprising one or more network elements, or it may be multiple devices or a group of devices, each comprising all or part of one or more network elements. Network elements may be virtual or physical. The core network may include, for example, at least one of an Evolved Packet Core (EPC), a 5G Core Network (5GCN), or a Next Generation Core (NGC).

[0103] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned one or more network elements may include, for example, AMF, UPF, MME, etc., and may also include other network elements, such as Policy Control Function (PCF), Application Function (AF), Network Application Function (NAF), Authentication and Key Management for Applications Anchor Function (AAnF), Bootstrapping Server Functionality (BSF), Session Management Function (SMF), etc.

[0104] It is understood that the communication system described in this disclosure is for the purpose of more clearly illustrating the technical solutions of this disclosure, and does not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions proposed in this disclosure. As those skilled in the art will know, with the evolution of system architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solutions proposed in this disclosure are also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0105] The following embodiments of this disclosure can be applied to the communication system 100 shown in FIG1, or to some of the main bodies, but are not limited thereto. The main bodies shown in FIG1 are illustrative. The communication system may include all or some of the main bodies in FIG1, or may include other main bodies outside of FIG1. ​​The number and form of each main body are arbitrary. The connection relationship between the main bodies is illustrative. The main bodies may not be connected or may be connected. The connection can be in any way, it can be a direct connection or an indirect connection, it can be a wired connection or a wireless connection.

[0106] The embodiments disclosed herein can be applied to Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), LTE-Beyond (LTE-B), SUPER 3G, IMT-Advanced, 4th generation mobile communication system (4G), 5th generation mobile communication system (5G), 5G new radio (NR), 6th generation mobile communication system (6G), 6G new radio (NR), Future Radio Access (FRA), New-Radio Access Technology (RAT), New Radio (NR), New Radio Access (NX), Future Generation Radio Access (FX), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), CDMA2000, Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), and IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX, a registered trademark), IEEE 802.20, Ultra-Wideband (UWB), Bluetooth (a registered trademark), Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) networks, Device-to-Device (D2D) systems, Machine-to-Machine (M2M) systems, Internet of Things (IoT) systems, Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) systems, systems utilizing other communication methods, and next-generation systems built upon them. Furthermore, multiple systems can be combined (e.g., a combination of LTE or LTE-A with 5G).

[0107] In NR, to better obtain channel state information, the terminal needs to measure CSI-RS and report the CSI information obtained based on CSI-RS, or the terminal sends SRS and the base station measures the SRS to obtain channel state information. However, currently these operations all require the terminal to be in connected state.

[0108] The current problem is that for idle or inactive terminals, when a terminal needs to transmit data, it must first enter the connected state, that is, after the Radio Resource Control (RRC) connection is established, before triggering CSI-RS measurements or SRS transmission for CSI. Only after the base station obtains the CSI information can it determine an appropriate Modulation and Coding Scheme (MCS) to schedule data transmission. Otherwise, the base station can only schedule data transmission based on the default CSI. If the default CSI is poor, the terminal transmission rate is low; if the default CSI is high, the decoding success rate is low, resulting in a low transmission rate.

[0109] To address the aforementioned issues, this disclosure proposes a communication method in which the terminal sends an SRS for base station measurement to obtain CSI before entering the connected state. This ensures that the terminal can perform data scheduling as quickly as possible based on accurate CSI after the connection is established, thereby improving the data transmission rate. The specific details of this method are as follows.

[0110] Figure 2 is an interactive schematic diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 2, this embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a communication method for a communication system 100, which may include a terminal 101 and a network device 102. The method includes:

[0111] Step 2101: The terminal determines the first reference signal resource.

[0112] In some embodiments, the first reference signal resource can be used by the terminal to transmit the first reference signal, that is, the terminal can determine the resource for transmitting the first reference signal.

[0113] In some embodiments, the terminal determines the first reference signal resource by at least one of the following: determining the first reference signal resource based on a protocol predefined definition; determining the first reference signal resource based on a first message sent by a network device, wherein the first message includes configuration information of one or more first reference signal resources; determining the first reference signal resource based on a first message and a second message sent by a network device, wherein the first message includes configuration information of one or more first reference signal resources, and the second message is used to trigger the transmission of a first reference signal on at least one first reference signal resource in the first message.

[0114] In some embodiments, the terminal is a terminal in a non-connected state, for example, the terminal may be an idle or inactive terminal, and the terminal is in a non-connected state before receiving the second message.

[0115] In some embodiments, the second message is used to trigger the terminal to transmit a first reference signal on a first reference signal resource. In other words, the second message can be used to trigger the transmission of a first reference signal on at least one first reference signal resource in the first message, wherein the first reference signal can be a sounding reference signal (SRS), and optionally, the first reference signal can be used by the network device to determine channel state information.

