Communication method and related apparatus

Abstract

Provided in the embodiments of the present application are a communication method and a related apparatus. The method comprises: receiving an indication message, wherein the indication message carries information regarding N uplink beams corresponding to a synchronization signal block (SSB) beam, N being a positive integer greater than 1; on the basis of the indication message, determining a first uplink beam from among the N uplink beams, wherein a terminal device is located in a coverage area of the first uplink beam; and determining first information, wherein the first information is associated with the first uplink beam, and the first information is used for receiving a target random access response (RAR) message. In this way, when terminal devices use communication resources indicated in target RAR messages to send RRC access request messages, the risk of the terminal devices in coverage areas of different uplink beams incorrectly using a communication resource indicated by the same RAR message to send messages is avoided, thereby reducing the risk of signal collision occurring when different RRC access request messages are transmitted by means of the same communication resource, and improving the efficiency of the terminal devices randomly accessing network devices.

Description

Communication methods and related devices

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202510096053.6, filed on January 21, 2025, entitled "Communication Method and Related Apparatus", the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0002] This application relates to the field of communication technology, and more particularly to a communication method and related apparatus. Background Technology

[0003] Non-terrestrial network (NTN) communication technology can utilize network equipment located on non-terrestrial platforms such as satellites or other high-altitude platforms to achieve communication network coverage. Furthermore, NTN communication is not affected by geographical environment, climate conditions, or natural disasters, and has advantages such as wide coverage, long communication distance, high reliability, high flexibility, and high throughput.

[0004] In practical applications, network devices and terminal devices can use beamforming technology to transmit or receive signals. This means that the direction of signal transmission or reception between network devices and terminal devices can be concentrated within a certain angular range. However, due to the long communication distance in NTN scenarios and the limited signal transmission capability of terminal devices, the uplink transmission rate is limited during communication, affecting communication quality and efficiency. Therefore, network devices can use larger antenna arrays to receive signals within different narrow angular ranges. That is, network devices receive signals through multiple uplink narrow beams, making the received signal energy more concentrated, the beam gain higher, and the communication quality and efficiency higher. Furthermore, since network devices typically have a large signal transmission capability, to increase the network coverage area, the angular range of the synchronization signal block (SSB) beam transmitted by the network device can be wider. The coverage area of ​​the SSB beam can include the coverage areas of multiple different uplink narrow beams.

[0005] Terminal devices located within the coverage area of ​​an SSB beam can access network devices. However, during random access, different terminal devices located within different uplink narrow beam coverage areas may experience signal collisions when sending Radio Resource Control (RRC) access request messages, affecting the efficiency of terminal devices accessing network devices. Summary of the Invention

[0006] This application provides a communication method and related apparatus to reduce the risk of signal collision when different RRC access request messages are transmitted on the same uplink resource, thereby improving the efficiency of the random access process.

[0007] The first aspect of this application provides a communication method that can be used on the terminal side, for example, executed by a terminal device. The terminal device can be a device or apparatus with a chip, or a device or apparatus with integrated circuits, or a chip, chip system, module, or control unit in the aforementioned device or apparatus; the specific implementation is not limited in this application. It should be noted that, in this application, when referring to a terminal device, it can refer to the terminal device itself, or to the chip, functional module, or integrated circuit in the terminal device that performs the method provided in this application; the specific implementation is not limited in this application. In the first aspect and its possible implementations, the method is described as being executed by a terminal device. The method includes: the terminal device receiving an indication message, the indication message carrying information of N uplink beams corresponding to the synchronization signal block (SSB) beam, where N is a positive integer greater than 1; according to the indication message, the terminal device determining a first uplink beam among the N uplink beams, the terminal device being located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam; the terminal device determining first information, the first information being associated with the first uplink beam, the first information being used to receive a target random access response (RAR) message.

[0008] During the random access process of a terminal device, even if other terminal devices located outside the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam send the same random access preamble sequence within the same RO as the terminal device, the terminal device can still receive the target RAR message sent to terminal devices within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam based on the first information associated with the first uplink beam. Furthermore, when the terminal device sends an RRC access request message using the communication resources indicated in the target RAR message, the risk of the terminal device and other terminal devices mistakenly using the same device resources indicated by the same RAR message to send messages is reduced. This, in turn, reduces the risk of signal collisions when different RRC access request messages are transmitted on the same uplink resource, improving the efficiency of the terminal device's random access to network devices.

[0009] Based on the first aspect, in one possible implementation, the first information includes a first random access radio network temporary identifier (RA-RNTI). Determining the first information includes: determining the first RA-RNTI based on a first uplink beam and a target random access timing (RO). The first RA-RNTI is used to receive target RAR messages. This implementation illustrates a specific form of the first information, namely the first RA-RNTI, and an implementation method for determining the first information, which is beneficial for the implementation of the scheme and avoids unnecessary communication overhead.

[0010] Based on the first aspect, in one possible implementation, the first information includes the identifier of the first uplink beam, and determining the first information includes: determining the identifier of the first uplink beam, wherein the identifier of the first uplink beam is used to receive the target RAR message. This implementation illustrates a specific form of the first information, namely the identifier of the first uplink beam, and an implementation method for determining the first information, which is beneficial for the implementation of the solution.

[0011] Based on the first aspect, in one possible implementation, the first information includes the target random access timing (RO). Determining the first information includes: determining the target RO based on a first uplink beam, where the target RO is one of M ROs, and each of the M ROs corresponds to one of N uplink beams, where M is a positive integer greater than or equal to N. This implementation illustrates a specific form of the first information, namely the target RO, and an implementation method for determining the first information, which is beneficial for the implementation of the scheme and avoids unnecessary communication overhead.

[0012] Based on the first aspect, in one possible implementation, the target RO is determined based on the first uplink beam. In this implementation, since the target RO is determined based on the first uplink beam, while the range of values ​​for RA-RNTI defined in R18 and prior to R18 remains unchanged, the coverage area of ​​the same SSB beam can include the coverage area of ​​more uplink beams (with a larger value for N), the angle range of the uplink beam can be narrower, the energy can be more concentrated, and the uplink transmission rate can be higher.

[0013] Based on the first aspect, in one possible implementation, the first information is matched with the second information, and the second information is used to send the target RAR message. This implementation illustrates a method for receiving the target RAR message, where the second information used to send the target RAR message matches the first information, which is beneficial for the implementation of the scheme. It should be noted that matching the first and second information can mean that the first and second information are equal, or that the second information is a backup of the first information, or that the first information can determine the second information based on a predetermined criterion (e.g., an offset of a certain amount); there are no limitations on this.

[0014] Based on the first aspect, in one possible implementation, the first information is specifically used to receive the target RAR message within the RAR window of the target RAR message associated with the target RO. This implementation illustrates a specific method for receiving the target RAR message, namely, receiving the target RAR message within the RAR window associated with the target RO, which is beneficial for the implementation of the solution.

[0015] Based on the first aspect, in one possible implementation, the information of the N uplink beams includes information about the coverage area of ​​each of the N uplink beams. Determining the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams according to the indication message includes: determining the first uplink beam based on the location information of the terminal device and the indication message. This implementation exemplifies a specific implementation of the information of the N uplink beams, namely, the information about the coverage area of ​​each of the N uplink beams, and also exemplifies an implementation for determining the first uplink beam, which is beneficial for the implementation of the solution. It should be noted that the terminal device is a terminal device capable of obtaining its own location information, such as a terminal device with GNSS positioning capabilities; this is not limited.

[0016] Based on the first aspect, in one possible implementation, the information of the N uplink beams includes information on the resources of the reference signals associated with each of the N uplink beams. Determining the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams according to the indication message includes: receiving the reference signals associated with each uplink beam based on the resource information of the reference signals associated with each uplink beam; determining the first uplink beam, where the received power (RSRP) of the reference signals associated with the first uplink beam is greater than or equal to the RSRP of the reference signals associated with the other uplink beams, and the other uplink beams are the uplink beams other than the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams. This implementation exemplifies a specific implementation of the information of the N uplink beams, namely, the resource information of the reference signals associated with each of the N uplink beams, and also exemplifies an implementation for determining the first uplink beam, which is beneficial for the implementation of the solution.

[0017] In addition, the terminal device can also determine the first uplink beam based on other channel quality indicators, such as the reception quality (RSRQ) of the reference signal associated with each uplink beam, or other indicators, without limitation.

[0018] Based on the first aspect, in one possible implementation, the indication message also carries at least one or more of the following: frequency offset information for each uplink beam, timing advance (TA) information for each uplink beam, reference position information for each uplink beam, the change in frequency offset over time for each uplink beam, and the change in TA over time for each uplink beam. The method further includes: synchronizing with the network device according to the indication message. This implementation illustrates a specific method for implementing other information carried in the indication message, allowing the terminal device to synchronize with the network device based on one or more of the aforementioned information carried in the indication message to avoid affecting communication efficiency.

[0019] The second aspect of this application provides a communication method that can be used on the network side, for example, executed by a network device. The network device can be a device or apparatus with a chip, or a device or apparatus with integrated circuits, or a chip, chip system, module, or control unit in the aforementioned device or apparatus; specific details are not limited in this application. It should be noted that in this application, the term "network device" can refer to the network device itself, or to the chip, functional module, or integrated circuit within the network device that performs the method provided in this application; specific details are not limited in this application. In the first aspect and its possible implementations, the method is described using the execution of the method by a network device as an example. The method includes: the network device sending an indication message carrying information about N uplink beams corresponding to the synchronization signal block (SSB) beam, where N is a positive integer greater than 1; the network device determining second information associated with a first uplink beam among the N uplink beams; the second information being used to send a target random access response (RAR) message, where the terminal device corresponding to the target RAR message is located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam.

[0020] During the process of a terminal device randomly accessing a network device, even if other terminal devices located outside the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam send the same random access preamble sequence within the same RO as the terminal device, the second information used to send the target RAR message is associated with the first uplink beam so that the terminal device can receive the target RAR message. Furthermore, when the terminal device uses the communication resources indicated in the target RAR message to send an RRC access request message, the risk of the terminal device and other terminal devices mistakenly using the same device resources indicated by the same RAR message to send messages is reduced. This further reduces the risk of signal collisions when different RRC access request messages are transmitted on the same uplink resource, improving the efficiency of the terminal device's random access to the network device.

[0021] Based on the second aspect, in one possible implementation, the second information includes a second random access radio network temporary identifier (RA-RNTI). Determining the second information includes: determining the second RA-RNTI based on the first uplink beam and the target random access timing (RO). The second RA-RNTI is used to send a target RAR message. This implementation illustrates a specific form of the second information, namely the second RA-RNTI, and an implementation method for determining the second information, which is beneficial for the implementation of the scheme and avoids unnecessary communication overhead.

[0022] Based on the second aspect, in one possible implementation, the second information includes the identifier of the first uplink beam, and determining the second information includes: determining the identifier of the first uplink beam, the identifier of the first uplink beam being used to send the target RAR message. This implementation illustrates a specific form of the second information, namely the identifier of the second uplink beam, and an implementation method for determining the second information, which is beneficial for the implementation of the solution.

[0023] Based on the second aspect, in one possible implementation, the second information includes the target random access timing (RO). Determining the second information includes: determining the target RO based on the first uplink beam. The target RO is one of M ROs, and each of the M ROs corresponds to one of N uplink beams, where M is a positive integer greater than or equal to N. This implementation illustrates a specific form of the second information, namely the target RO, and an implementation method for determining the second information, which is beneficial for the implementation of the scheme and avoids unnecessary communication overhead.

[0024] Based on the second aspect, in one possible implementation, the target RO is determined based on the first uplink beam. In this implementation, since the target RO is determined based on the first uplink beam, while the range of values ​​for RA-RNTI defined in R18 and prior to R18 remains unchanged, the coverage area of ​​the same SSB beam can include the coverage area of ​​more uplink beams (with a larger value for N), the angle range of the uplink beam can be narrower, the energy can be more concentrated, and the uplink transmission rate can be higher.

[0025] Based on the second aspect, in one possible implementation, the second information matches the first information, which is used to receive the target RAR message. This implementation illustrates a method for sending the target RAR message, where the first information used to receive the target RAR message matches the second information, which is beneficial for the implementation of the scheme. It should be noted that matching the first and second information can mean that the first and second information are equal, or that the second information is a backup of the first information, or that the first information can determine the second information based on a predetermined criterion (e.g., an offset of a certain amount); there are no limitations on this.

[0026] Based on the second aspect, in one possible implementation, the method further includes: determining a first uplink beam based on the received power of the signal transmitted by the terminal device using each of the N uplink beams, wherein the received power of the signal transmitted by the terminal device using the first uplink beam is greater than or equal to the received power of the signal transmitted by the terminal device using other uplink beams, where the other uplink beams are the uplink beams other than the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams. This implementation illustrates a method of determining the first uplink beam before determining the second information, thus allowing the network device to determine the second information based on the first uplink beam, which is beneficial for the implementation of the solution.

[0027] Based on the second aspect, in one possible implementation, the second information is specifically used to send the target RAR message within the RAR window of the target RAR message associated with the target RO. This implementation illustrates a specific way of sending the target RAR message, namely, sending the target RAR message within the RAR window associated with the target RO, which is beneficial for the implementation of the solution. This implementation also illustrates a specific way of sending the target RAR message, namely, receiving and sending the RAR message within the RAR window associated with the target RO, which is beneficial for the implementation of the solution.

[0028] Based on the second aspect, in one possible implementation, the information of the N uplink beams includes information about the coverage area of ​​each of the N uplink beams. This implementation exemplifies a specific form of the information of the N uplink beams, namely, information about the coverage area of ​​each of the N uplink beams, which is beneficial for the implementation of the scheme.

[0029] Based on the second aspect, in one possible implementation, the information of the N uplink beams includes information on the resources of reference signals associated with each of the N uplink beams. The method further includes: transmitting the reference signals associated with each uplink beam according to the resource information of the reference signals associated with each uplink beam. This implementation exemplifies a specific implementation of the information of the N uplink beams, namely, the resource information of reference signals associated with each of the N uplink beams. Furthermore, it exemplifies a method of transmitting the reference signals associated with each uplink beam so that the terminal device can determine the implementation of the first uplink beam, which is beneficial for the implementation of the solution.

[0030] Based on the second aspect, in one possible implementation, the indication message also carries at least one or more of the following: frequency offset information for each uplink beam, timing advance (TA) information for each uplink beam, reference position information for each uplink beam, the change in frequency offset over time for each uplink beam, and the change in TA over time for each uplink beam. This implementation example illustrates a specific method for carrying other information in the indication message, so that the terminal device can synchronize with the network device based on one or more of the aforementioned information carried in the indication message to avoid affecting communication efficiency.

