Communication method and related apparatus

Abstract

A communication method and a related apparatus. In the method, a first network element may select, by means of a device quantity indicated by second quantity information, devices matching the device quantity, and indicates, by means of first device information included in third information, the devices selected by the first network element, such that a first communication apparatus can obtain device information of a quantity that matches the quantity expected by a data requirement, and thus the first communication apparatus can implement, by means of an appropriate quantity of devices indicated by the device information, a data collection process corresponding to the data requirement, thereby improving data collection performance. For example, the first network element may select an appropriate quantity of devices on the basis of second quantity information included in second information, thereby avoiding or reducing occurrence of a case in which the first network element selects too few devices, resulting in an insufficient amount of data and failure to satisfy the data requirement, and avoiding or reducing occurrence of a case in which the first network element selects too many devices, resulting in redundant transmission of device information.

Description

A communication method and related apparatus

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. CN202510382354.5, filed on March 27, 2025, entitled "A Communication Method and Related Device", the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

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

[0003] With the development of communication technology, in addition to processing communication data related to wireless access communication services, communication devices may also be involved in data from other services, including but not limited to artificial intelligence (AI) services and sensing services.

[0004] Generally, communication devices can acquire this data through data collection (or acquisition) to meet the needs of the other services mentioned above. However, in communication networks, with the continuous increase in the number of devices connected to the network, how to select the devices for data collection from among the numerous devices is a technical problem that urgently needs to be solved. Summary of the Invention

[0005] This application provides a communication method and related apparatus for improving data collection performance by selecting an appropriate number of devices to carry out the data collection process.

[0006] This application provides a communication method applied to a first communication device. For example, the first communication device may be a network device, or it may be a module (e.g., a circuit, chip, or chip system) within a network device. Alternatively, the first communication device may be a circuit or chip within a network device responsible for communication and / or computing functions. Alternatively, the method may be executed by a logical node, logical module, or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the network device. The network device may be a network data analytics function (NWDAF) or other devices defined in the future network definition. In the following description, the method of the first aspect is executed by the first communication device.

[0007] In this method, a first communication device acquires first information, which indicates a data demand; wherein, the first information is used to determine first quantity information (e.g., the first information may include the first quantity information), which indicates the number of devices corresponding to the data demand; the first communication device sends second information to a first network element, which requests device information; the second information includes second quantity information, which indicates the number of devices, and is determined based on the first quantity information; the first communication device receives third information from the first network element, which includes first device information, and the number of devices indicated by the first device information is greater than or equal to the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information. For example, the devices indicated by the first device information can be used to collect data corresponding to the data demand.

[0008] Based on the above scheme, after the first communication device determines the first quantity information based on the first information indicating the data demand, it can then determine the second quantity information corresponding to the first network element based on the first quantity information and send the second information to the first network element to indicate the requested device information. This second information can indicate the second quantity information. Subsequently, the first node can send third information based on the second information. This third information can be a response to the second information, wherein the number of devices indicated by the first device information contained in the third information is greater than or equal to the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information. In this way, the first network element can select devices matching the number indicated by the second quantity information, and the selected devices are indicated by the first device information contained in the third information. This allows the first communication device to obtain the number of devices required to meet the data demand, enabling it to complete the data collection process corresponding to the data demand using the appropriate number of devices indicated by the device information, thereby improving data collection performance.

[0009] As an example, the first network element can select an appropriate number of devices based on the second quantity information contained in the second information. This can avoid or reduce the situation where the first network element selects too few devices, resulting in insufficient data and failing to meet data requirements. It can also avoid or reduce the situation where the first network element selects too many devices, resulting in redundant transmission of device information. In this way, the device selection process can be optimized through the indication of the second quantity information to improve data collection performance.

[0010] Optionally, in this application, the device indicated by the device information (such as the first device information mentioned above, the second device information described below, etc.) may include one or more terminal devices. Optionally, the device indicated by the device information may also include other devices, such as access network devices, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, Ambient IoT (AIoT) devices, etc.

[0011] Alternatively, in this application, data requirement can be replaced with data collection requirement, data collection request, or other descriptions defined in the future network definition.

[0012] Alternatively, in this application, "collection" can be replaced with "acquisition," "acquisition," or other descriptions defined by the future network.