[0116] In other words, the network device can instruct the terminal to send a first reference signal through the second message, so that the network device can perform measurements based on the first reference signal and determine the channel state information. Optionally, the terminal can receive the second message sent by the network device before entering the connected state, that is, the network device can instruct the terminal to send the first reference signal before the terminal enters the connected state.

[0117] In some embodiments, optionally, the second message includes at least one of the following: an SRS request in a first downlink control information (DCI), wherein the first DCI is a downlink DCI corresponding to a random access feedback (RAR) in a first type of random access procedure; an SRS request in a second DCI, wherein the second DCI is an uplink DCI corresponding to a random access feedback uplink grant (RAR) in a first type of random access procedure; an SRS request in a third DCI, wherein the third DCI is a downlink DCI corresponding to a contention resolution confirmation information (CRAC) in a first type of random access procedure; and an SRS request in a fourth DCI, wherein the fourth DCI is a downlink DCI corresponding to a RAR in a second type of random access procedure.

[0118] In the above embodiments, optionally, the first type of random access procedure can be a 4-step random access procedure, in which case the downlink message can be Msg 2, that is, the SRS request in the first downlink control information DCI can be, for example, the SRS request in the downlink DCI (e.g., DCI format 1_1 / 1_2 / 1_3) corresponding to the Random Access Response (RAR) in the 4-step random access procedure; or, the SRS request in the first downlink control information DCI can be the downlink DCI corresponding to the Random Access Response (RAR) in the 4-step random access procedure, wherein the downlink DCI is DCI format 1_0, and the SRS request field needs to be introduced in DCI format 1_0.

[0119] In the above embodiments, optionally, the second DCI can be the uplink DCI corresponding to the RandomAccess Response uplink grant (RAR UL grant) in the first type of random access procedure. The first type of random access procedure can be a four-step random access procedure, that is, the SRS request in the second DCI can be the uplink DCI corresponding to the RAR UL grant (for example, it can be DCI format0_1 / 0_2 / 0_3); or, the SRS request in the second DCI can be the uplink DCI corresponding to the RAR UL grant, wherein the uplink DCI is DCI format 0_0, and the SRS request field needs to be introduced in DCI format 0_0.

[0120] In the above embodiments, optionally, the third DCI can be the downlink DCI corresponding to the contention resolution confirmation information in the first type of random access procedure. The first type of random access procedure can be a 4-step random access procedure, that is, the SRS request in the third DCI can be the downlink DCI corresponding to the contention resolution confirmation information Msg 4 (e.g., DCI format 1_1 / 1_2 / 1_3); or, the SRS request in the third DCI can be the downlink DCI corresponding to the contention resolution confirmation information Msg 4, wherein the downlink DCI is DCI format 1_0, and the SRS request field needs to be introduced in DCI format 1_0.

[0121] In some embodiments, optionally, the fourth DCI can be the downlink DCI corresponding to the RAR in the second type of random access procedure. The second type of random access procedure can be a two-step random access procedure, in which case the downlink message can be Msg B. That is, the SRS request in the fourth DCI can be the SRS request in the downlink DCI of the RAR corresponding to Msg B in the two-step random access procedure. The SRS request in the fourth DCI can be the SRS request in DCI format 1_1 / 1_2 / 1_3, or the SRS_request newly introduced in DCI format 1_0.

[0122] Specifically, the terminal can use any of the following methods to determine the first reference signal resource.

[0123] Method 1

[0124] In some embodiments, the terminal may determine the first reference signal resource based on a protocol predefined definition.

[0125] In other words, the protocol can predefine one or more first reference signal resources. Network devices can trigger terminals to send a first reference signal on these predefine resources. For example, when the first reference signal is an SRS (Service Reference Signal), the first reference signal resource can be an SRS resource. In this case, the protocol can specify only one SRS resource configuration, and a second message triggers the terminal to send an SRS signal at that SRS resource location. Optionally, when the protocol specifies multiple SRS resource configurations, different SSBs can correspond to different SRS configurations; that is, the terminal can determine the corresponding SRS configuration based on the SSB. Optionally, the quasi-colocation source (QCL source) of the SRS signal can be the same as the SSB corresponding to the random access resource.

[0126] Method 2

[0127] In some embodiments, the terminal may determine the first reference signal resource based on a protocol predefined definition.

[0128] In some embodiments, optionally, a first reference signal resource can be determined according to a predefined protocol. For example, when the first reference signal is an SRS, the protocol can predefine multiple SRS resource configurations. In this case, the second message can indicate a codepoint. The terminal implicitly or explicitly determines the triggered SRS resource configuration based on the mapping relationship, wherein the mapping relationship can be a mapping relationship between the codepoint and multiple SRS resources.

[0129] In other words, the protocol can predefine multiple first reference signal resources, and the terminal can determine the mapping relationship between code points and first reference signal resources. Through the code points indicated by the network device, the corresponding first reference signal resource can be determined, thereby realizing the determination of the first reference signal resource used to send the first reference signal.