[0031] A third aspect of this application provides a communication device, which is a first communication device, comprising a transceiver unit and a processing unit; the processing unit is configured to determine a first uplink beam among N uplink beams according to an indication message, wherein a terminal device is located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam; the processing unit is further configured to determine first information associated with the first uplink beam, the first information being used to receive a target random access response (RAR) message; the transceiver unit is configured to receive an indication message carrying information of N uplink beams corresponding to a synchronization signal block (SSB) beam, where N is a positive integer greater than 1.

[0032] Based on the third aspect, in one possible implementation, the first information includes a first random access radio network temporary identifier (RA-RNTI). The processing unit is specifically used to determine the first RA-RNTI based on the first uplink beam and the target random access timing (RO). The first RA-RNTI is used to receive the target RAR message.

[0033] Based on the third aspect, in one possible implementation, the first information includes the identifier of the first uplink beam, and the processing unit is specifically used to determine the identifier of the first uplink beam, which is used to receive the target RAR message.

[0034] Based on the third aspect, in one possible implementation, the first information includes the target random access timing (RO). The processing unit is specifically used to determine the target RO based on the first uplink beam. The target RO is one of M ROs, and each of the M ROs corresponds to one of the N uplink beams, where M is a positive integer greater than or equal to N.

[0035] Based on the third aspect, in one possible implementation, the target RO is determined based on the first uplink beam.

[0036] Based on the third aspect, in one possible implementation, the first information is matched with the second information, and the second information is used to send the target RAR message.

[0037] Based on the third aspect, in one possible implementation, the first information is specifically used to receive the target RAR message within the RAR window of the target RAR message associated with the target RO.

[0038] Based on the third aspect, in one possible implementation, the information of the N uplink beams includes information on the coverage area of ​​each of the N uplink beams, and the processing unit is specifically used to determine the first uplink beam based on the location information of the terminal device and the instruction message.

[0039] Based on the third aspect, in one possible implementation, the information of the N uplink beams includes information on the resources of the reference signal associated with each of the N uplink beams. The transceiver unit is further configured to receive the reference signal associated with each uplink beam according to the resource information of the reference signal associated with each uplink beam. Specifically, the processing unit is configured to determine the first uplink beam, wherein the received power RSRP of the reference signal associated with the first uplink beam is greater than or equal to the RSRP of the reference signals associated with the other uplink beams, and the other uplink beams are the uplink beams other than the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams.

[0040] Based on the third aspect, in one possible implementation, the indication message also carries at least one or more of the following: information on the frequency offset corresponding to each uplink beam, information on the timing advance (TA) corresponding to each uplink beam, information on the reference position corresponding to each uplink beam, the amount of change of the frequency offset over time corresponding to each uplink beam, and the amount of change of the TA over time corresponding to each uplink beam; the processing unit is also used to synchronize with the network device according to the indication message.

[0041] A fourth aspect of this application provides a communication device, which is a second communication device, comprising a transceiver unit and a processing unit. The processing unit is configured to determine a first uplink beam among N uplink beams based on an indication message, wherein a terminal device is located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam. The processing unit is further configured to determine second information associated with the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams, the second information being used to send a target random access response (RAR) message, wherein the terminal device corresponding to the target RAR message is located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam. The transceiver unit is configured to send an indication message carrying information of the N uplink beams corresponding to the synchronization signal block (SSB) beam, where N is a positive integer greater than 1.

[0042] Based on the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation, the second information includes a second random access radio network temporary identifier (RA-RNTI). The processing unit is specifically used to determine the second RA-RNTI based on the first uplink beam and the target random access timing (RO). The second RA-RNTI is used to send a target RAR message.

[0043] Based on the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation, the second information includes the identifier of the first uplink beam, and the processing unit is specifically used to determine the identifier of the first uplink beam, which is used to send the target RAR message.

[0044] Based on the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation, the second information includes the target random access timing (RO). The processing unit is specifically used to determine the target RO based on the first uplink beam. The target RO is one of M ROs, and each of the M ROs corresponds to one of the N uplink beams, where M is a positive integer greater than or equal to N.

[0045] Based on the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation, the target RO is determined based on the first uplink beam.

[0046] Based on the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation, the second information is matched with the first information, and the first information is used to receive the target RAR message.

[0047] Based on the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation, the processing unit is further configured to determine a first uplink beam based on the received power of the signal transmitted by the terminal device using each of the N uplink beams, wherein the received power of the signal transmitted by the terminal device using the first uplink beam is greater than or equal to the received power of the signal transmitted by the terminal device using other uplink beams, and the other uplink beams are the uplink beams other than the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams.

[0048] Based on the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation, the second information is specifically used to send the target RAR message within the RAR window of the target RAR message associated with the target RO.

[0049] Based on the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation, the information of the N uplink beams includes information about the coverage area of ​​each of the N uplink beams.

[0050] Based on the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation, the information of the N uplink beams includes information on the resources of the reference signal associated with each of the N uplink beams. The transceiver unit is also used to transmit the reference signal associated with each uplink beam according to the information on the resources of the reference signal associated with each uplink beam.

[0051] Based on the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation, the indication message also carries at least one or more of the following: information on the frequency offset corresponding to each uplink beam, information on the timing advance (TA) corresponding to each uplink beam, information on the reference position corresponding to each uplink beam, the amount of change of the frequency offset over time corresponding to each uplink beam, and the amount of change of the TA over time corresponding to each uplink beam.

[0052] A fifth aspect of this application provides a communication device, including a processor and an interface circuit. The processor is configured to communicate with other devices via the interface circuit and to execute the methods described in the first or second aspect above. The processor may include one or more devices.

[0053] A sixth aspect of this application provides a communication device, including a processor for connection to a memory, for calling a program or instructions stored in the memory to execute the method described in the first or second aspect above. The memory may be located within or outside the communication device. The processor may include one or more processors.

[0054] Optionally, the first communication device, the fifth communication device, and the sixth communication device shown in the third aspect can be a terminal device, a communication module in a terminal device, or a chip in a terminal device that is responsible for communication functions.

[0055] Optionally, the second communication device shown in the fourth aspect, the communication device shown in the fifth aspect, and the communication device shown in the sixth aspect may be a network device, a communication module in a network device, or a chip in a network device that is responsible for communication functions.

[0056] The seventh aspect of this application provides a communication system, which includes the first communication device and the second communication device described above.

[0057] The eighth aspect of this application provides a computer program product including computer instructions, which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform an implementation as described in either the first or second aspect.

[0058] The ninth aspect of this application provides a computer-readable storage medium including computer instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform any of the implementations of the first or second aspect.

[0059] The tenth aspect of this application provides a chip device, including a processor for calling a computer program or computer instructions in memory to cause the processor to execute any of the implementations of the first or second aspect described above.

[0060] Optionally, the processor is coupled to the memory via an interface.

[0061] The technical effects of any of the design methods in aspects three through ten can be found in the technical effects of the different design methods in aspects one through two above, and will not be repeated here. Attached Figure Description

[0062] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the communication system provided in this application;

[0063] Figures 2a and 2b are some schematic diagrams of the network equipment provided in this application;

[0064] Figures 3a to 3e are some schematic diagrams of the satellite communication process provided in this application;

[0065] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the beam coverage area in an NTN network provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0066] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of a competitive random access procedure provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0067] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the flow of a communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0068] Figure 7 is a structural schematic diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of this application;

[0069] Figure 8 is another structural schematic diagram of the communication device according to an embodiment of this application;

[0070] Figure 9 is another structural schematic diagram of the communication device according to an embodiment of this application;

[0071] Figure 10 is a structural schematic diagram of a terminal device according to an embodiment of this application;

[0072] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of a network device according to an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0073] First, some terms used in the embodiments of this application will be explained to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

[0074] (1) Terminal device: can be a wireless terminal device that can receive network device scheduling and instruction information. The wireless terminal device can be a device that provides voice and / or data connectivity to the user, or a handheld device with wireless connection function, or other processing device connected to a wireless modem.

[0075] Terminal devices can be various communication kits with wireless communication capabilities (kits may include, for example, antennas, power supply modules, cables, and Wi-Fi modules). Terminal devices can also be communication modules with satellite communication capabilities, satellite phones or components thereof, and very small aperture terminals (VSATs). Terminal devices can be mobile terminal devices, such as mobile phones (or "cellular" phones), computers, and data cards. For example, they can be portable, pocket-sized, handheld, computer-embedded, or vehicle-mounted mobile devices that exchange voice and / or data with a wireless access network. Examples include personal communication service (PCS) phones, cordless phones, session initiation protocol (SIP) phones, wireless local loop (WLL) stations, personal digital assistants (PDAs), tablets, and computers with wireless transceiver capabilities. Wireless terminal equipment can also be referred to as a subscriber unit, subscriber station, mobile station, mobile station (MS), remote station, access point (AP), remote terminal, access terminal, user terminal, user agent, subscriber station (SS), customer premises equipment (CPE), terminal, user equipment (UE), mobile terminal (MT), drone, etc. Terminal equipment can also be wearable devices and next-generation communication systems, such as terminal equipment in future communication systems or terminal equipment in future evolved public land mobile networks (PLMNs). Of course, in this application, terminal equipment can also refer to chips, modems, system-on-a-chip (SoC), or communication platforms that may include radio frequency (RF) components, etc., that are primarily responsible for related communication functions.

[0076] (2) Network equipment: This can be equipment within a wireless network. For example, network equipment can be a RAN node (or device) that connects terminal devices to the wireless network, and can also be called a base station. Currently, some examples of RAN equipment include: base station, evolved NodeB (eNodeB), gNB (gNodeB) in 5G communication systems, transmission reception point (TRP), evolved Node B (eNB), radio network controller (RNC), Node B (NB), home base station (e.g., home evolved Node B, or home Node B, HNB), base band unit (BBU), or wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) access point (AP), etc. In addition, in a network architecture, network equipment can include centralized unit (CU) nodes, distributed unit (DU) nodes, or RAN equipment including CU nodes and DU nodes.

[0077] Optionally, RAN nodes can also be macro base stations, micro base stations, indoor stations, relay nodes, donor nodes, or radio controllers in cloud radio access network (CRAN) scenarios. RAN nodes can also be servers, wearable devices, vehicles, or in-vehicle equipment. For example, the access network equipment in vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technology can be a roadside unit (RSU).

[0078] In another possible scenario, multiple RAN nodes collaborate to assist the terminal in achieving wireless access, with each RAN node performing a portion of the base station's functions. For example, RAN nodes can be central units (CUs), distributed units (DUs), CU-control plane (CPs), CU-user plane (UPs), or radio units (RUs), etc. CUs and DUs can be separate entities or included in the same network element, such as a baseband unit (BBU). RUs can be included in radio frequency equipment or radio frequency units, such as remote radio units (RRUs), active antenna units (AAUs), or remote radio heads (RRHs).

[0079] In different systems, CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU, or RU may have different names, but those skilled in the art will understand their meaning. For example, in an open access network (open RAN, O-RAN, or ORAN) system, CU can also be called O-CU (open CU), DU can also be called O-DU, CU-CP can also be called O-CU-CP, CU-UP can also be called O-CU-UP, and RU can also be called O-RU. For ease of description, this application uses CU, CU-CP, CU-UP, DU, and RU as examples. Any of the units among CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU, and RU in this application can be implemented through software modules, hardware modules, or a combination of software modules and hardware modules.

[0080] Communication between access network devices and terminal devices follows a specific protocol layer structure. This protocol layer may include a control plane protocol layer and a user plane protocol layer. The control plane protocol layer may include at least one of the following: radio resource control (RRC) layer, packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, radio link control (RLC) layer, media access control (MAC) layer, or physical (PHY) layer, etc. The user plane protocol layer may include at least one of the following: service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) layer, PDCP layer, RLC layer, MAC layer, or physical layer, etc.

[0081] The correspondence between network elements and their achievable protocol layer functions in the ORAN system can be found in Table 1 below.

[0082] Table 1

[0083] Network devices can be other devices that provide wireless communication functions for terminal devices. The embodiments of this application do not limit the specific technology or form of the network device. For ease of description, the embodiments of this application are not limited.

[0084] Network equipment may also include core network equipment, such as the Mobility Management Entity (MME), Home Subscriber Server (HSS), Serving Gateway (S-GW), Policy and Charging Rules Function (PCRF), and Public Data Network Gateway (PDN Gateway, P-GW) in 4th generation (4G) networks; and access and mobility management function (AMF), user plane function (UPF), or session management function (SMF) in 5G networks. Furthermore, this core network equipment may also include other core network equipment in 5G networks and next-generation networks of 5G networks.

[0085] In this embodiment of the application, the network device can also be a network node with artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities, which can provide AI services to terminals or other network devices. For example, it can be an AI node, computing power node, RAN node with AI capabilities, core network element with AI capabilities, etc. on the network side (access network or core network).

[0086] In this application embodiment, the device for implementing the function of the network device can be the network device itself, or it can be a device capable of supporting the network device in implementing that function, such as a chip system, which can be installed in the network device. In the technical solutions provided in this application embodiment, the example of a network device being used to implement the function of the network device is used to describe the technical solutions provided in this application embodiment.

[0087] (3) Configuration and Pre-configuration: In this application, both configuration and pre-configuration are used. Configuration refers to the network device sending configuration information or parameter values ​​of some parameters to the terminal device through messages or signaling, so that the terminal device can determine the communication parameters or resources during transmission based on these values ​​or information. Pre-configuration is similar to configuration; it can be parameter information or parameter values ​​that the network device and the terminal device have negotiated in advance, or it can be parameter information or parameter values ​​that the network device or the terminal device uses as specified by the standard protocol, or it can be parameter information or parameter values ​​that are pre-stored in the network device or the terminal device. This application does not limit this.

[0088] Furthermore, these values ​​and parameters can be changed or updated.

[0089] (4) The terms "system" and "network" in the embodiments of this application can be used interchangeably. "At least one" means one or more, and "more" means two or more. "And / or" describes the relationship between related objects, indicating that there can be three relationships. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, or B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the related objects before and after are in an "or" relationship. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or plural items. For example, "at least one of A, B and C" includes A, B, C, AB, AC, BC or ABC. And, unless otherwise specified, the ordinal numbers such as "first" and "second" mentioned in the embodiments of this application are used to distinguish multiple objects and are not used to limit the order, sequence, priority or importance of multiple objects.

[0090] (5) In the embodiments of this application, "send" and "receive" indicate the direction of signal transmission. For example, "send information to XX" can be understood as the destination of the information being XX, which may include sending directly through the air interface or sending indirectly through the air interface by other units or modules. "Receive information from YY" can be understood as the source of the information being YY, which may include receiving directly from YY through the air interface or receiving indirectly from YY through the air interface by other units or modules. "Send" can also be understood as the "output" of the chip interface, and "receive" can also be understood as the "input" of the chip interface.