[0013] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the method further includes: the first communication device sending fourth information to the second network element, the fourth information being used to request device information; the fourth information including third quantity information indicating the number of devices, the third quantity information being determined based on the first quantity information; the first communication device receiving fifth information from the second network element, the fifth information including second device information, the number of devices indicated by the second device information being greater than or equal to the number of devices indicated by the third quantity information. For example, the devices indicated by the second device information can be used to collect data corresponding to the data request.

[0014] Based on the above scheme, the second network element can select devices matching the number of devices indicated by the third quantity information, and indicate the selected devices by the second device information contained in the fifth information. In this way, the first communication device can obtain device information that meets the expected number of data requirements through at least two network elements (including the aforementioned first and second network elements, and possibly 0 or 1 or more other network elements), so that the first communication device can realize the data collection process corresponding to the data requirements through the appropriate number of devices indicated by these device information, thereby improving data collection performance.

[0015] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information is equal to the number of devices indicated by the third quantity information.

[0016] Based on the above scheme, when the first communication device obtains the number of device information that meets the data requirements through at least two network elements, the number of devices corresponding to different network elements in the at least two network elements can be the same. That is, the first communication device can indicate the same number of devices to these network elements. The implementation complexity can be reduced by distributing the information equally among different network elements.

[0017] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the second quantity information is determined based on the first quantity information, the service area information of the first network element, and the area information corresponding to the data demand; and / or, the third quantity information is determined based on the first quantity information, the service area information of the second network element, and the area information corresponding to the data demand.

[0018] Based on the above scheme, when the first communication device obtains the desired number of devices that meet the data requirements through at least two network elements, the first communication device can indicate to these network elements the first quantity information corresponding to the data requirements, the service area information of each network element, and the quantity information determined by the area information corresponding to the data requirements. In this way, each network element can feed back to the first communication device the quantity of devices that matches the data requirements and its own service area.

[0019] Optionally, the area information corresponding to the data requirement may indicate one or more of the following: area of ​​interest (AoI), one or more tracking areas (TA), one or more radio access network (RAN) service areas, or scenario information.

[0020] For example, the RAN service area can be indicated by one or more of the following: RAN identifier, cell identifier, or cell index.

[0021] For example, scene information can indicate one or more of the following: indoor, outdoor, line of sight (LOS), non-line of sight (NLOS), country, or city.

[0022] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the first information includes at least one of the following: the data type corresponding to the data requirement, the region corresponding to the data requirement, the total amount of data corresponding to the data requirement, the use case corresponding to the data requirement, or, the data collection time information corresponding to the data requirement.

[0023] Based on the above scheme, the first information used to indicate data requirements can be implemented through at least one of the above methods to improve the flexibility of the scheme implementation.

[0024] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the device indicated by the first device information supports participation in data collection in the first state. For example, the device indicated by the first device information supports participation in data collection in the first state by default.

[0025] Optionally, the first state involved in this application can be an idle state (such as Radio Resource Control idle state (RRC_IDLE), Connection Management idle state (Connection Management-IDLE, CM-IDLE), or other implementations defined by the future network), Radio Resource Control inactive state (RRC_INACTIVE), power saving state, or other implementations defined by the future network.

[0026] Based on the above scheme, the devices indicated by the device information received by the first communication device can all support participating in data collection in the first state. That is, the sender of the device information (such as the first node or the second node) can select devices that support participating in data collection in the first state and indicate these selected devices through the device information. Generally, the state of a device may change. If the first communication device indicates that it does not support participating in data collection in the first state, it is very likely that the indicated device will be unable to perform data collection due to being in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. However, in the above process, the first communication device can determine the devices that support participating in data collection in the first state through the received first device information, thereby avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the above situation and reducing overhead.

[0027] Optionally, the fifth message sent by the second node may include second device information, which indicates that the device supports participation in data collection in the first state. Accordingly, the first communication device can determine the device that supports participation in data collection in the first state by receiving the second device information, thereby avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the above-mentioned situation and reducing overhead.

[0028] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the third information includes first indication information, which is used to indicate whether the device indicated by the first device information supports or is allowed to participate in data collection in the first state.