[0130] Method 3

[0131] In some embodiments, the first reference signal is sent by the terminal based on the first reference signal resource. The method further includes: the network device sending a first message and / or a second message to the terminal, the first message and / or the second message being used by the terminal to determine the first reference signal resource, the first message including configuration information of one or more first reference signal resources, and the second message being used to trigger the transmission of the first reference signal on at least one first reference signal resource in the first message.

[0132] In other words, the network device can send a first message and / or a second message to the terminal, enabling the terminal to determine the first reference signal resource based on the first message and / or the second message. In some embodiments, the terminal can determine the first reference signal resource based on the first message and the second message sent by the network device. The first message includes configuration information for one or more first reference signal resources, and the second message is used to trigger the transmission of a first reference signal on at least one first reference signal resource in the first message.

[0133] In some embodiments, the terminal determines the first reference signal resource based on the first message and the second message sent by the network device, which includes: determining the first reference signal resource based on the mapping relationship between one or more first reference signal resources included in the first message and the codepoints of the second message.

[0134] In some embodiments, the first message includes at least one of the following: a system message; a downlink message during random access; and a Radio Resource Control (RRC) message sent by the network device when the terminal enters a deactivated state from a connected state.

[0135] Among them, system messages may be, for example, Master Information Block (MIB) or System Information Blocks (SIB); downlink messages during random access may be, for example, Msg 2, Msg 4, or Msg B; and Radio Resource Control (RRC) messages sent by the network device when the terminal enters the deactivated state from the connected state may be, for example, RRC release messages.

[0136] In some embodiments, the first message may provide multiple first reference signal resources. The terminal may determine the mapping relationship between code points and first reference signal resources, and determine the corresponding first reference signal resource through the code point indicated by the network device, thereby determining the first reference signal resource used to send the first reference signal.

[0137] In some embodiments, the first message may provide a first reference signal resource, and the second message is only used to trigger the terminal to send a first reference signal on the first reference signal resource.

[0138] In some embodiments, the first message may provide multiple first reference signal resources, each of which is associated with a different SSB. The terminal may determine the first reference signal resource based on the determined SSB, wherein the determined SSB is also used to determine the corresponding random access timing and preamble. The second message is only used to trigger the terminal to send a first reference signal on the first reference signal resource.

[0139] Optionally, when the first message is a system message, such as a MIB or SIB, the MIB or SIB may provide one or more SRS resource configurations, the second message indicates a codepoint, and the terminal implicitly or explicitly determines the triggered SRS resource configuration based on the mapping relationship, or the second message is only used to trigger the terminal to send a first reference signal on the first reference signal resource. The mapping relationship can be a mapping relationship between a codepoint and multiple SRS resources.

[0140] Method 4

[0141] In some embodiments, the terminal determines the first reference signal resource based on the second message by at least one of the following: receiving a first message sent by a network device, the first message including one or more resource configuration information; and determining the first reference signal resource based on the mapping relationship between the second message and the one or more resource configuration information.

[0142] In some embodiments, optionally, the first message is received according to the method of Method 3 described above. When the first message is a downlink message in a random access procedure and the first reference signal is SRS, if the first message is Msg 2, Msg 4, or Msg B, the PDSCH of Msg 2, Msg 4, or Msg B can provide one or more SRS resource configurations. When only one SRS resource configuration is provided, the terminal may not receive the second message. That is, after determining the first reference signal resource, the terminal can directly send the first reference signal to the network device based on the first reference signal resource without the need for the second message to trigger it; or, the second message can only instruct the triggering terminal to send the first reference signal on the first reference signal resource corresponding to the SRS resource configuration. When multiple SRS resource configurations are provided, the second message indicates a codepoint. The terminal implicitly or explicitly determines the triggered SRS resource configuration based on a mapping relationship. The mapping relationship can be a mapping relationship between a codepoint and multiple SRS resources.

[0143] Method 5

[0144] In some embodiments, the terminal determines the first reference signal resource based on the second message by at least one of the following: receiving a first message sent by a network device, the first message including one or more resource configuration information; and determining the first reference signal resource based on the mapping relationship between the second message and the one or more resource configuration information.

[0145] In some embodiments, optionally, the first message is received according to the method of method 3 described above. When the first message is a Radio Resource Control (RRC) message sent by the network device when the terminal enters the deactivated state from the connected state, and the first reference signal is SRS, if the first message is an RRC release message, the network device can provide one or more SRS resource configurations in the RRC release information when the terminal enters the inactive state from the RRC connected state. When only one SRS resource configuration is provided, the terminal may not receive the second message. That is, after determining the first reference signal resource, the terminal can directly send the first reference signal to the network device based on the first reference signal resource without the need for the second message to trigger it; or, the second message only instructs the triggering terminal to send the first reference signal on the first reference signal resource corresponding to the SRS resource configuration. When multiple SRS resource configurations are provided, the second message may be, for example, a codepoint indicated by the SRS request field. The terminal implicitly or explicitly determines the triggered SRS resource configuration based on a mapping relationship, which may be a mapping relationship between the codepoint and one or more SRS resources.