[0091] In other words, sending and receiving can occur between devices, such as between network devices and terminal devices, or within a device, such as between components, modules, chips, software modules, or hardware modules within the device via buses, wiring, or interfaces.

[0092] It is understandable that information may undergo necessary processing, such as encoding and modulation, between the source and destination, but the destination can understand the valid information from the source. Similar statements in this application can be interpreted in a similar way and will not be elaborated further.

[0093] (6) In the embodiments of this application, "instruction" may include direct instruction and indirect instruction, as well as explicit instruction and implicit instruction. The information indicated by a certain piece of information (as described below, the instruction information) is called the information to be instructed. In the specific implementation process, there are many ways to indicate the information to be instructed, such as, but not limited to, directly indicating the information to be instructed, such as the information to be instructed itself or its index. It can also indirectly indicate the information to be instructed by indicating other information, where there is an association between the other information and the information to be instructed; or it can only indicate a part of the information to be instructed, while the other parts of the information to be instructed are known or pre-agreed upon. For example, the instruction can be implemented by using a pre-agreed (e.g., protocol predefined) arrangement order of various information, thereby reducing the instruction overhead to a certain extent. This application does not limit the specific method of instruction. It is understood that for the sender of the instruction information, the instruction information can be used to indicate the information to be instructed, and for the receiver of the instruction information, the instruction information can be used to determine the information to be instructed.

[0094] In this application, unless otherwise specified, the same or similar parts between the various embodiments can be referred to each other. In the various embodiments of this application, and the various methods / designs / implementations within each embodiment, unless otherwise specified or logically conflicting, the terminology and / or descriptions between different embodiments and between the various methods / designs / implementations within each embodiment are consistent and can be mutually referenced. The technical features in different embodiments and the various methods / designs / implementations within each embodiment can be combined to form new embodiments, methods, or implementations based on their inherent logical relationships. The following descriptions of the embodiments of this application do not constitute a limitation on the scope of protection of this application.

[0095] (7) Beam: A beam is a communication resource. A beam can be a wide beam, a narrow beam, or other types of beams. The technology used to form a beam can be beamforming technology or other technical means. Beamforming technology can be specifically digital beamforming technology, analog beamforming technology, and hybrid digital / analog beamforming technology. Different beams can be considered as different resources.

[0096] In the NR protocol, beaming can be referred to as a spatial domain filter, spatial filter, spatial domain parameter, spatial parameter, spatial domain setting, spatial setting, quasi-colocation (QCL) information, QCL assumption, or QCL indication, etc. Beaming can be indicated by transmission configuration indicator state (TCI-state) parameters or by spatial relation parameters. Therefore, in this application, beaming can be replaced by spatial domain filter, spatial filter, spatial parameter, spatial parameter, spatial setting, spatial setting, QCL information, QCL assumption, QCL indication, TCI-state (including uplink TCI-state and downlink TCI-state), or spatial relation, etc. The above terms are also equivalent to each other. Beaming can also be replaced with other beaming terms, which are not limited herein.

[0097] The beam used to transmit signals can be referred to as a transmission beam (Tx beam), a spatial domain transmission filter, a spatial transmission filter, a spatial domain transmission parameter, a spatial transmission parameter, a spatial domain transmission setting, or a spatial transmission setting. The transmission beam can also be called a downlink beam. In this application, the transmission beam, downlink beam, channel status information reference signal (CSI-RS), TCI State, downlink / joint transmission configuration indication state (DLorjointTCI state), synchronization signal and PBCH block (SSB), synchronization signal block (SSB), and tracking reference signal (TRS) can be interchanged.

[0098] The beam used to receive signals can be referred to as a reception beam (Rx beam), a spatial domain reception filter, a spatial reception filter, a spatial domain reception parameter, a spatial reception parameter, a spatial domain reception setting, or a spatial reception setting. The uplink transmit beam can be indicated by any of the following: spatial relation, uplink TCI-state, or sounding reference signal (SRS) resource (indicating the transmit beam using that SRS). The receive beam can also be referred to as the uplink beam. In this application, the receive beam, uplink beam, uplink transmission configuration indication state (UL TCI state), DLorjointTCI state, sounding reference signal (SRS), SRS, CSI-RS, SSB, and TRS can be interchanged.

[0099] The transmitting beam can refer to the distribution of signal strength in different directions in space after a signal is transmitted through an antenna, while the receiving beam can refer to the distribution of signal strength in different directions in space of a wireless signal received from an antenna.

[0100] Furthermore, the beam can be a wide beam, a narrow beam, or other types of beam. The beamforming technology can be beamforming technology or other technologies. Specifically, beamforming technology can be digital beamforming technology, analog beamforming technology, hybrid digital beamforming technology, or hybrid analog beamforming technology, etc.

[0101] Beams are generally associated with resources. For example, during beam measurement, network devices measure different beams using different resources. The terminal device provides feedback on the measured resource quality, allowing the network device to determine the quality of the corresponding beam. During data transmission, beam information is also indicated through its corresponding resource. For instance, network devices use the TCI field in downlink control information (DCI) to indicate the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) beam information of the terminal device. In this application, the beam can be replaced with the resource corresponding to the beam.

[0102] In one possible implementation, multiple beams with the same or similar communication characteristics are considered as a single beam. A beam may include one or more antenna ports for transmitting data channels, control channels, and probe signals, etc. The one or more antenna ports forming a beam can also be considered as a set of antenna ports.

[0103] (8) Physical Random Access Channel Opportunity (RO): RO is the random access resource allocated by the network device to the terminal device, used to indicate the timing when the terminal device can initiate a random access procedure to the network device. It may include time-domain resources and / or frequency-domain resources. Among them, the time-domain resources are the time period during which the terminal device initiates the random access procedure, such as one or more subframes in a system frame, one or more time slots in a system frame, or one or more orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols; the frequency-domain resources are the frequency band occupied by the physical random access channel (PRACH), such as one or more subcarriers.

[0104] The RO information allocated by the network device to the terminal device can be carried in a system information block (SIB), such as an SIB1 signal or an SIB2 signal. The RO information can also be carried in the RRC signaling sent by the network device to the terminal device, such as an RRC reconfiguration signaling. In addition, the RO information can also be carried in other signals, which are not limited herein.

[0105] In a contention-based random access process, multiple terminal devices can share the same Remote Router (RO) for random access, or multiple terminal devices can randomly select an RO from a set of ROs for random access. In a non-contention-based random access process, terminal devices can utilize a specific RO assigned by the network device for random access.

[0106] (9) Random access preamble: A random access preamble is a signal sent by a terminal device on the PRACH using the RO resources allocated by the network device to initiate a random access request. The random access preamble can be a long sequence, a short sequence, or other types of sequences. In the NR protocol, the random access preamble can be a random access channel preamble, a physical random access channel preamble (PRACH preamble), or the first signaling message (message 1, MSG1) of the random access procedure, etc. Therefore, in this application, the random access preamble can be replaced by the random access channel preamble, the physical random access channel preamble, or MSG1 of the random access procedure, etc. The above terms are also equivalent to each other. The random access preamble can also be replaced by other terms, which are not limited herein.

[0107] In a contention-based random access process, multiple terminal devices can randomly select one random access preamble sequence from a set of random access preamble sequences to send for random access. In a non-contention-based random access process, terminal devices can use a specific random access preamble sequence indicated by the network device for random access.

[0108] (10) Random Access Response (RAR) Message: A RAR message is a message sent by a network device to a terminal device in response to a random access request after receiving a random access preamble sequence from the terminal device. In the NR protocol, the RAR message can also be the second signaling (message2, MSG2) of the random access procedure or other terms, which are not limited herein.

[0109] The RAR message may carry uplink (UL) authorization, which indicates the communication resources allocated by the network device to the terminal device, including time-domain resources, frequency-domain resources, modulation and coding schemes, etc., so that the terminal device can use these communication resources to send the third signaling message (message 3, MSG3) of the random access procedure. The third signaling message (message 3, MSG3) of the random access procedure can also be replaced by an RRC access request message or other terms, which are not limited herein.

[0110] In addition, the RAR message also carries a temporary cell-radio network temporary identifier (C-RNTI). As a temporary identifier, the temporary C-RNTI identifies the terminal device initiating the random access request, enabling the terminal device to communicate with the network device during the random access process. The RAR message also carries a timing advance (TA) instruction, which instructs the terminal device to adjust the uplink signal transmission time based on the TA to ensure that the uplink signal transmission time is synchronized with the base station time. The RAR message may also carry an index of the random access preamble sequence, used to identify the random access preamble sequence of the random access request responded to by the RAR message. Besides these, the RAR message may also carry other information or extended fields, which are not limited herein.

[0111] Terminal devices can receive RAR messages sent by network devices within a RAR window. The RAR window is a time period during which the terminal device can receive RAR messages; it can be one or more time slots. The RAR window is associated with the RO (Random Access Preamble) that sent the random access preamble sequence. That is, after the terminal device sends the random access preamble sequence within the RO, it can receive RAR messages in response to that random access preamble sequence within the RAR window corresponding to that RO.

[0112] Network devices can send RAR messages via the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH). Before sending the RAR message, the network device can send downlink control information (DCI) via the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). The DCI can carry information about the communication resources (including time-domain and / or frequency-domain resources) allocated by the network device, indicating the specific location of the RAR message on the PDSCH; that is, the DCI carries the scheduling information of the RAR message. Based on this, the terminal device can utilize the communication resources indicated by the DCI to receive the RAR message on the PDSCH.

[0113] Network devices can scramble the cyclic redundancy check (CRC) code of the PDCCH using the random access-radio network temporary identifier (RA-RNTI). Terminal devices and network devices can determine the RA-RNTI based on the RO of the transmitted random access preamble sequence. Then, during the terminal device's detection of the PDCCH within the RAR window, the terminal device can use this RA-RNTI to descramble the PDCCH's CRC. If the CRC check after descrambling by the terminal device is successful (i.e., the RA-RNTI determined by the terminal device matches the RA-RNTI used to scramble the PDCCH's CRC), then the scheduling information carried by the DCI in the PDCCH becomes the scheduling information used to instruct the terminal device. Based on this, the terminal device can use this scheduling information to receive RAR messages on the PDSCH.

[0114] Specifically, in R18 and prior to R18, the process by which terminal devices and network devices determine RA-RNTI based on RO can be based on the following formula 1: RA-RNTI=1+s_id+14×t_id+14×80×f_id+14×80×8×ul_carrier_id, Formula 1;

[0115] Wherein, s_id is the index of the first OFDM symbol in the RO, and the value of s_id is 0≤s_id<14; t_id is the index of the first time slot in the system frame to which the RO belongs, and the value of t_id is 0≤t_id<80; f_id is the index of the frequency domain indicated by the RO, and the value of f_id is 0≤f_id<8; ul_carrier_id is the uplink carrier used to transmit the random access preamble sequence, and the value of ul_carrier_id is 0 to indicate that the uplink carrier is a normal uplink (NUL) carrier, and the value of ul_carrier_id is 1 to indicate that the uplink carrier is a supplementary uplink (SUL) carrier.

[0116] This application can be applied to long-term evolution (LTE) systems, new radio (NR) systems, or new radio vehicle-to-everything (NR V2X) systems; it can also be applied to systems with hybrid LTE and 5G networks; or device-to-device (D2D) communication systems, machine-to-machine (M2M) communication systems, Internet of Things (IoT) systems, or drone communication systems; or communication systems supporting multiple wireless technologies, such as LTE and NR technologies; or non-terrestrial communication systems, such as satellite communication systems and high-altitude communication platforms. Optionally, this communication system can also be applied to narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) systems or other communication systems, wherein the communication system includes network devices and terminal devices, with the network devices acting as configuration information sending entities and the terminal devices acting as configuration information receiving entities. Specifically, in this communication system, one entity sends configuration information to another entity and sends data to or receives data from another entity; the other entity receives the configuration information and, based on the configuration information, sends data to or receives data from the entity that sent the configuration information. This application can be applied to terminal devices in a connected or active state, as well as to terminal devices in an inactive or idle state.

[0117] Please refer to Figure 1, which is a schematic diagram of the architecture of the communication system 1000 used in the embodiments of this application. As shown in Figure 1, the communication system includes a radio access network (RAN) 100 and a core network 200. Optionally, the communication system 1000 may also include an Internet 300. The RAN 100 includes at least one RAN node (110a and 110b in Figure 1, collectively referred to as 110), and may also include at least one terminal (120a-120j in Figure 1, collectively referred to as 120). The RAN 100 may also include other RAN nodes, such as wireless relay devices and / or wireless backhaul devices (not shown in Figure 1). The terminal 120 is wirelessly connected to the RAN node 110, and the RAN node 110 is wirelessly or wiredly connected to the core network 200. The core network equipment in the core network 200 and the RAN node 110 in the RAN 100 can be independent and different physical devices, or they can be the same physical device integrating the logical functions of the core network equipment and the logical functions of the RAN node. Terminals can be connected to each other, as can RAN nodes, via wired or wireless means.

[0118] As an implementation example, as shown in Figure 2a, the access network device may include at least one CU and at least one DU. This design can be referred to as CU and DU separation. One CU can be connected to one or more DUs. CU and DU can be separated according to the protocol layer of the wireless network: for example, the functions of the PDCP layer and above (e.g., RRC layer and SDAP layer, etc.) are set in the CU, and the functions of the protocol layers below the PDCP layer (e.g., RLC layer, MAC layer, and PHY layer, etc.) are set in the DU; or, for another example, the functions of the protocol layers above the PDCP layer are set in the CU, and the functions of the protocol layers below the PDCP layer are set in the DU, without limitation. When the CU includes CU-CP and CU-UP, CU-CP is used to implement the control plane functions of the CU, and CU-UP is used to implement the user plane functions of the CU. For example, when the CU is configured to implement the functions of the PDCP layer, RRC layer, and SDAP layer, CU-CP is used to implement the RRC layer functions and the PDCP layer control plane functions, and CU-UP is used to implement the SDAP layer functions and the PDCP layer user plane functions. This application does not limit the names of CU and DU, for example, CU can be called the first access network element, and DU can be called the second access network element, etc.

[0119] The above division of CU and DU processing functions according to protocol layers is merely an example; other methods can also be used. For instance, CUs or DUs can be divided into those with more protocol layer functions, or into those with partial protocol layer processing functions. For example, some RLC layer functions and protocol layer functions above the RLC layer can be placed in the CU, while the remaining RLC layer functions and protocol layer functions below the RLC layer can be placed in the DU. Furthermore, the functions of CUs or DUs can be divided according to service type or other system requirements, such as latency. Functions requiring low latency can be placed in the DU, while functions not requiring this latency can be placed in the CU.