[0146] Method 6

[0147] In some embodiments, the first reference signal is sent by the terminal based on the first reference signal resource. The method further includes: the network device sending a first message and / or a second message to the terminal, the first message and / or the second message being used by the terminal to determine the first reference signal resource, the first message including configuration information of one or more first reference signal resources, and the second message being used to trigger the transmission of the first reference signal on at least one first reference signal resource in the first message.

[0148] In other words, the network device can send a first message and / or a second message to the terminal, so that the terminal can determine the first reference signal resource based on the first message and / or the second message.

[0149] In some embodiments, the terminal determines the first reference signal resource based on the first message sent by the network device, which includes: determining the first reference signal resource based on the mapping relationship between one or more first reference signal resources included in the first message and the synchronization signal / physical broadcast channel block (SSB).

[0150] In some embodiments, the first message includes at least one of the following: a system message; a downlink message during random access; and a Radio Resource Control (RRC) message sent by the network device when the terminal enters a deactivated state from a connected state.

[0151] In other words, the first message can provide multiple first reference signal resources. The terminal can determine the first reference signal resource corresponding to the SSB for transmitting the first reference signal based on the mapping relationship between the first reference signal resources and the SSB. Optionally, the terminal can also determine the random access timing (RO) and preamble corresponding to the SSB for random access. In some embodiments, the method further includes: sending a random access preamble to the network device on the time-frequency resource corresponding to the random access timing (RO), where the RO or preamble corresponds to a first type of random access procedure, a second type of random access procedure, or a first feature, and the first feature is used to transmit the first reference signal. Optionally, the network device configures a corresponding random access timing and / or preamble for the first feature.

[0152] In some embodiments, the method further includes: determining the RO and / or preamble based on broadcast information or system information.

[0153] Optionally, the first type of random access procedure may be, for example, a 4-step random access procedure, and the second type of random access procedure may be, for example, a 2-step random access procedure. The first feature is used to send a first reference signal, for example, the first feature may be used to report early SRS.

[0154] In other words, the terminal can send a random access preamble to the network device on the time-frequency resource corresponding to the RO during random access, which can facilitate the determination of the above-mentioned random access process and thus determine the PDSCH resource in the random access process.

[0155] Step 2102: The terminal sends a first reference signal to the network device.

[0156] In some embodiments, the terminal can send a first reference signal to the network device based on the first reference signal resource. This allows the network device to measure the first reference signal and obtain channel state information (CSI). This enables the terminal to transmit data as quickly as possible based on the accurate CSI after entering the connected state, thereby improving throughput.

[0157] Optionally, the terminal may transmit a first reference signal on a first reference signal resource.

[0158] In some embodiments, at least one of the above methods can be used to enable the terminal to send a first reference signal to the network device when it is in a disconnected state. The above methods will be further explained and illustrated below with specific examples.

[0159] Example 1

[0160] In some embodiments, the random access type can be determined to be a first type of random access, that is, in the 4-step random access process, the step of the terminal sending a first reference signal to the network device may include:

[0161] 1) Msg 1, the terminal sends a random access preamble on the time-frequency resources corresponding to the random access occasion (RO), where the RO and preamble are based on contention, that is, not dedicated to a certain feature;

[0162] 2) Msg 2, the terminal receives the downlink DCI and RAR corresponding to the random access feedback RAR, and receives the PUSCH resources indicated by the uplink DCI corresponding to the RAR UL grant, as well as the SRS request field in the downlink or uplink DCI to trigger SRS.

[0163] 3) Msg 3, the terminal sends a contention resolution message on the PUSCH resource and sends an SRS;

[0164] 4) Msg 4, the terminal receives confirmation of connection establishment completion or contention resolution from the base station.

[0165] Example 2

[0166] In some embodiments, the random access type can be determined to be a first type of random access, that is, in the 4-step random access process, the step of the terminal sending a first reference signal to the network device may include:

[0167] 1) Msg 1, the terminal sends a random access preamble on the time-frequency resources corresponding to the random access opportunity, where RO and preamble are based on contention, that is, not dedicated to a certain feature;

[0168] 2) Msg 2, the terminal receives the downlink DCI and RAR corresponding to the random access feedback RAR, and receives the PUSCH resources indicated by the uplink DCI corresponding to the RAR UL grant;

[0169] 3) Msg 3, the terminal sends a contention resolution message on the PUSCH resource;

[0170] 4) Msg 4: The terminal receives confirmation of connection establishment completion or contention resolution from the base station. This also triggers SRS via the SRS request field in the downlink DCI.

[0171] 5) The terminal sends SRS.

[0172] Example 3

[0173] In some embodiments, the random access type may be determined to be a second type of random access, that is, in the two-step random access process, the step of the terminal sending a first reference signal to the network device may include:

[0174] 1) Msg A, the terminal sends a random access preamble on the time-frequency resources corresponding to the random access opportunity, where the RO and preamble are based on contention, that is, not dedicated to a certain feature, but the RO and preamble can be the same as or different from those of the first type of random access procedure.

[0175] 2) Msg B, the terminal receives random access feedback from the base station, confirmation of connection establishment completion or contention resolution, and SRS triggered by the SRS request field in the downlink DCI;

[0176] 3) The terminal sends SRS.

[0177] In some embodiments, the above examples are only some optional ways to implement the terminal to send the first reference signal, and are not exhaustive. The method of this solution can use other methods to determine the parameters in the above steps, or use other methods to send the first reference signal. For example, RO or preamble can be replaced with a feature dedicated to a certain feature, such as a feature dedicated to early SRS transmission.

[0178] Figure 3 is a flowchart illustrating a communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 3, the present disclosure relates to a communication method for a terminal, the method comprising:

[0179] Step 3101: Determine the first reference signal resource.

[0180] The optional implementation of step 3101 can be found in the optional implementation of step 2101 in Figure 2 and other related parts in the embodiments involved in Figure 2, which will not be repeated here.

[0181] Step 3102: Send the first reference signal.

[0182] The optional implementation of step 3102 can be found in the optional implementation of step 2102 in Figure 2 and other related parts in the embodiments involved in Figure 2, which will not be repeated here.

[0183] In some embodiments, the network device may receive a first reference signal.

[0184] In some embodiments, the terminal may send a first reference signal to a network device, but is not limited thereto; the terminal may also send the first reference signal to other entities.

[0185] Figure 4 is a flowchart illustrating a communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 4, the present disclosure relates to a communication method for a network device, the method comprising:

[0186] Step 4101: Receive the first reference signal.

[0187] The optional implementation of step 4101 can be found in step 2102 of Figure 2, the optional implementation of step 3102 of Figure 3, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in Figures 2 and 3, which will not be repeated here.

[0188] In some embodiments, the network device receives a first reference signal sent by a terminal, but is not limited thereto; it may also receive a first reference signal sent by other entities.

[0189] In some embodiments, the network device acquires a first reference signal as defined by a protocol.

[0190] In some embodiments, the network device processes the signal to obtain a first reference signal.

[0191] The following is an exemplary description of the above method.

[0192] The method illustrated in this disclosure relates to an SRS triggering method for an idle / inactive UE, the full details of which are as follows.

[0193] 1. The terminal determines a first reference signal resource based on the first information and sends a first reference signal based on the first reference signal resource. Before receiving the first information, the terminal is in a disconnected state.

[0194] 2. Based on 1, the terminal receives first information, which is used to trigger the transmission of a first reference signal resource.

[0195] The first information is the SRS request in the downlink DCI (DCI format 1_1 / 1_2 / 1_3, or SRS request introduced in DCI format 1_0) corresponding to Msg 2 in the 4-step random access process or the uplink DCI (DCI format 0_1 / 0_2 / 0_3, or SRS request introduced in DCI format 0_0) corresponding to the RAR UL grant, or the SRS request in the downlink DCI (DCI format 1_1 / 1_2 / 1_3, or SRS request introduced in DCI format 1_0) corresponding to the contention resolution confirmation information Msg 4, or the SRS request in the downlink DCI of the RAR corresponding to Msg B in the 2-step random access process.

[0196] 3. Based on 1 or 2, the first reference signal is SRS.

[0197] 4. Based on 2, the resource allocation determination method of SRS.

[0198] 1) The standard specifies only one SRS resource configuration. The first information triggering terminal sends an SRS at the location of the SRS resource. The QCL source of the SRS can be the same as the SSB corresponding to the access resource.

[0199] 2) The standard specifies multiple SRS resource configurations. The first information indicates the codepoint. The terminal determines the triggered SRS resource configuration based on the implicit or explicit mapping relationship (the mapping relationship between the codepoint and multiple SRS resources).

[0200] 3) The MIB or SIB provides multiple SRS resource configurations. The first information indicates the codepoint, and the terminal determines the triggered SRS resource configuration based on the implicit or explicit mapping relationship.

[0201] 4) The PDSCH of Msg 2, Msg 4, or Msg B provides multiple SRS resource configurations. The first information indicates the codepoint, and the terminal determines the triggered SRS resource configuration based on the implicit or explicit mapping relationship.

[0202] 5) When the terminal enters the inactive state from the RRC connected state, the base station provides multiple SRS resource configurations in the RRC release information. The first information indicates the codepoint, and the terminal determines the triggered SRS resource configuration based on the implicit or explicit mapping relationship.

[0203] 5. Based on 1-4, the random access timing or preamble corresponding to random access is either the first type of random access procedure (4-step random access procedure), the second type of random access procedure (2-step random access procedure), or the first feature (specific to early SRS).

[0204] 6. Based on 1, the disconnected state includes idle or inactive. Being in a disconnected state indicates that random access has not yet been completed, and RRC connection establishment has not yet been completed.