[0120] The CU can be connected to the core network. Optionally, the CU can have some of the functions of the core network.

[0121] Furthermore, some functions of the DU can be separated. As shown in Figure 2a, this function can be implemented by a radio unit (RU). The RU can have radio frequency (RF) functions. This application does not limit the name of the RU; for example, the RU can be called a third access network element. The DU and RU can be split or separated at the PHY layer. For example, the DU can implement higher-level functions in the PHY layer, and the RU can implement lower-level functions in the PHY layer, or implement both lower-level functions and RF functions. Higher-level functions in the PHY layer include functions closer to the MAC layer, and lower-level functions in the PHY layer include functions closer to the RF layer. For example, higher-level functions in the PHY layer include one or more of the following: forward error correction (FEC) encoding / decoding, scrambling, or modulation / demodulation. Lower-level functions in the PHY layer include one or more of the following: fast Fourier transform (FFT) / inverse fast Fourier transform (iFFT), beamforming, or extraction and filtering of the physical random access channel (PRACH), etc. The RU can communicate with the terminal equipment via radio frequency signals through the air interface. The precoding function of the PHY layer can be located in the DU or the RU. The separation between the DU and RU can be done in various ways without restriction.

[0122] There is an interface between the DU and RU. For example, depending on the splitting method, the interface between the DU and RU can be a common public radio interface (CPRI) interface or an enhanced common public radio interface (eCPRI) interface.

[0123] Figure 2b illustrates a schematic diagram of an access network device architecture. The access network device includes one or more functional modules for signal processing. As shown in Figure 2b, taking physical layer functions as an example, the access network device includes one or more of the following functions: coding, rate matching, scrambling, modulation, layer mapping, precoding, resource element (RE) mapping, digital beamforming (BF), inverse fast Fourier transformation (IFFT) / adding a cyclic prefix (CP), decoding, rate matching de-matching, descrambling, demodulation, inverse discrete Fourier transformation (IDFT), channel equalization (or channel estimation), RE de-mapping, digital BF, fast Fourier transform (FFT) / CP removal, digital-to-analog (DA) conversion, analog BF, analog-to-digital (AD) conversion, or analog BF.

[0124] One or more of the above functional modules can be implemented through software, hardware, or a combination of both. Physically, they can be discrete or integrated. It is understood that the above functional modules are merely examples; the access network device may include more modules (e.g., scheduling module, power control module, hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) module, flow control module, mobility management module, or artificial intelligence (AI) module, etc.) depending on the design, or may exclude a certain functional module shown in Figure 2b (e.g., excluding the digital BF module). The access network device also includes a fronthaul (FH) interface between the DU and RU for communication between them. This fronthaul interface includes, but is not limited to, CPRI or eCPRI. In one possible implementation, the DU is located in the BBU, and the RU is located in the RRU / AAU / RRH; the interface between the BBU and the RRU / AAU / RRH can also be called the fronthaul interface. To implement the fronthaul interface, the BBU and RRU / AAU / RRH can be connected via a fronthaul network, or the DU and RU can be connected via a fronthaul network. For example, fronthaul networks include, but are not limited to: direct fiber optic connections and wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) networks.

[0125] Access network equipment can support one or more types of fronthaul interfaces. Different fronthaul interfaces correspond to DUs and RUs with different functions. As shown in Figure 2b, if the fronthaul interface between the DU and RU is a CPRI, the DU is configured to implement one or more baseband functions, and the RU is configured to implement one or more radio frequency functions. If the fronthaul interface between the DU and RU is an eCPRI, compared to the CPRI, some downlink and / or uplink baseband functions are moved from the DU to the RU. Different splitting methods between the DU and RU correspond to different types (category, abbreviated as Cat) of eCPRI. Figure 2b shows six examples of eCPRI, represented by Cat A, B, C, D, E, and F (which can also be represented as Option A to F, Option 1 to 6, or other methods). It can be understood that there may be other splitting methods between the DU and RU, that is, there may be other types of eCPRI.

[0126] Taking eCPRI Cat A as an example, for downlink transmission, layer mapping is used as the dividing line. DU is configured to implement one or more functions preceding layer mapping (i.e., coding, rate matching, scrambling, modulation, and layer mapping), while other functions following layer mapping (e.g., RE mapping, digital BF, or IFFT / CP addition) are implemented in RU. For uplink transmission, de-RE mapping is used as the dividing line. DU is configured to implement one or more functions preceding de-mapping (i.e., decoding, rate matching de-matching, descrambling, demodulation, IDFT, channel equalization, and de-RE mapping), while other functions following de-mapping (e.g., digital BF or FFT / CP removal) are implemented in RU.

[0127] Similarly, for eCPRI Cat B, Cat C, Cat D, Cat E, and Cat F, they correspond to different DU and RU segmentation methods. The DU implements the functions before and after the segmentation point, while the RU implements the functions after the segmentation point. The segmentation points for each type of eCPRI are shown in Figure 2b and will not be detailed further. For example, for eCPRI Cat B, RE mapping is used for downlink transmission segmentation, and deRE mapping is used for uplink transmission segmentation. For uplink transmission, RE mapping and functions before RE mapping are implemented by the DU, while functions after RE mapping and RF functions are implemented by the RU. For downlink transmission, deRE mapping and functions before deRE mapping are implemented by the DU, while functions after deRE mapping and RF functions are implemented by the RU.

[0128] The eCPRI segmentation method can be symmetrical for uplink and downlink, as shown in Figure 2b, such as eCPRI Cat B and Cat C; or, the eCPRI segmentation method can be asymmetrical for uplink and downlink, as shown in Figure 2b, such as eCPRI Cat A, Cat D, Cat E, and Cat F, without restriction. Optionally, different segmentation methods can be configured for different channels or different channel groups for uplink and / or downlink, i.e., different types of eCPRI can be configured. A channel group can include one or more channels.

[0129] In one possible design, the DU is located in the BBU, and the RU is located in the RRU / AAU / RRH. The processing module in the BBU used to implement baseband functions is called the baseband high (BBH) unit, and the processing module in the RRU / AAU / RRH used to implement baseband functions is called the baseband low (BBL) unit.

[0130] It should be noted that the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application are applicable to terrestrial communication systems. Alternatively, the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application are applicable to communication systems that integrate terrestrial and satellite communication, which can also be called non-terrestrial network (NTN) communication systems. For example, RAN100 in Figure 1 may include a terrestrial base station, wherein the terrestrial base station may include a TN cell (i.e., the signal of the TN cell can be transmitted and received through the terrestrial base station); and RAN100 in Figure 1 may also include a non-terrestrial base station, taking a satellite as an example, the satellite may include an NTN cell (i.e., the signal of the NTN cell can be transmitted and received through the satellite). The terrestrial communication system may be, for example, a long term evolution (LTE) system, a universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), a 5G communication system, or a new radio (NR) system, or a communication system that is the next step in the development of the 5G communication system, etc., and is not limited here.

[0131] Compared to traditional mobile communication systems, satellite communication offers advantages such as wider coverage, communication costs independent of transmission distance, and the ability to overcome natural geographical barriers like oceans, deserts, and mountains. To overcome the shortcomings of traditional communication networks, satellite communication can serve as an effective supplement. It is generally believed that non-terrestrial network communication has different channel characteristics compared to terrestrial network communication, such as large transmission delays and Doppler frequency offsets. For example, the round-trip time (RTT) of GEO satellite communication is 238–270 milliseconds (ms), while that of LEO satellite communication is 8 ms–20 ms. Based on orbital altitude, satellite communication systems can be classified into three types: geostationary Earth orbit (GEO) satellite communication systems (also known as geosynchronous orbit satellite systems); medium Earth orbit (MEO) satellite communication systems; and low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite communication systems.

[0132] GEO satellites, also known as geostationary orbit satellites, orbit at an altitude of 35,786 kilometers. Their main advantages are relative stationary position and large coverage area. However, GEO satellites also have significant drawbacks: their large distance from Earth necessitates larger antennas; their transmission latency is relatively high, around 0.5 seconds, failing to meet the demands of real-time services; and their orbital resources are relatively scarce, resulting in high launch costs and an inability to provide coverage to polar regions. MEO satellites, orbiting at altitudes between 2,000 and 35,786 km, can achieve global coverage with a relatively small number of satellites, but their transmission latency is higher than that of LEO satellites, and they are primarily used for positioning and navigation. Furthermore, satellites orbiting at altitudes between 300 and 2,000 km are called Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites. LEO satellites are lower in altitude than MEO and GEO satellites, resulting in lower data propagation latency, lower power loss, and relatively lower launch costs. Therefore, LEO satellite communication networks have made significant progress and attracted considerable attention in recent years.

[0133] In one possible implementation, satellite equipment can be categorized into transparent mode and regenerative mode based on its operating mode.

[0134] The two modes will be illustrated below using the implementation methods shown in Figures 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d.

[0135] In the transparent transmission mode implementation shown in Figure 3a, the satellite and the gateway station (i.e., the NTN Gateway in Figure 3a) act as relays, specifically the Remote Radio Unit (RTU) shown in Figure 3a. Communication between the terminal equipment and the gNB requires this relay process. In other words, in transparent transmission mode, the satellite has a relay forwarding function.

[0136] For example, in the transparent transmission mode implementation shown in Figure 3b, when the satellite (including GEO satellites, MEO satellites, LEO satellites, etc.) operates in transparent transmission mode, the satellite has a relay forwarding function. The gateway station (or signaling station) has the function of a base station or part of the function of a base station; in this case, the gateway station can be regarded as a base station. Alternatively, the base station can be deployed separately from the gateway station, in which case the delay of the feeder link includes two parts: the delay from the satellite to the gateway station and the delay from the gateway station to the gNB.

[0137] Optionally, the transparent transmission mode can be used as an example where the gateway station and gNB are together or in close proximity. For cases where the gateway station and gNB are far apart, the feeder link delay can be calculated by adding the delay from the satellite to the gateway station and the delay from the gateway station to the gNB.

[0138] As shown in Figure 3c, in the regeneration mode implementation, the satellite and the gateway station (i.e., the NTN Gateway in Figure 3c) act as gNBs and can communicate with the terminal devices. In other words, in regeneration mode, the satellite has the functions of a base station or some of the functions of a base station, and in this case, the satellite can be regarded as a base station.

[0139] For example, in the regeneration mode implementation shown in Figure 3d, when the satellite (including GEO satellites, MEO satellites, LEO satellites, etc.) is working in regeneration mode, compared to the implementation shown in Figure 3b, the satellite has the function of a base station or part of the function of a base station. In this case, the satellite can be regarded as a base station (i.e., an airborne base station).

[0140] Alternatively, in Figures 3b and / or 3d, the satellite can be implemented in other ways, such as by a drone or a high-altitude platform as shown in the figures.

[0141] It should be noted that NTN and terrestrial network base stations can be interconnected through a shared core network. They can also achieve more timely assistance and interconnection through interfaces defined between base stations. In NR, the interface between base stations is called the Xn interface, and the interface between the base station and the core network is called the NG interface. In a converged network, both NTN nodes and terrestrial nodes can achieve interoperability and collaboration through these interfaces.

[0142] In addition, satellites, as network devices, can transmit ephemeris information so that the recipient of the ephemeris information (such as terminal equipment, its base station, or other satellites) can determine the relevant information about the satellite's orbit based on the ephemeris information.

[0143] It should be noted that this application can be applied to long term evolution (LTE) systems, new radio (NR) systems, or future communication networks / systems.

[0144] Taking 5G as an example, a 5G satellite communication system architecture is shown in Figure 3e. Ground terminal equipment accesses the network through the 5G New Radio interface, while 5G base stations are deployed on satellites and connected to the ground core network via wireless links. Simultaneously, wireless links exist between satellites to facilitate signaling interaction and user data transmission between base stations. The devices and interfaces in Figure 3e are described below:

[0145] 5G Core Network: This includes services such as user access control, mobility management, session management, user security authentication, and billing. It consists of multiple functional units, which can be divided into control plane and data plane functional entities. The Access and Mobility Management Unit (AMF) is responsible for user access management, security authentication, and mobility management. The User Plane Unit (UPF) is responsible for managing user plane data transmission and traffic statistics. The Session Management Function (SMF) is mainly used for session management in the mobile network, such as session establishment, modification, and release.

[0146] Ground station: Responsible for forwarding signaling and service data between satellite base stations and the 5G core network.

[0147] 5G New Radio: The wireless link between a terminal and a base station.

[0148] Xn interface: The interface between 5G base stations, mainly used for signaling interactions such as handover.

[0149] NG interface: The interface between 5G base stations and 5G core networks, mainly used for exchanging non-access stratum (NAS) signaling of the core network and user service data.

[0150] Furthermore, network devices in terrestrial network communication systems and satellites in NTN communication systems can be uniformly considered as network devices. The apparatus used to implement the functions of a network device can be a network device itself; it can also be an apparatus capable of supporting the network device in implementing that function, such as a chip system, which can be installed within the network device. In the following description of the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of this application, a satellite is used as an example to illustrate the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of this application. It is understood that when the methods provided by the embodiments of this application are applied to terrestrial network communication systems, the actions performed by the satellite can be applied to the base station or network device for execution.

[0151] In this application embodiment, the device for implementing the functions of the terminal device can be the terminal device itself; it can also be a device capable of supporting the terminal device in implementing the functions, such as a chip system, which can be installed in the terminal device. In this application embodiment, the chip system can be composed of chips, or it can include chips and other discrete devices. In the technical solutions provided in this application embodiment, the device for implementing the functions of the terminal device is a terminal or UE as an example to describe the technical solutions provided in this application embodiment.

[0152] In addition, the aforementioned satellites can be geostationary satellites, non-geostationary satellites, artificial satellites, low-Earth orbit satellites, medium-Earth orbit satellites, and high-Earth orbit satellites, etc., which are not specifically limited here.

[0153] The foregoing content describes various wireless communication scenarios involved in this application. It should be understood that the above content is merely an illustrative description of the scenarios in which this application can be applied, and this application can also be applied to other application scenarios, which are not limited here. The wireless communication process involved in this application will be described below.

[0154] In communication systems (as shown in Figures 1 / 3a / 3b / 3c / 3d / 3e), signal transmission between network devices and terminal devices can be achieved using beamforming technology. However, compared to network devices, terminal devices typically have a smaller signal transmission capability. To avoid degraded communication quality and efficiency, the beam angle range used by terminal devices for signal transmission can be narrower, or the beam angle range used by network devices for signal reception can be narrower, concentrating the energy of signal transmission or reception in one direction and resulting in higher beam gain. Typically, due to limitations in the size and dimensions of terminal devices, it is difficult to deploy large antenna arrays to achieve a narrower transmission beam angle range. Therefore, network devices use larger antenna arrays to receive uplink beams with a narrower angle range, effectively improving communication quality and efficiency. Furthermore, since network devices typically have a larger signal transmission capability, the beam angle range of the synchronization signal block (SSB) beam transmitted by the network device can be wider to cover a larger area.