[0205] 7. Based on 1-6, the above random access RO and preamble are determined based on broadcast information or system information (MIB or SIB).

[0206] The above method will be further explained and illustrated below through specific embodiments.

[0207] Example 1:

[0208] 4-step access process (Type I random access process)

[0209] 1. Msg 1, the terminal sends a random access preamble on the time-frequency resources corresponding to the random access occasion (RO), where the RO and preamble are based on contention, that is, not dedicated to a certain feature.

[0210] 2. Msg 2, the terminal receives the downlink DCI and RAR corresponding to the random access feedback RAR, and receives the PUSCH resources indicated by the uplink DCI corresponding to the RAR UL grant, as well as the SRS request field in the downlink or uplink DCI to trigger SRS.

[0211] 3. Msg 3, the terminal sends a contention resolution message on the PUSCH resource and sends an SRS.

[0212] 4. Msg 4, Terminal receives confirmation of connection establishment completion or contention resolution from base station.

[0213] Example 2:

[0214] 4-step access process (Type I random access process)

[0215] 1. Msg 1, the terminal sends a random access preamble on the time-frequency resources corresponding to the random access occasion (RO), where the RO and preamble are based on contention, that is, not dedicated to a certain feature.

[0216] 2. Msg 2, the terminal receives the downlink DCI and RAR corresponding to the random access feedback RAR, and receives the PUSCH resources indicated by the uplink DCI corresponding to the RAR UL grant.

[0217] 3. Msg 3, the terminal sends a contention resolution message on the PUSCH resource.

[0218] 4. Msg 4 indicates that the terminal receives confirmation of connection establishment completion or contention resolution from the base station. It also indicates that the SRS request field in the downlink DCI triggers SRS.

[0219] 5. The terminal sends SRS.

[0220] Example 3:

[0221] Two-step access procedure (Type II random access procedure)

[0222] 1. Msg A, the terminal sends a random access preamble on the time-frequency resource corresponding to the random access occasion (RO), where the RO and preamble are contention-based, i.e. not dedicated to a certain feature, but the RO and preamble may be the same as or different from those of the first type of random access procedure.

[0223] 2. Msg B: The terminal receives random access feedback from the base station, confirmation of connection establishment completion or contention resolution, and SRS triggered by the SRS request field in the downlink DCI.

[0224] 3. The terminal sends SRS.

[0225] Other embodiments may replace the RO or preamble with one that is specific to a particular feature, such as one used for early SRS transmission.

[0226] In summary, the above embodiments of this solution improve throughput by proposing that the terminal sends SRS during random access for the base station to obtain CSI, enabling the terminal to transmit data as quickly as possible based on accurate CSI after entering the connected state.

[0227] The method is as follows: Figure 5a is a schematic diagram of the structure of the terminal 101 proposed in this embodiment. As shown in Figure 5a, the terminal 101 includes: a processing module 5101, used to determine a first reference signal resource; optionally, the above processing module is used to execute at least one of the processing-related steps (such as step 2101, etc., but not limited thereto) performed by the terminal 101 in any of the above methods, which will not be described in detail here.

[0228] In some embodiments, the terminal further includes a transceiver module 5102, which is used to send a first reference signal to the network device based on the first reference signal resource before entering the connected state; optionally, the transceiver module is used to perform at least one of the transceiver-related steps (such as step 2102, etc., but not limited thereto) performed by the terminal 101 in any of the above methods, which will not be described in detail here.

[0229] Figure 5b is a schematic diagram of the structure of the network device 102 proposed in an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 5b, the network device 102 includes: a transceiver module 5201, used to receive a first reference signal sent by a terminal before entering a connected state; optionally, the transceiver module is used to perform at least one of the transceiver steps (such as step 2102, etc., but not limited thereto) performed by the network device 102 in any of the above methods, which will not be described in detail here.

[0230] As shown in Figure 6a, the communication device 6100 includes one or more processors 6101. The processor 6101 can be a general-purpose processor or a dedicated processor, such as a baseband processor or a central processing unit (CPU). The baseband processor can be used to process communication protocols and communication data, while the CPU can be used to control communication devices (e.g., base stations, baseband chips, terminal devices, terminal device chips, DUs or CUs, etc.), execute programs, and process program data. The processor 6101 is used to invoke instructions to cause the communication device 6100 to execute any of the above methods.

[0231] In some embodiments, the communication device 6100 further includes one or more memories 6102 for storing instructions. Optionally, all or part of the memories 6102 may also be located outside the communication device 6100.

[0232] In some embodiments, the communication device 6100 further includes one or more transceivers 6103. When the communication device 6100 includes one or more transceivers 6103, the communication steps such as sending and receiving in the above method are performed by the transceivers 6103, and other steps are performed by the processor 6101.

[0233] In some embodiments, a transceiver may include a receiver and a transmitter, which may be separate or integrated. Optionally, the terms transceiver, transceiver unit, transceiver, transceiver circuit, etc., may be used interchangeably; the terms transmitter, transmitting unit, transmitter, transmitting circuit, etc., may be used interchangeably; and the terms receiver, receiving unit, receiver, receiving circuit, etc., may be used interchangeably.

[0234] Optionally, the communication device 6100 further includes one or more interface circuits 6104 connected to the memory 6102. The interface circuits 6104 can be used to receive signals from the memory 6102 or other devices, and can be used to send signals to the memory 6102 or other devices. For example, the interface circuits 6104 can read instructions stored in the memory 6102 and send the instructions to the processor 6101.

[0235] The communication device 6100 described in the above embodiments may be a network device or a terminal, but the scope of the communication device 6100 described in this disclosure is not limited thereto, and the structure of the communication device 6100 may not be limited by FIG. 6a. The communication device may be a standalone device or a part of a larger device. For example, the communication device may be: (1) a standalone integrated circuit IC, or chip, or chip system or subsystem; (2) a collection of one or more ICs, optionally, the IC collection may also include storage components for storing data and programs; (3) an ASIC, such as a modem; (4) a module that can be embedded in other devices; (5) a receiver, terminal device, smart terminal device, cellular phone, wireless device, handheld device, mobile unit, vehicle device, network device, cloud device, artificial intelligence device, etc.; (6) others, etc.

[0236] Figure 6b is a schematic diagram of the structure of chip 6200 according to an embodiment of this disclosure. For cases where the communication device 6100 can be a chip or a chip system, please refer to the schematic diagram of chip 6200 shown in Figure 6b, but it is not limited thereto.

[0237] Chip 6200 includes one or more processors 6201, which are used to invoke instructions to cause chip 6200 to perform any of the above methods.

[0238] In some embodiments, chip 6200 further includes one or more interface circuits 6202 connected to memory 6203. Interface circuits 6202 can be used to receive signals from memory 6203 or other devices, and can also be used to send signals to memory 6203 or other devices. For example, interface circuit 6202 can read instructions stored in memory 6203 and send those instructions to processor 6201. Optionally, terms such as interface circuit, interface, transceiver pin, and transceiver can be used interchangeably.

[0239] In some embodiments, chip 6200 further includes one or more memories 6203 for storing instructions. Optionally, all or part of the memories 6203 may be located outside of chip 6200.

[0240] This disclosure also proposes a storage medium storing instructions that, when executed on the communication device 6100, cause the communication device 6100 to perform any of the above methods. Optionally, the storage medium is an electronic storage medium. Optionally, the storage medium is a computer-readable storage medium, but not limited thereto; it may also be a storage medium readable by other devices. Optionally, the storage medium may be a non-transitory storage medium, but not limited thereto; it may also be a temporary storage medium.

[0241] This disclosure also provides a program product that, when executed by the communication device 6100, causes the communication device 6100 to perform any of the above methods. Optionally, the program product is a computer program product.

[0242] This disclosure also proposes a computer program that, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform any of the above methods.

[0243] In the above embodiments, implementation can be achieved, in whole or in part, through software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, it can be implemented, in whole or in part, as a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer programs. When the computer program is loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of this disclosure are generated. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer program can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transferred from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, the computer program can be transferred from one website, computer, server, or data center to another via wired (e.g., coaxial cable, fiber optic, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) means. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium accessible to a computer or a data storage device such as a server or data center that integrates one or more available media. The available media may be magnetic media (e.g., floppy disks, hard disks, magnetic tapes), optical media (e.g., high-density digital video discs (DVDs)), or semiconductor media (e.g., solid-state disks (SSDs)).

[0244] The correspondences shown in the tables of this disclosure can be configured or predefined. The values ​​of the information in each table are merely examples and can be configured to other values; this disclosure is not limiting. When configuring the correspondences between information and parameters, it is not necessarily required to configure all the correspondences shown in each table. For example, the correspondences shown in some rows of the tables in this disclosure may not be configured. Furthermore, appropriate modifications and adjustments can be made based on the above tables, such as splitting, merging, etc. The names of the parameters shown in the headers of the above tables can also use other names that the communication device can understand, and the values ​​or representations of the parameters can also be other values ​​or representations that the communication device can understand. In the implementation of the above tables, other data structures can also be used, such as arrays, queues, containers, stacks, linear lists, pointers, linked lists, trees, graphs, structures, classes, heaps, hash tables, or hash tables, etc.

[0245] The predefined terms in this disclosure can be understood as defined, predefined, stored, pre-stored, pre-negotiated, pre-configured, solidified, or pre-burned.

[0246] Those skilled in the art will recognize that the units and algorithm steps of the various examples described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this disclosure.