[0155] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the beam coverage area in an NTN network according to an embodiment of this application. When the SSB beam angle range is wide and the uplink beam angle range used by the network device to receive signals is narrow, or when the SSB beam coverage area is large and the uplink beam coverage area used by the network device to receive signals is small, the SSB beam coverage area can include at least two uplink beam coverage areas. Figure 4 illustrates this using an example where the SSB beam includes coverage areas of a first uplink beam, a second uplink beam, a third uplink beam, and a fourth uplink beam. In practical applications, the SSB beam coverage area can also include more or fewer uplink beam coverage areas; this is not limited.

[0156] It should be noted that in this application, the term "SSB beam" can also refer to SSB downlink beam, SSB wide beam, SSB downlink wide beam, or other technical terms, without limitation. Similarly, "uplink beam" can refer to uplink narrow beam, uplink receiving beam, uplink receiving narrow beam, receiving narrow beam, or other technical terms, without limitation. Furthermore, in this application, the coverage area of ​​the SSB beam includes the coverage area of ​​at least two uplink beams. These at least two uplink beams can be referred to as the at least two uplink beams corresponding to the aforementioned SSB beam, or the aforementioned SSB beam is the SSB beam corresponding to the aforementioned at least two uplink beams, or the aforementioned at least two uplink beams correspond to the aforementioned SSB beam.

[0157] In one possible implementation, the coverage area of ​​the SSB beam coincides with the coverage area of ​​the beam used by the network device to transmit downlink signals during the random access process. That is, the coverage area of ​​the SSB beam shown in Figure 4 can also be the coverage area of ​​the beam used by the network device to transmit downlink signals during the random access process.

[0158] Terminal devices located within the coverage area of ​​the SSB beam can access network devices. The following example, shown in Figure 4, illustrates the specific process of contention-based random access, with a first terminal device initiating a random access request within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam and a second terminal device initiating a random access request within the coverage area of ​​the second uplink beam. Figure 5 shows a schematic diagram of a contention-based random access process in an embodiment of this application.

[0159] In the first phase, before the first terminal device (and similarly the second terminal device) initiates a random access request, the first terminal device may receive information sent by the network device regarding a single RO or a group of ROs allocated to terminal devices within the coverage area of ​​the SSB beam. This information instructs terminal devices within the coverage area of ​​the SSB beam to initiate a random access request using either the single RO or by randomly selecting an RO from the group. This information may be carried in an SIB signal (e.g., an SIB1 signal) or in RRC signaling (e.g., RRC reconfiguration signaling).

[0160] In the second stage, the first terminal device (and the second terminal device similarly) can send a random access preamble sequence to the network device within the ROs allocated by the network device, or within the ROs of a set of ROs allocated by the network device, i.e., initiate a random access request. The first terminal device can randomly select one random access preamble sequence from the set of random access preamble sequences to send for random access.

[0161] It should be noted that, due to the uncertainty of the random selection of the RO and the random access preamble sequence, the first terminal device and the second terminal device may send the same random access preamble sequence to the network device within the same RO.

[0162] In the third stage, after receiving the random access preamble sequence sent by the first terminal device (and similarly for the second terminal device), the network device can send a RAR message to the first terminal device (and similarly for the second terminal device) in response to the first terminal device's random access request. The RAR message sent to the first terminal device can carry UL authorization information (including communication resources allocated by the network device to the first terminal device), the index of the random access preamble sequence sent by the first terminal device, a temporary C-RNTI, TA instructions, and other information and extended fields. Specifically, the first terminal device can detect the PDCCH within the RAR window corresponding to the RO of the sent random access preamble sequence. The DCI in the PDCCH can carry the scheduling information of the RAR message, allowing the first terminal device to receive the RAR message in the PDSCH based on this scheduling information. Furthermore, the CRC of the PDCCH is scrambled by the RA-RNTI, and both the first terminal device and the network device can determine the RA-RNTI based on the RO of the sent random access preamble sequence.

[0163] In the fourth stage, the first terminal device (and the second terminal device similarly) sends an RRC access request message to the network device based on the UL authorization information carried in the RAR message, that is, using the communication resources allocated to the first terminal device by the network device.

[0164] It is worth noting that if the first terminal device and the second terminal device send the same random access preamble sequence to the network device within the same RO, the RA-RNTI used to receive the first RAR message and the RA-RNTI used to receive the second RAR message are the same, and the indices of the random access preamble sequences carried in the first and second RAR messages are also the same. That is, the first and second terminal devices cannot distinguish whether the received RAR message is the first or the second RAR message. Furthermore, the first and second terminal devices may use the same RAR message (e.g., both using the first RAR message or both using the second RAR message) to send an RRC access request message to the network device. In this case, signal collisions will occur between the RRC access request messages sent by the first and second terminal devices. The mutual interference will make it difficult for the network device to correctly receive or demodulate either RRC access request message, resulting in a significant decrease in the efficiency of the random access process for both the first and second terminal devices.

[0165] To address the aforementioned problems, this application provides a communication method and related apparatus, which will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0166] Please refer to Figure 6, which is a flowchart illustrating a communication method provided in an embodiment of this application. The method includes the following steps.

[0167] S601. The terminal device receives an indication message, wherein the indication message carries information about N uplink beams corresponding to the SSB beam, and N is a positive integer greater than 1.

[0168] Terminal devices can receive instruction messages and perform random access based on the messages carried in the instruction messages, thereby improving the efficiency of the random access process.

[0169] It should be noted that during random access, the indication message received by the terminal device can be sent by the network device corresponding to the target cell. Alternatively, during the terminal device's cell handover process, the indication message received by the terminal device can be sent by the network device (the network device corresponding to the source cell) maintaining an RRC connection with the terminal device, used to indicate information about the network device corresponding to the target cell. Alternatively, this indication message can also be sent by other network devices; there are no restrictions on this.

[0170] Optionally, the indication message received by the terminal device may be an SIB signal sent by the network device corresponding to the target cell, such as an SIB1 signal or an SIB2 signal. Alternatively, during the cell handover process, the indication message received by the terminal device may be RRC signaling sent by the network device (the network device corresponding to the source cell) that maintains an RRC connection with the terminal device. In addition, the indication message may be other signals, or it may be carried within other signals; there are no limitations on this.

[0171] The instruction message can carry information about N uplink beams corresponding to the SSB beam, where N is a positive integer greater than 1. For example, the SSB beam's angular range can be wider (the SSB beam can be a wide beam) to cover a larger area, while the uplink beam's angular range can be narrower (the uplink beam can be a narrow beam) to concentrate the energy of the signal received by the network device in one direction. Referring to Figure 4, the coverage area of ​​the SSB beam can include the coverage area of ​​at least two uplink beams; that is, the SSB beam corresponds to at least two uplink beams. A terminal device located within the coverage area of ​​the SSB beam can initiate a random access request to the network device corresponding to that SSB beam. The terminal device can specifically be located within the coverage area of ​​a particular uplink beam corresponding to the SSB beam.

[0172] In addition, the instruction message may also carry information about a single RO or a group of ROs allocated to terminal devices within the coverage area of ​​the SSB beam. This information is used to instruct terminal devices within the coverage area of ​​the SSB beam to initiate a random access request using the aforementioned single RO or by randomly selecting an RO from the aforementioned group of ROs.

[0173] The information of the N uplink beams corresponding to the SSB beam carried in the instruction message may specifically include information of any of the following examples, or may include a combination of information of multiple of the following examples, or may include a combination of information of any of the following examples and other information, without limitation.

[0174] In a first possible example, the information of the N uplink beams corresponding to the SSB beam may specifically include the coverage area information of each of the N uplink beams, so that the terminal device can determine which uplink beam among the N uplink beams is located within the coverage area based on the coverage area information of each uplink beam carried in the indication information and the location information of the terminal device.

[0175] Optionally, the information regarding the coverage area of ​​each of the N uplink beams may include the location of the center point of the coverage area of ​​each uplink beam and the radius of the coverage area of ​​each uplink beam. The location of the center point may be, for example, the longitude and latitude of the center point, or other information used to indicate the location, which is not limited thereto.

[0176] Optionally, the coverage area information of each of the N uplink beams can also be the angular range corresponding to each uplink beam. For example, it could be the angular range of the angle between each uplink beam and the horizontal plane, or the angular range of the angle between each uplink beam and the vertical direction. Furthermore, the terminal device can determine the coverage area of ​​each uplink beam using geometric positioning principles, based on the location of the network device (e.g., the projected position of the network device on the horizontal plane and the height of the network device relative to the plane where the terminal device is located) and the angular range. Alternatively, the coverage area information of each uplink beam can also be the center angle corresponding to each uplink beam and the radius of the coverage area of ​​each uplink beam. Then, the terminal device can determine the center point of the coverage area of ​​each uplink beam based on the center angle corresponding to each uplink beam and the location of the network device.

[0177] Optionally, the coverage area information of each of the N uplink beams can also be the positions of multiple reference points within the coverage area of ​​each uplink beam. For example, the coverage area of ​​each uplink beam can be a closed area formed by connecting multiple reference points, or it can be the circumcircle of multiple reference points, or it can be other closed areas indicated by multiple reference points; there is no limitation in this regard. The positions of the multiple reference points can be, for example, the longitude and latitude of the multiple reference points, or other information used to indicate the positions; there is no limitation in this regard.

[0178] Optionally, the coverage area information of each of the N uplink beams can also be an index of the coverage area information. The correspondence between the coverage area information of each uplink beam and the index of the coverage area information can be pre-configured or transmitted to the terminal device. Then, the terminal device can determine the coverage area information of each uplink beam based on the above correspondence and the index of the coverage area information.

[0179] It should be noted that the implementation of the coverage area information of each uplink beam described above is only an example. In actual applications, the coverage area information of each uplink beam can also be other information, and there is no limitation on this.

[0180] In a second possible example, the information of the N uplink beams corresponding to the SSB beam may specifically include information about the resources of the reference signal (RS) associated with each uplink beam. This allows the terminal device to receive the reference signal sent by the network device based on the resource information of the reference signal associated with each uplink beam, thereby determining which uplink beam's coverage area the terminal device is located within. It should be noted that the aforementioned reference signal can also be replaced with downlink reference signal or other terms, which are not limited herein.

[0181] A reference signal is a predefined signal used by network devices and terminal devices during communication to provide a reference for communication services in different scenarios. For example, during channel estimation, the communication device that receives the reference signal can estimate the characteristics and quality of the channel based on the reference signal.

[0182] Optionally, the reference signal transmitted by the network device may be a channel state information-reference signal (CSI-RS) or a positioning reference signal (PRS), or other reference signals, without limitation.

[0183] The information regarding the resources of the reference signal associated with each uplink beam may include at least one of the following: time-domain resources, frequency-domain resources, and port resources. The time-domain resources refer to the time period for reference signal transmission, which may be one or more subframes, one or more time slots, or one or more OFDM symbols. The frequency-domain resources refer to the frequency band occupied by the transmitted reference signal, which may be one or more subcarriers. The port resources are the information of the antenna ports used to transmit the reference signal, such as the antenna port number associated with the reference signal or other information indicating the antenna port. In addition, the information regarding the resources of the reference signal may also include other information, such as the modulation and coding scheme, without limitation.

[0184] S602. The terminal device determines the first uplink beam among N uplink beams according to the instruction message, wherein the terminal device is located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam.

[0185] The terminal device can determine which uplink beam among the N uplink beams it is located in based on the indication message, specifically based on the information carried in the indication message. That is, it can determine the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams, where the terminal device is located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam.

[0186] Referring to Figure 4, among the N beams corresponding to the SSB beam, the first terminal device is located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam, and the second terminal device is located within the coverage area of ​​the second uplink beam. In this embodiment, the terminal device can be the first terminal device located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam as shown in Figure 4, or it can be other terminal devices; there is no limitation on this.

[0187] In practical applications, the terminal device can be a terminal device with positioning capabilities, such as a GNSS terminal device with Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) positioning capabilities. Alternatively, the terminal device can also be a terminal device without positioning capabilities, such as a non-GNSS terminal device without GNSS positioning capabilities. GNSS is a system that uses satellite signals to provide positioning, navigation, and other services to terminal devices, including multiple independently operating satellite navigation systems, such as GPS (Global Positioning System), BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS), GLONASS, Galileo, and other regional satellite navigation systems. It should be noted that the aforementioned non-GNSS terminal device can also be a GNSS-less device, a GNSS-free device, or other terminal device without GNSS positioning capabilities; this application does not impose any limitations on this.

[0188] For terminal devices with different capabilities, this application provides several implementation examples of determining the first uplink beam based on the indication message.

[0189] In a first possible implementation example, for a terminal device with positioning capabilities (e.g., the aforementioned GNSS terminal device), the information of the N uplink beams carried in the indication message may specifically include information on the coverage area of ​​each uplink beam. Thus, the terminal device can obtain the location information of the terminal device and determine the first uplink beam using the information on the coverage area of ​​each uplink beam carried in the indication message.

[0190] For example, the terminal device can use a GNSS module (or other modules, devices, equipment, or chips that can be used to determine location information) configured in the terminal device to determine the location information of the terminal device. Then, the terminal device can determine the first uplink beam based on the coverage area information of each uplink beam carried in the indication message, combined with the location information of the terminal device. For example, the terminal device can match its location with the coverage area of ​​each of the N uplink beams one by one to determine that the terminal device is located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam. Alternatively, the terminal device can determine the distance between its location and the center point of the coverage area of ​​each uplink beam, and compare this distance with the radius of the coverage area of ​​each uplink beam to determine that the terminal device is located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam. Alternatively, the terminal device can also determine the first uplink beam based on other methods, which are not limited thereto.

[0191] In a second possible implementation example, for terminal devices without positioning capabilities (e.g., the aforementioned non-GNSS terminal devices), the information of the N uplink beams carried in the instruction message may specifically include information on the resources of the reference signals associated with each uplink beam. Then, the terminal device can receive the reference signals sent by the network device based on the information on the resources of the reference signals associated with each uplink beam, thereby determining the first uplink beam.

[0192] For example, N uplink beams are associated with N reference signals one by one, and the coverage area of ​​each uplink beam is consistent with the coverage area of ​​the downlink beam used to transmit the reference signal associated with the uplink beam. That is, the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam shown in FIG4 (and the coverage areas of the other uplink beams are similar) can also be the coverage area of ​​the downlink beam used by the network device to transmit the reference signal associated with the first uplink beam.

[0193] The terminal equipment can receive reference signals associated with each uplink beam, and determine the channel quality index corresponding to each reference signal during the reception of each reference signal. The channel quality index can be the reference signal receiving power (RSRP), or the reference signal receiving quality (RSRQ), or other indices, without limitation.

[0194] Typically, since the coverage area of ​​each uplink beam coincides with the coverage area of ​​the downlink beam used to transmit the reference signal associated with that uplink beam, the RSRP of a terminal device within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam receiving the reference signal associated with the first uplink beam will be higher than the RSRP of receiving reference signals associated with other uplink beams. Alternatively, the RSRQ of a terminal device within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam receiving the reference signal associated with the first uplink beam will be higher than the RSRQ of receiving reference signals associated with other uplink beams.

[0195] Based on this, according to the RSRP of the reference signal associated with each uplink beam (RSRQ and other channel quality indicators are similar), the terminal device can determine the first uplink beam among N uplink beams, wherein the RSRP of the reference signal associated with the first uplink beam is greater than or equal to the RSRP of the reference signals associated with the uplink beams other than the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams.

[0196] It should be noted that if the terminal device is located at the boundary of the coverage areas of different uplink beams, the RSRP (RSRQ and other channel quality indicators) of the reference signals associated with the different uplink beams received by the terminal device may be the same or similar. In this case, the terminal device can select one of the different uplink beams mentioned above.

[0197] Furthermore, for terminal devices without positioning capabilities, the instruction message may also carry one or more of the following: frequency offset information for each uplink beam, timing advance (TA) information for each uplink beam, reference position information for each uplink beam, frequency offset change over time for each uplink beam, and TA change over time for each uplink beam, so that the terminal device can synchronize with the network device.

[0198] Regarding the first point, based on the frequency offset information corresponding to each uplink beam, the terminal device can perform frequency offset compensation on the received signal and / or pre-compensate for the transmitted signal to ensure frequency synchronization with the network device. This avoids the impact on communication efficiency caused by the inconsistency between the transmitted and received signal frequencies during signal transmission. For example, for a terminal device located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam, the terminal device can use the frequency offset corresponding to the first uplink beam for frequency compensation to ensure frequency synchronization with the network device.

[0199] Optionally, since the actual frequency offset of the terminal device differs at different positions of the first uplink beam, the synchronization accuracy may be low when using the frequency offset corresponding to the first uplink beam for frequency compensation. Therefore, the terminal device can determine a more accurate frequency offset value by fitting the frequency offsets corresponding to multiple uplink beams, combined with the RSRP (RSRQ and other channel quality indicators) of the reference signals associated with each of the multiple uplink beams received by the terminal device, respectively. For example, the terminal device can determine the weight value of the frequency offset corresponding to each uplink beam based on the RSRP of the reference signals associated with each of the multiple uplink beams. Furthermore, by combining the frequency offsets corresponding to multiple uplink beams, the terminal device can determine a more accurate frequency offset value.

[0200] Regarding the second point, based on the TA information corresponding to each uplink beam, the terminal device can adjust the signal transmission time to synchronize with the network device's time. This avoids the impact on communication efficiency caused by inconsistencies between signal transmission and reception times due to factors such as propagation delay. For example, for a terminal device located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam, the terminal device can use the TA corresponding to the first uplink beam to adjust the signal transmission time to synchronize with the network device's time.

[0201] Optionally, since the actual timing intervals (TAs) of the terminal device differ at different positions of the first uplink beam, the synchronization accuracy may be low when adjusting the signal transmission time using the TAs corresponding to the first uplink beam. Therefore, the terminal device can determine a more accurate TA value by combining the RSRP (RSRQ and other channel quality indicators) of the reference signals associated with the multiple uplink beams received by the terminal device, through fitting processing. Specifically, please refer to the relevant description in the first item above, which will not be repeated here.

[0202] Regarding the third point, based on the reference location information corresponding to each uplink beam, the terminal device can calculate the TA and / or frequency offset values ​​according to the reference location to achieve time and / or frequency synchronization with the network device. For example, for a terminal device located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam, the terminal device can use the reference location corresponding to the first uplink beam to calculate the TA and / or frequency offset.

[0203] It should be noted that terminal devices with positioning capabilities can calculate TA and / or frequency offset based on the located location information to synchronize with the network devices in terms of time and / or frequency.

[0204] Optionally, since there is an error between the actual position and the reference position of the first uplink beam, the synchronization accuracy may be low when calculating the TA and / or frequency offset using the reference position corresponding to the first uplink beam. Therefore, the terminal device can determine more accurate position information by combining the reference positions corresponding to multiple uplink beams with the RSRP (RSRQ and other channel quality indicators are similarly related) of the reference signals associated with the multiple uplink beams received by the terminal device, through fitting processing, and then calculate a more accurate TA and / or frequency offset. Specifically, please refer to the relevant description in the first item above, which will not be repeated here.

[0205] Regarding the fourth point, based on the change in frequency offset over time for each uplink beam, the terminal device can adjust the frequency offset value over time and compensate for the terminal device's frequency using the adjusted frequency offset to achieve frequency synchronization with the network device. Therefore, when the relative position between the network device and the terminal device changes over time, the frequency offset changes accordingly. The terminal device adjusts the frequency offset value to avoid the impact on communication efficiency caused by the inconsistency between the transmitted and received signal frequencies.

[0206] Regarding the fifth point, based on the change in TA (Transmission Time) for each uplink beam over time, the terminal device can adjust the TA value over time and adjust the signal transmission time of the terminal device to synchronize with the network device's time. Thus, when the relative position between the network device and the terminal device changes over time, the TA changes accordingly. The terminal device adjusts the TA value to avoid the impact on communication efficiency caused by the inconsistency between signal transmission and reception times.

[0207] It should be noted that the indication message can carry more information, and there is no limitation on this. Additionally, a terminal device with positioning capabilities can also determine the first uplink beam by receiving reference signals sent by the network device based on information about the resources of the reference signals associated with each uplink beam. The above example of determining the first uplink beam based on the indication message is for illustrative purposes only. In actual applications, the terminal device can also determine the first uplink beam based on other transmissions, and there is no limitation on this.

[0208] S603a, The terminal device determines first information, which is associated with a first uplink beam, wherein the first information is used to receive target RAR messages.

[0209] After identifying the first uplink beam, the terminal device can determine the first information associated with the first uplink beam, so as to receive the target RAR message during the random access process based on the first information. The target RAR message is a RAR message used to respond to a random access request initiated by the terminal device.

[0210] Thus, as shown in Figure 4, during the process of a terminal device randomly accessing a network device, if a first terminal device located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam and a second terminal device located within the coverage area of ​​the second uplink beam send the same random access preamble sequence within the same RO, the first terminal device can also determine, based on the first information associated with the first uplink beam, whether the received RAR message is a RAR message used to respond to the random access request of the first terminal device (i.e., the target RAR message), rather than a RAR message used to respond to the random access request of the second terminal device. In other words, the terminal device can use the first information to distinguish RAR messages. Furthermore, when the first terminal device sends an RRC access request message using the communication resource indicated in the target RAR message, the risk of the first and second terminal devices mistakenly using the same communication resource indicated by the same RAR message to send messages is avoided. This reduces the risk of signal collisions when different RRC access request messages are transmitted through the same communication resource, thereby improving the efficiency of the terminal device's random access to the network device.

[0211] It should be noted that the terminal device can send the random access preamble sequence (i.e., initiate a random access request) to the network device after step S603a or before step S603a or step S602, and there is no limitation on this.

[0212] The embodiments of this application provide the following implementation methods for determining the first information.

[0213] In the first implementation, the first information can be a first RA-RNTI determined by the terminal device, and the first RA-RNTI is associated with a first uplink beam. The terminal device can use the first RA-RNTI to receive the target RAR message. Specifically, during the terminal device's detection of the PDCCH, the terminal device can use the first RA-RNTI to descramble the CRC of the PDCCH. If the CRC check after descrambling by the terminal device is successful (i.e., the first RA-RNTI determined by the terminal device is consistent with the second RA-RNTI used to scramble the CRC of the PDCCH), then the scheduling information carried by the DCI in the PDCCH is the scheduling information used to indicate the terminal device. Based on this, the terminal device can use the scheduling information to receive the target RAR message on the PDSCH.

[0214] The terminal device can determine the first RA-RNTI based on the target RO and the first uplink beam. For example, the process of the terminal device determining the first RA-RNTI can be based on the following formula 2: RA-RNTI=1+s_id+14×t_id+14×80×f_id+14×80×8×ul_carrier_id+14×80×8×2×spatial_id, Formula 2;

[0215] Here, spatial_id is the identifier of the first uplink beam. Furthermore, based on the definition of the RA-RNTI value range in R18 and prior to R18, i.e., the value of RA-RNTI is greater than or equal to 1 (hexadecimal 0001) and less than or equal to 65522 (hexadecimal FFF2), the value range of spatial_id is 0 ≤ s_id < 3.

[0216] Additionally, s_id is the index of the first OFDM symbol in the target RO, and the value of s_id is 0 ≤ s_id < 14; t_id is the index of the first time slot in the system frame to which the target RO belongs, and the value of t_id is 0 ≤ t_id < 80; f_id is the index of the frequency domain indicated by the target RO, and the value of f_id is 0 ≤ f_id < 8; ul_carrier_id is the uplink carrier used to transmit the random access preamble sequence, and a value of ul_carrier_id of 0 indicates that the uplink carrier is an NUL carrier, and a value of ul_carrier_id of 1 indicates that the uplink carrier is an SUL carrier.

[0217] Optionally, in an NTN network, the distance difference between different terminal devices and network devices is small, and the difference in signal strength received by the network device from different terminal devices is also small. That is, the near-far effect is not obvious in an NTN network, and the optimization effect achieved by using a SUL carrier is relatively low. Based on this, in an NTN network, signal transmission between terminal devices and network devices can be performed without using a SUL carrier. Furthermore, while keeping the definition of the value range of RA-RNTI in R18 and prior to R18 unchanged, the process of the terminal device determining the first RA-RNTI can be based on the following formula 3: RA-RNTI=1+s_id+14×t_id+14×80×f_id+14×80×8×spatial_id, Formula 3;

[0218] Here, spatial_id is the identifier of the first uplink beam. Furthermore, based on the RA-RNTI value range of 1 ≤ RA-RNTI ≤ 65522, the spatial_id value range can be 0 ≤ s_id < 7. Thus, compared to Formula 2, the value range of the first uplink beam identifier can be larger, the SSB beam coverage area can include more uplink beam coverage areas, the uplink beam angle range can be narrower, and the energy can be more concentrated.

[0219] In addition, the range of values ​​for RA-RNTI can be expanded, thereby enabling a wider range of values ​​for the identifier of the first uplink beam.

[0220] In the second implementation, the first information can be a target RO for sending a random access preamble sequence, and the target RO is associated with a first uplink beam. The terminal device can use the target RO to receive a target RAR message. For example, each of the M ROs corresponds to one of the N uplink beams, or in other words, each of the N uplink beams corresponds to at least one RO among the M ROs, and different uplink beams correspond to different ROs. Here, M is a positive integer greater than or equal to N, and the target RO is one of the M ROs. Within one of the M ROs, the network device receives the random access preamble sequence sent by the terminal device only through the uplink beam corresponding to that RO; that is, the network device scans the N uplink beams within the M ROs.

[0221] Specifically, based on the correspondence between N uplink beams and M Returning Entities (ROs), the terminal device can determine the target RO based on the first uplink beam. Thus, within the target RO where the terminal device transmits the random access preamble sequence, no other terminal devices within the coverage area of ​​other uplink beams are simultaneously transmitting random access preamble sequences. In practical applications, by adjusting the parameters of the RAR window, it is possible to ensure that there are no overlapping time periods between the RAR windows corresponding to different ROs. Consequently, the RAR window associated with the target RO will not contain RAR messages for responding to terminal devices within the coverage area of ​​other uplink beams. Therefore, the terminal device can receive the target RAR message within the RAR window associated with the target RO.

[0222] It should be noted that the correspondence between N uplink beams and M ROs can be carried in the indication message, or the correspondence can be carried in other messages, or the correspondence can be pre-configured in the terminal device, without any limitation.

[0223] In the third implementation, based on the first implementation, the first information can be a first RA-RNTI determined by the terminal device, and the first RA-RNTI is associated with a first uplink beam. Additionally, the target RO used to transmit the random access preamble sequence can also be determined by the first uplink beam. For example, within the same RO, the network device can simultaneously receive random access preamble sequences transmitted by terminal devices within the coverage area of ​​a certain set of uplink beams; that is, one RO corresponds to one set of uplink beams out of N uplink beams, and the number of uplink beams contained in a set of uplink beams can be one or more. Optionally, this number is less than N. It should be noted that different sets of uplink beams can contain different numbers of uplink beams, and different sets of uplink beams can also contain the same uplink beam; this is not limited.

[0224] Specifically, the terminal device can determine the target RO based on the first uplink beam. That is, the terminal device determines the target RO corresponding to a set of uplink beams containing the first uplink beam. Then, based on the target RO and the identifier of the first uplink beam, the terminal device can determine the first RA-RNTI. See Formula 2 or Formula 3 for details, which will not be elaborated further. Thus, when the number of uplink beams contained in a set of uplink beams is less than N, the range of spatial_id does not need to be large. Therefore, the range of RA-RNTI can remain unchanged under the definition of RA-RNTI in R18 and earlier, or the range of RA-RNTI exceeding the range defined in R18 and earlier by a relatively small margin. Alternatively, while keeping the definition of the range of values ​​for RA-RNTI unchanged before R18, the number of uplink beams included in a set of uplink beams can satisfy the maximum range of values ​​that spatial_id can support. Thus, the coverage area of ​​the SSB beam can include the coverage area of ​​more uplink beams (with a larger value for N), the angle range of the uplink beams can be narrower, and the energy can be more concentrated.

[0225] In the fourth implementation, the first information may be the identifier of the first uplink beam, and the terminal device may receive the target RAR message based on the identifier of the first uplink beam.

[0226] Specifically, the terminal device can determine the identifier of the first uplink beam, and the target RAR message sent by the network device carries the identifier of the first uplink beam. Furthermore, the terminal device can determine whether the identifier of the uplink beam carried in the received RAR message matches the identifier of the first uplink beam, in order to receive the target RAR message.

[0227] Optionally, the target RAR message may carry not only the identifier of the first uplink beam, but also the identifiers of other uplink beams. Furthermore, in the target RAR message, the identifier of the uplink beam corresponds to the information (including communication resources and C-RNTI information) of the terminal devices within the coverage area used to respond to the uplink beam, so that the terminal devices can distinguish the communication resources and other information used to respond to different terminal devices.