[0247] Those skilled in the art will understand that, for the sake of convenience and brevity, the specific working processes of the systems, devices, and units described above can be referred to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0248] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this disclosure, but the scope of protection of this disclosure is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the scope of the technology disclosed in this disclosure should be included within the scope of protection of this disclosure. Therefore, the scope of protection of this disclosure should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that, The method is executed by a terminal, and the method includes: Determine the first reference signal resource; Before entering the connected state, a first reference signal is sent to the network device based on the first reference signal resource.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first reference signal is the detection reference signal SRS.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, Determining the first reference signal resource includes at least one of the following: The first reference signal resource is determined based on protocol predefined definitions; The first reference signal resource is determined based on a first message sent by the network device, wherein the first message includes configuration information of one or more first reference signal resources; The first reference signal resource is determined based on the first message and the second message sent by the network device. The first message includes configuration information of one or more first reference signal resources, and the second message is used to trigger the transmission of a first reference signal on at least one first reference signal resource in the first message.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, The second message includes at least one of the following: The SRS request in the first downlink control information (DCI) is the downlink DCI corresponding to the random access feedback (RAR) in the first type of random access procedure. The SRS request in the second DCI, the second DCI is the uplink DCI corresponding to the random access feedback uplink grant (RAR UL grant) in the first type of random access procedure; The SRS request in the third DCI, wherein the third DCI is the downlink DCI corresponding to the contention resolution confirmation information in the first type of random access procedure; The SRS request in the fourth DCI, wherein the fourth DCI is the downlink DCI corresponding to the RAR in the second type of random access procedure.

5. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, The first message includes at least one of the following: System message; Downlink messages during the random access process; The network device sends a Radio Resource Control (RRC) message when the terminal enters the deactivated state from the connected state.

6. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, The determination of the first reference signal resource based on the first message sent by the network device includes: The first reference signal resource is determined based on the mapping relationship between one or more first reference signal resources included in the first message and the synchronization signal / physical broadcast channel block (SSB).

7. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, Determining the first reference signal resource based on the first and second messages sent by the network device includes: The first reference signal resource is determined based on the mapping relationship between one or more first reference signal resources included in the first message and the codepoints of the second message.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that, The method further includes: On the time-frequency resource corresponding to the random access opportunity (RO), a random access preamble is sent to the network device. The RO or the preamble corresponds to a first type of random access procedure, a second type of random access procedure, or a first feature. The first feature corresponds to sending the first reference signal.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that, The method further includes: The RO and / or the preamble are determined based on broadcast information or system information.

10. A communication method, characterized in that, The method is performed by a network device, and the method includes: The first reference signal sent by the receiving terminal before entering the connected state.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that, The first reference signal is the detection reference signal SRS.

12. The method according to claim 10 or 11, characterized in that, The first reference signal is transmitted by the terminal based on the first reference signal resource, and the method further includes: Send a first message and / or a second message to the terminal. The first message and / or the second message are used by the terminal to determine the first reference signal resource. The first message includes configuration information of one or more first reference signal resources. The second message is used to trigger the transmission of a first reference signal on at least one first reference signal resource in the first message.

13. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that, The second message includes at least one of the following: The SRS request in the first downlink control information (DCI) is the downlink DCI corresponding to the random access feedback (RAR) in the first type of random access procedure. The SRS request in the second DCI, the second DCI is the uplink DCI corresponding to the random access feedback uplink grant (RAR UL grant) in the first type of random access procedure; The SRS request in the third DCI, wherein the third DCI is the downlink DCI corresponding to the contention resolution confirmation information in the first type of random access procedure; The SRS request in the fourth DCI, wherein the fourth DCI is the downlink DCI corresponding to the RAR in the second type of random access procedure.

14. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that, The first message includes at least one of the following: System message; Downlink messages during the random access process; The network device sends a Radio Resource Control (RRC) message when the terminal enters the deactivated state from the connected state.

15. The method according to any one of claims 10 to 14, characterized in that, The method further includes: On the time-frequency resource corresponding to the random access opportunity (RO), the terminal sends a random access preamble. The RO or the preamble corresponds to a first type of random access procedure, a second type of random access procedure, or a first feature. The first feature corresponds to sending the first reference signal.

16. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that, The RO and / or the preamble are determined based on broadcast information or system information.

17. A terminal, characterized in that, include: The processing module is used to determine the first reference signal resource; The transceiver module is used to send a first reference signal to the network device based on the first reference signal resource before entering the connected state.

18. A network device, characterized in that, include: The transceiver module is used to receive the first reference signal sent by the terminal before entering the connected state.

19. A communication system, characterized in that, include: A terminal for performing the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 9; A network device for performing the method as described in any one of claims 10 to 16.

20. A communication device, wherein, include: transceiver; Memory; The processor, connected to the transceiver and the memory respectively, is configured to control the wireless signal transmission and reception of the transceiver by executing computer-executable instructions on the memory, and is capable of implementing the method of any one of claims 1-9 or 10-16.

21. A computer storage medium, wherein, The computer storage medium stores computer-executable instructions; when executed by a processor, the computer-executable instructions can implement the method of any one of claims 1-9 or 10-16.

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