[0228] It should be noted that the above-described methods for determining the first information are merely illustrative examples. In actual applications, the terminal device may also determine the first information based on other implementation methods, or based on multiple implementation methods described above, without any limitation.

[0229] Optionally, after step S603a, the terminal device can receive a target RAR message based on the first information, wherein the second information used to send the target RAR message matches the first information. For example, the first information may be a first RA-RNTI, and the second RA-RNTI used to send the target RAR message matches the first RA-RNTI determined by the terminal device. Alternatively, the first information may be a target RO, and the RO used to send the target RAR message matches the target RO determined by the terminal device. Alternatively, the first information may be the identifier of a first uplink beam, and the identifier of the uplink beam carried in the target RAR message matches the identifier of the first uplink beam determined by the terminal device.

[0230] It should be noted that in the embodiments of this application, the matching of the first information and the second information may be that the first information and the second information are the same, or that the second information is a backup of the first information, or that the first information can determine the second information based on a predetermined criterion (e.g., an offset of a certain amount), and there is no limitation on this.

[0231] Optionally, after receiving the RAR message, the terminal device sends an RRC access request message based on the communication resources carried in the RAR message.

[0232] S603b, The network device determines second information, which is associated with the first uplink beam, wherein the second information is used to send a target RAR message.

[0233] The network device can determine second information associated with the first uplink beam in order to send a target RAR message during the random access process based on the second information. The target RAR message is a RAR message used by the network device in response to a random access request initiated by the terminal device.

[0234] Referring to step S603a, the second information can be a second RA-RNTI, which the network device can determine based on the target RO and the first uplink beam; or, the second information can be a target RO, which the network device can determine based on the first uplink beam, and the target RO is one of the M ROs, with each of the M ROs corresponding to one of the N uplink beams; or, the second information can be a second RA-RNTI, which the network device can determine based on the target RO and the first uplink beam, and the target RO is determined based on the first uplink beam; or, the second information can be the identifier of the first uplink beam, which the network device can determine. The implementation of the network device determining the second information can be referred to step S603a, and will not be repeated here.

[0235] Optionally, after step S603b, the network device may send a target RAR message based on the second information, which matches the first information used to receive the target RAR message.

[0236] In addition, prior to step S603, the network device can determine the first uplink beam.

[0237] As a first implementation example, during the process of a network device receiving a random access preamble sequence, the network device can determine a first uplink beam based on the received power of the signal transmitted by the terminal device using each of the N uplink beams. The received power of the signal transmitted by the terminal device using the first uplink beam is greater than or equal to the received power of the signal transmitted by the terminal device using any of the N uplink beams other than the first uplink beam.

[0238] As a second implementation example, each of the M ROs corresponds to one of the N uplink beams. Based on the correspondence between the N uplink beams and the M ROs, the network device can determine the first uplink beam according to the RO of the received random access preamble sequence.

[0239] It should be noted that network devices can also determine the first uplink beam based on other methods, and there are no restrictions on this.

[0240] The following is a schematic diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of this application. Referring to Figure 7, the communication device can be used to execute the process performed by the terminal device in the embodiment shown in Figure 6. For details, please refer to the relevant description in the foregoing method embodiments.

[0241] The communication device 700 includes a transceiver module 701 and a processing module 702.

[0242] The processing module 702 is used for data processing. The transceiver module 701 can implement the corresponding communication functions. The transceiver module 701 can also be called a communication interface or a communication module.

[0243] Optionally, the communication device 700 may further include a storage module, which can be used to store program code, program instructions and / or data. The processing module 702 can read the instructions and / or data in the storage module so that the communication device 700 can implement the aforementioned method embodiments.

[0244] The communication device 700 can be used to perform the actions performed by the terminal device in the above method embodiments. For example, it can be a terminal device or a communication module within a terminal device, or a circuit or chip within a terminal device responsible for communication functions. The communication device 700 can be a terminal device or a component configurable on a terminal device. The processing module 702 is used to perform processing-related operations on the terminal device side in the above method embodiments. The transceiver module 701 is used to perform receiving-related operations on the terminal device side in the above method embodiments.

[0245] Optionally, the transceiver module 701 may include a sending module and a receiving module. The sending module is used to perform the sending operation in the above method embodiments. The receiving module is used to perform the receiving operation in the above method embodiments.

[0246] It should be noted that the communication device 700 may include a transmitting module but not a receiving module. Alternatively, the communication device 700 may include a receiving module but not a transmitting module. Specifically, it depends on whether the above-described scheme performed by the communication device 700 includes both transmitting and receiving actions. For example, the communication device 700 may be used to perform the actions performed by the terminal device in the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, or the communication device 700 may be used to perform the actions performed by the network device in the embodiment shown in FIG. 6. For details, please refer to the relevant descriptions in the embodiments shown in FIG. 6; they will not be elaborated upon here.

[0247] For example, the communication device 700 is used to execute the following scheme:

[0248] The transceiver module 701 is used to receive indication messages, which carry information about N uplink beams corresponding to the synchronization signal block SSB beam, where N is a positive integer greater than 1.

[0249] The processing module 702 is used to determine the first uplink beam among N uplink beams according to the indication message, and the terminal device is located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam; the processing module 702 is also used to determine first information, which is associated with the first uplink beam, and the first information is used to receive the target random access response (RAR) message.

[0250] In one possible implementation, the first information includes a first random access radio network temporary identifier (RA-RNTI). The processing module 702 is specifically used to determine the first RA-RNTI based on the first uplink beam and the target random access timing (RO). The first RA-RNTI is used to receive the target RAR message.

[0251] In one possible implementation, the first information includes the identifier of a first uplink beam. The processing module 702 is specifically used to determine the identifier of the first uplink beam, which is used to receive the target RAR message.

[0252] In one possible implementation, the first information includes the target random access timing (RO). The processing module 702 is specifically used to determine the target RO based on the first uplink beam. The target RO is one of M ROs, and each of the M ROs corresponds to one of the N uplink beams, where M is a positive integer greater than or equal to N.

[0253] In one possible implementation, the target RO is determined based on the first uplink beam.

[0254] In one possible implementation, the first information is matched with the second information, which is used to send the target RAR message.

[0255] In one possible implementation, the first information is specifically used to receive the target RAR message within the RAR window of the target RAR message associated with the target RO.

[0256] In one possible implementation, the information of the N uplink beams includes information about the coverage area of ​​each of the N uplink beams. Specifically, the processing module 702 is used to determine the first uplink beam based on the location information of the terminal device and the instruction message.

[0257] In one possible implementation, the information of the N uplink beams includes information on the resources of the reference signal associated with each of the N uplink beams. The transceiver module 701 is further configured to receive the reference signal associated with each uplink beam based on the resource information of the reference signal associated with each uplink beam. The processing module 702 is specifically configured to determine the first uplink beam, wherein the received power RSRP of the reference signal associated with the first uplink beam is greater than or equal to the RSRP of the reference signals associated with the other uplink beams, and the other uplink beams are the uplink beams other than the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams.

[0258] In one possible implementation, the indication message also carries at least one or more of the following: information on the frequency offset corresponding to each uplink beam, information on the timing advance (TA) corresponding to each uplink beam, information on the reference position corresponding to each uplink beam, the amount of change of the frequency offset corresponding to each uplink beam over time, and the amount of change of the TA corresponding to each uplink beam over time; the processing module 702 is also used to synchronize with the network device according to the indication message.

[0259] For other implementation methods, please refer to the relevant descriptions in the embodiments shown in Figure 6 above.

[0260] It should be understood that the specific procedures for each module to perform the above-mentioned corresponding processes have been described in detail in the above method embodiments, and will not be repeated here for the sake of brevity.

[0261] Optionally, when the communication device 700 is a terminal device or a communication module within a terminal device, the processing module 702 in the above embodiments can be implemented by at least one processor or processor-related circuitry. Specifically, the processor may include a modem chip, or a system-on-a-chip (SoC) chip containing a modem core, or a system-in-package (SIP) chip. The transceiver module 701 can be implemented by a transceiver or transceiver-related circuitry. The transceiver module 701 may also be referred to as a communication module or communication interface. The storage module can be implemented by at least one memory.

[0262] Optionally, when the communication device 700 is a circuit or chip in a terminal device responsible for communication functions, such as a modem chip or a SoC chip or SIP chip containing a modem core, the function of the processing module 702 can be implemented by a circuit system in the aforementioned chip that includes one or more processors or processing cores. The function of the transceiver module 701 can be implemented by the interface circuit or data transceiver circuit on the aforementioned chip.

[0263] The following is a schematic diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of this application. Referring to Figure 8, the communication device can be used to execute the process performed by the network device in the embodiment shown in Figure 6. For details, please refer to the relevant description in the foregoing method embodiments.

[0264] The communication device 800 includes a transceiver module 801 and a processing module 802.

[0265] The processing module 802 is used for data processing. The transceiver module 801 can implement the corresponding communication functions. The transceiver module 801 can also be called a communication interface or a communication module.

[0266] Optionally, the communication device 800 may further include a storage module, which can be used to store program code, program instructions and / or data. The processing module 802 can read the instructions and / or data in the storage module so that the communication device 800 can implement the aforementioned method embodiments.

[0267] The communication device 800 can be used to perform the actions performed by the network device in the above method embodiments. For example, it can be a network device or a communication module within a network device, or a circuit or chip within a network device responsible for communication functions. The communication device 800 can be a network device or a component configurable within a network device. The processing module 802 is used to perform processing-related operations on the network device side in the above method embodiments. The transceiver module 801 is used to perform receiving-related operations on the network device side in the above method embodiments.

[0268] Optionally, the transceiver module 801 may include a sending module and a receiving module. The sending module is used to perform the sending operation in the above method embodiments. The receiving module is used to perform the receiving operation in the above method embodiments.

[0269] It should be noted that the communication device 800 may include a transmitting module but not a receiving module. Alternatively, the communication device 800 may include a receiving module but not a transmitting module. Specifically, it depends on whether the above-described scheme performed by the communication device 800 includes both transmitting and receiving actions. For example, the communication device 800 may be used to perform the actions performed by the network device in the embodiment shown in Figure 6, or the communication device 800 may be used to perform the actions performed by the network device in the embodiment shown in Figure 6. For details, please refer to the relevant descriptions in the embodiment shown in Figure 6; these will not be elaborated upon here.

[0270] For example, the communication device 800 is used to execute the following scheme:

[0271] The transceiver module 801 is used to send an indication message, which carries information about N uplink beams corresponding to the synchronization signal block SSB beam, where N is a positive integer greater than 1.

[0272] The processing module 802 is used to determine the first uplink beam among N uplink beams according to the indication message, and the terminal device is located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam; the processing module 802 is also used to determine second information, which is associated with the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams, and the second information is used to send a target random access response (RAR) message, and the terminal device corresponding to the target RAR message is located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam.

[0273] In one possible implementation, the second information includes a second random access radio network temporary identifier (RA-RNTI). The processing module 802 is specifically used to determine the second RA-RNTI based on the first uplink beam and the target random access timing (RO). The second RA-RNTI is used to send a target RAR message.

[0274] In one possible implementation, the second information includes the identifier of the first uplink beam. The processing module 802 is specifically used to determine the identifier of the first uplink beam, which is used to send the target RAR message.

[0275] In one possible implementation, the second information includes the target random access timing (RO). The processing module 802 is specifically used to determine the target RO based on the first uplink beam. The target RO is one of M ROs, and each of the M ROs corresponds to one of the N uplink beams, where M is a positive integer greater than or equal to N.

[0276] In one possible implementation, the target RO is determined based on the first uplink beam.

[0277] In one possible implementation, the second information is matched with the first information, which is used to receive the target RAR message.

[0278] In one possible implementation, the processing module 802 is further configured to determine a first uplink beam based on the received power of the signal transmitted by the terminal device using each of the N uplink beams, wherein the received power of the signal transmitted by the terminal device using the first uplink beam is greater than or equal to the received power of the signal transmitted by the terminal device using other uplink beams, and the other uplink beams are the uplink beams other than the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams.

[0279] In one possible implementation, the second information is specifically used to send the target RAR message within the RAR window of the target RAR message associated with the target RO.

[0280] In one possible implementation, the information of the N uplink beams includes information about the coverage area of ​​each of the N uplink beams.

[0281] In one possible implementation, the information of the N uplink beams includes information on the resources of the reference signal associated with each of the N uplink beams. The transceiver module 801 is further configured to transmit the reference signal associated with each uplink beam according to the information on the resources of the reference signal associated with each uplink beam.

[0282] In one possible implementation, the indication message also carries at least one or more of the following: information on the frequency offset corresponding to each uplink beam, information on the timing advance (TA) corresponding to each uplink beam, information on the reference position corresponding to each uplink beam, the change in frequency offset over time corresponding to each uplink beam, and the change in TA over time corresponding to each uplink beam.

[0283] For other implementation methods, please refer to the relevant descriptions in the embodiments shown in Figure 6 above.

[0284] It should be understood that the specific procedures for each module to perform the above-mentioned corresponding processes have been described in detail in the above method embodiments, and will not be repeated here for the sake of brevity.

[0285] Optionally, when the communication device 800 is a network device or a communication module within a network device, the processing module 802 in the above embodiments can be implemented by at least one processor or processor-related circuitry. Specifically, the processor may include a modem chip, or a system-on-a-chip (SoC) chip containing a modem core, or a system-in-package (SIP) chip. The transceiver module 801 can be implemented by a transceiver or transceiver-related circuitry. The transceiver module 801 may also be referred to as a communication module or communication interface. The storage module can be implemented by at least one memory.

[0286] Optionally, when the communication device 800 is a circuit or chip responsible for communication functions in a network device, such as a modem chip or a SoC chip or SIP chip containing a modem core, the function of the processing module 802 can be implemented by a circuit system in the aforementioned chip that includes one or more processors or processing cores. The function of the transceiver module 801 can be implemented by the interface circuit or data transceiver circuit on the aforementioned chip.

[0287] This application embodiment also provides a communication device 900. Referring to FIG9, the communication device 900 includes a processor 910, which is coupled to a memory 920. The memory 920 is used to store computer programs or instructions and / or data. The processor 910 is used to execute the computer programs or instructions and / or data stored in the memory 920, causing the methods in the above method embodiments to be executed. The communication device 900 is used to implement the operations performed by the terminal device or network device in the above method embodiments.

[0288] Optionally, the communication device 900 may include one or more processors 910.

[0289] Optionally, as shown in Figure 9, the communication device 900 may also include a memory 920.

[0290] Optionally, the communication device 900 may include one or more memory 920s.

[0291] Optionally, the memory 920 can be integrated with the processor 910 or set separately.

[0292] Optionally, as shown in FIG9, the communication device 900 may further include a transceiver 930 for receiving and / or transmitting signals. For example, the processor 910 is used to control the transceiver 930 to receive and / or transmit signals.

[0293] This application also provides a communication device 1000, which can be a terminal device, a processor in the terminal device, or a chip. The communication device 1000 can be used to perform the operations performed by the terminal device in the above method embodiments.

[0294] When the communication device 1000 is a terminal device, Figure 10 shows a simplified structural diagram of the terminal device. As shown in Figure 10, the terminal device includes a processor, a memory, and a transceiver. The memory can store computer program code, and the transceiver includes a transmitter 1031, a receiver 1032, radio frequency circuitry (not shown in the figure), an antenna 1033, and input / output devices (not shown in the figure).

[0295] The processor is mainly used to process communication protocols and communication data; control terminal devices; execute software programs; and process data from software programs.

[0296] Memory is mainly used to store software programs and data.

[0297] Radio frequency (RF) circuits are mainly used for the conversion between baseband signals and RF signals, as well as for the processing of RF signals.

[0298] Antennas are primarily used for transmitting and receiving radio frequency signals in the form of electromagnetic waves.

[0299] Input / output devices can include touchscreens, displays, or keyboards. They are primarily used to receive user input and output data to the user. It should be noted that some types of terminal devices may not have input / output devices.

[0300] When data needs to be transmitted, the processor performs baseband processing on the data to be transmitted and outputs a baseband signal to the radio frequency (RF) circuit. The RF circuit then processes the baseband signal and transmits it outwards as electromagnetic waves via an antenna. When data is sent to the terminal device, the RF circuit receives the RF signal through the antenna. The RF circuit converts the RF signal back into a baseband signal and outputs it to the processor. The processor converts the baseband signal back into data and processes the data. For ease of explanation, Figure 10 only shows one memory, processor, and transceiver. In actual terminal device products, there may be one or more processors and one or more memories. Memory can also be called storage medium or storage device, etc. Memory can be set up independently of the processor or integrated with the processor; this embodiment does not limit this.

[0301] In this embodiment, the antenna and radio frequency circuit with transceiver function can be regarded as the transceiver module of the terminal device, and the processor with processing function can be regarded as the processing module of the terminal device.

[0302] As shown in Figure 10, the terminal device includes a processor 1010, a memory 1020, and a transceiver 1030. The processor 1010 can also be referred to as a processing unit, processing board, processing module, or processing device, etc. The transceiver 1030 can also be referred to as a transceiver unit, transceiver, or transceiver device, etc.

[0303] Optionally, the device in transceiver 1030 used to implement the receiving function can be considered a receiving module, and the device in transceiver 1030 used to implement the transmitting function can be considered a transmitting module. That is, transceiver 1030 includes a receiver and a transmitter. A transceiver may also be called a transceiver unit, transceiver module, or transceiver circuit, etc. A receiver may also be called a receiver unit, receiving module, or receiving circuit, etc. A transmitter may also be called a transmitter, transmitting module, or transmitting circuit, etc.

[0304] The processor 1010 is used to execute the processing actions on the terminal device side in the embodiment shown in FIG. 6. The transceiver 1030 is used to execute the sending and receiving actions on the terminal device side in the embodiment shown in FIG. 6.

[0305] It should be understood that Figure 10 is merely an example and not a limitation, and the terminal device described above, including the transceiver module and the processing module, may not depend on the structure shown in Figure 7 or Figure 10.

[0306] When the communication device 1000 is a chip, the chip includes a processor, a memory, and a transceiver. The transceiver can be an input / output circuit or a communication interface. The processor can be a processing module integrated on the chip, a microprocessor, or an integrated circuit. In the above method embodiments, the sending operation of the terminal device can be understood as the output of the chip, and the receiving operation of the terminal device in the above method embodiments can be understood as the input of the chip.

[0307] This application also provides a communication device 1100, which can be a network device, a processor in the network device, or a chip. The communication device 1100 can be used to perform the operations performed by the network device in the above method embodiments.

[0308] When the communication device 1100 is a network device, Figure 11 shows a simplified schematic diagram of the network device structure. As shown in Figure 11, the network device includes a processor, a memory, and a transceiver. The memory can store computer program code, and the transceiver includes a transmitter 1131, a receiver 1132, radio frequency circuitry (not shown in the figure), an antenna 1133, and input / output devices (not shown in the figure).

[0309] The processor is mainly used to process communication protocols and communication data; control network devices; execute software programs; and process data from software programs.

[0310] Memory is mainly used to store software programs and data.

[0311] Radio frequency (RF) circuits are mainly used for the conversion between baseband signals and RF signals, as well as for the processing of RF signals.

[0312] Antennas are primarily used for transmitting and receiving radio frequency signals in the form of electromagnetic waves.

[0313] Input / output devices can include touchscreens, displays, or keyboards. They are primarily used to receive user input and output data to the user. It should be noted that some types of network devices may not have input / output devices.

[0314] When data needs to be transmitted, the processor performs baseband processing on the data to be transmitted and outputs a baseband signal to the radio frequency (RF) circuit. The RF circuit then processes the baseband signal and transmits it outwards as electromagnetic waves via an antenna. When data is sent to the network device, the RF circuit receives the RF signal through the antenna. The RF circuit converts the RF signal back into a baseband signal and outputs it to the processor. The processor converts the baseband signal back into data and processes the data. For ease of explanation, Figure 11 shows only one memory, processor, and transceiver. In actual network device products, there may be one or more processors and one or more memories. Memory can also be called storage medium or storage device, etc. Memory can be set up independently of the processor or integrated with the processor; this embodiment does not limit this.

[0315] In this embodiment, the antenna and radio frequency circuit with transceiver function can be regarded as the transceiver module of the network device, and the processor with processing function can be regarded as the processing module of the network device.

[0316] As shown in Figure 11, the network device includes a processor 1110, a memory 1120, and a transceiver 1130. The processor 1110 can also be referred to as a processing unit, processing board, processing module, or processing device, etc. The transceiver 1130 can also be referred to as a transceiver unit, transceiver, or transceiver device, etc.

[0317] Optionally, the device in transceiver 1130 used to implement the receiving function can be considered a receiving module, and the device in transceiver 1130 used to implement the transmitting function can be considered a transmitting module. That is, transceiver 1130 includes a receiver and a transmitter. A transceiver may sometimes be called a transceiver unit, transceiver module, or transceiver circuit, etc. A receiver may sometimes be called a receiver unit, receiving module, or receiving circuit, etc. A transmitter may sometimes be called a transmitter, transmitting module, or transmitting circuit, etc.

[0318] The processor 1110 is used to execute the processing actions on the network device side in the embodiment shown in FIG. 6. The transceiver 1130 is used to execute the sending and receiving actions on the network device side in the embodiment shown in FIG. 6.

[0319] It should be understood that Figure 11 is merely an example and not a limitation, and the network device described above, including the transceiver module and the processing module, may not depend on the structure shown in Figure 8 or Figure 11.

[0320] When the communication device 1100 is a chip, the chip includes a processor, a memory, and a transceiver. The transceiver can be an input / output circuit or a communication interface. The processor can be a processing module integrated on the chip, a microprocessor, or an integrated circuit. In the above method embodiments, the transmitting operation of the network device can be understood as the output of the chip, and the receiving operation of the network device in the above method embodiments can be understood as the input of the chip.

[0321] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon computer instructions for implementing the methods executed by a terminal device or a network device in the above method embodiments.

[0322] For example, when the computer program is executed by a computer, it enables the computer to implement the methods executed by the terminal device or network device in the above method embodiments.

[0323] This application also provides a computer program product containing instructions that, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform the method described in the above method embodiments, which is executed by a terminal device or a network device.

[0324] This application also provides a communication system, which includes a terminal device and a network device. The terminal device is used to perform some or all of the operations performed by the terminal device in the embodiment shown in FIG. 6 above, and the network device is used to perform some or all of the operations performed by the network device in the embodiment shown in FIG. 6 above.

[0325] This application also provides a chip device, including a processor, for calling computer programs or computer instructions stored in the memory to cause the processor to execute the method provided in the embodiment shown in FIG6 above.

[0326] In one possible implementation, the input of the chip device corresponds to the receiving operation in any of the embodiments shown in FIG. 6, and the output of the chip device corresponds to the sending operation in any of the embodiments shown in FIG. 6.

[0327] Optionally, the processor is coupled to the memory via an interface.

[0328] Optionally, the chip device may also include a memory that stores computer programs or computer instructions.

[0329] The processor mentioned above can be a general-purpose central processing unit, a microprocessor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits used to control the execution of a program for controlling the methods provided in any of the embodiments shown above and in Figure 6. The memory mentioned above can be read-only memory (ROM) or other types of static storage devices capable of storing static information and instructions, such as random access memory (RAM).

[0330] Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that, for the sake of convenience and brevity, the explanations and beneficial effects of the relevant contents in any of the above-mentioned devices can be referred to the corresponding method embodiments provided above, and will not be repeated here.

[0331] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, apparatuses, and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for instance, the division of units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be an indirect coupling or communication connection between apparatuses or units through some interfaces, and may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0332] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0333] Furthermore, the functional units in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit. The integrated unit can be implemented in hardware or as a software functional unit.

[0334] If the integrated unit is implemented as a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the essential contribution of the technical solution of this application, or all or part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, portable hard drives, ROM, RAM, magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0335] The above-described embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of this application, and are not intended to limit it. Although this application has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications can still be made to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or equivalent substitutions can be made to some of the technical features. Such modifications or substitutions do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application.

Claims

1. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method is applied to a terminal device or a chip in a terminal device, and the method includes: Receive an indication message, the indication message carrying information about N uplink beams corresponding to the synchronization signal block (SSB) beam, where N is a positive integer greater than 1; According to the instruction message, the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams is determined, and the terminal device is located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam; First information is determined, which is associated with the first uplink beam, and is used to receive a target random access response message.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The first information includes a first random access wireless network temporary identifier, and determining the first information includes: Based on the first uplink beam and the target random access timing, the first random access radio network temporary identifier is determined, and the first random access radio network temporary identifier is used to receive the target random access response message.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein, The first information includes the identifier of the first uplink beam, and determining the first information includes: The identifier of the first uplink beam is determined, and the identifier of the first uplink beam is used to receive the target random access response message.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein, The first information includes the target random access timing, and determining the first information includes: Based on the first uplink beam, the target random access opportunity is determined. The target random access opportunity is one of M random access opportunities. Each of the M random access opportunities corresponds to one of the N uplink beams, where M is a positive integer greater than or equal to N.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein, The target random access timing is determined based on the first uplink beam.

6. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 5, characterized in that, The first information matches the second information, which is used to send the target random access response message.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein, The information of the N uplink beams includes information about the coverage area of ​​each of the N uplink beams. Determining the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams according to the indication message includes: Based on the location information of the terminal device and the indication message, the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams is determined.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein, The information of the N uplink beams includes information on the resources of the reference signal associated with each of the N uplink beams. Determining the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams according to the indication message includes: Based on the information of the resources of the reference signal associated with each uplink beam, the reference signal associated with each uplink beam is received. The first uplink beam is determined, wherein the received power (RSRP) of the reference signal associated with the first uplink beam is greater than or equal to the RSRP of the reference signals associated with other uplink beams, wherein the other uplink beams are the uplink beams other than the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein, The instruction message also carries at least one or more of the following: frequency offset information corresponding to each uplink beam, timing advance (TA) information corresponding to each uplink beam, reference position information corresponding to each uplink beam, the change in frequency offset over time corresponding to each uplink beam, and the change in TA over time corresponding to each uplink beam. The method further includes: Synchronize with network devices according to the instruction message.

10. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method is applied to a network device or a chip in a network device, and the method includes: Send an indication message, the indication message carrying information about N uplink beams corresponding to the synchronization signal block SSB beam, where N is a positive integer greater than 1; The second information is determined and associated with the first uplink beam among the N uplink beams. The second information is used to send a target random access response message. The terminal device corresponding to the target random access response message is located within the coverage area of ​​the first uplink beam.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein, The second information includes a second random access wireless network temporary identifier, and determining the second information includes: Based on the first uplink beam and the target random access timing, a second random access radio network temporary identifier is determined, and the second random access radio network temporary identifier is used to send the target random access response message.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein, The second information includes the identifier of the first uplink beam, and determining the second information includes: The identifier of the first uplink beam is determined, and the identifier of the first uplink beam is used to send the target random access response message.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein, The second information includes the target random access timing, and determining the second information includes: Based on the first uplink beam, the target random access opportunity is determined. The target random access opportunity is one of M random access opportunities. Each of the M random access opportunities corresponds to one of the N uplink beams, where M is a positive integer greater than or equal to N.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein, The target random access timing is determined based on the first uplink beam.

15. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 14, characterized in that, The second information matches the first information, which is used to receive the target random access response message.

16. The method of claim 10, wherein, The information of the N uplink beams includes information about the coverage area of ​​each of the N uplink beams.

17. The method of claim 10, wherein, The information of the N uplink beams includes information about the resources of the reference signal associated with each of the N uplink beams, and the method further includes: Based on the information of the resources of the reference signal associated with each uplink beam, the reference signal associated with each uplink beam is transmitted.

18. The method according to claim 17, characterized in that, The indication message also carries at least one or more of the following: information on the frequency offset corresponding to each uplink beam, information on the timing advance (TA) corresponding to each uplink beam, information on the reference position corresponding to each uplink beam, the change in frequency offset over time corresponding to each uplink beam, and the change in TA over time corresponding to each uplink beam.

19. A terminal device, characterized in that, The terminal device includes: Memory is used to store computer programs or instructions; A processor for executing a computer program or instructions stored in the memory, causing the terminal to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 9.

20. A network device, comprising: The network device includes: Memory is used to store computer programs or instructions; A processor for executing a computer program or instructions stored in the memory, causing the network device to perform the method as described in any one of claims 10 to 18.

21. A communication device, characterized in that, The communication device includes a transceiver module and a processing module; the transceiver module is used to perform the transceiver operation of the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 9, and the processing module is used to perform the processing operation of the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 9.

22. A communication device, characterized in that, The communication device includes a transceiver module and a processing module; the transceiver module is used to perform the transceiver operation of the method as described in any one of claims 10 to 18, or to implement the transceiver operation of the method as described in any one of claims 10 to 18, and the processing module is used to perform the processing operation of the method as described in any one of claims 10 to 18.

23. A computer storage medium, characterized in that, The computer storage medium is used to store computer programs or instructions, which, when executed, are used to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, or to implement the method according to any one of claims 10 to 18.

24. A computer program product, characterised in that, Includes instructions that, when executed, cause the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 9 to be implemented, or cause the method as described in any one of claims 10 to 18 to be implemented.

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