[0029] Based on the above scheme, the first communication device can determine whether the device indicated by the first device information contained in the third information supports or is allowed to participate in data collection in the first state by using the first indication information contained in the third information. Generally, the state of the device may change. If the first communication device indicates that it does not support participating in data collection in the first state, it is very likely that the device being indicated will be unable to perform data collection due to its current state in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. In the above process, the first communication device can determine whether the device indicated by the first device information supports or is allowed to participate in data collection in the first state by receiving the first indication information. This allows the first communication device to instruct the device that supports participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, without instructing the device that does not support participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, thereby avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the above situation and reducing overhead.

[0030] Optionally, the first communication device may obtain the first indication information through other means. For example, the first communication device may receive the first indication information from a third communication device, which may be a UDM, NRF, or other implementation defined in the future network. For instance, the first communication device may send a request message to the third communication device requesting the first indication information, causing the third communication device to send the first indication information back to the first communication device based on the request message.

[0031] Optionally, the fifth information may also include an indication message, which indicates whether the device indicated by the second device information supports or allows participation in data collection in the first state. Accordingly, the first communication device can determine whether the device indicated by the second device information supports or allows participation in data collection in the first state by receiving the indication message. This allows the first communication device to instruct devices that support participation in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, without instructing devices that do not support participation in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, thereby avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the aforementioned situation and reducing overhead.

[0032] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the second information includes second indication information used to query the device status; wherein the third information further includes third indication information used to indicate the status of the device indicated by the first device information.

[0033] Based on the above scheme, the second information may further include second indication information for querying device status, enabling the recipient of the second information to indicate the status of the device indicated by the first device information through the third indication information carried in the third information. In this way, the first communication device can determine the status of each device through the third indication information and, based on the status of each device, determine whether to instruct each device to perform data collection. For example, the first communication device can instruct devices that are not currently in the first state or are currently in the second state to perform data collection. As another example, the first communication device can instruct devices that are currently in the first state and support participation in data collection in the first state to perform data collection.

[0034] Optionally, the second state mentioned above may include an RRC connected state, a non-energy-saving state, or other implementations defined in the future network.

[0035] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the first communication device acquiring the first information includes: the first communication device receiving the first information from a third-party device.

[0036] Based on the above scheme, the first communication device can receive first information from a third-party device, that is, the first information can indicate the data needs of the third-party device, so that the above scheme can be applied to scenarios where data is collected through a communication network to meet the data needs of the third-party device.

[0037] Optionally, the third-party devices involved in this application may include: over-the-top (OTT) servers, OTT virtual machines, cloud servers, or other implementations defined by the future network.

[0038] Optionally, the first communication device acquires the first information, including: the first communication device determines the first information based on one or more parameters. For example, the one or more parameters may include at least one of the following: data acquisition requirements pre-configured locally or configured by network management elements, network optimization tasks triggered by network policies, or model (re)training tasks triggered by local policies, etc.

[0039] A second aspect of this application provides a communication method applied to a second communication device. For example, the second communication device may be a network device, or it may be a module (e.g., a circuit, chip, or chip system) within a network device, or it may be a circuit or chip (e.g., a GPU, NPU, AI processor, or ASIC) within a network device responsible for communication and / or computing functions. Alternatively, the method may be executed by a logical node, logical module, or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the network device. The network device may be a first network element as described above, such as an access and mobility management function (AMF) or other devices defined by the future network. In the following description, the method of the second aspect is exemplified by execution by a second communication device.

[0040] In this method, a second communication device receives second information for requesting device information; the second information includes second quantity information for indicating the number of devices; the second communication device sends third information, which includes first device information, wherein the number of devices indicated by the first device information is greater than or equal to the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information.

[0041] Based on the above scheme, the second communication device receives second information for requesting device information, which includes second quantity information indicating the requested number of devices. Subsequently, the second communication device can send third information containing first device information, which is a response to the second information. The number of devices indicated by the first device information in the third information is greater than or equal to the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information. In this way, the second communication device can select devices matching the number indicated by the second quantity information and indicate the selected devices by the first network element through the first device information contained in the third information. This allows the receiver of the third information (such as the first communication device) to obtain the desired number of devices that meet the data requirements, enabling the receiver to complete the data collection process corresponding to the data requirements using the appropriate number of devices indicated by the device information, thereby improving data collection performance.

[0042] As an example, the second communication device can select an appropriate number of devices based on the second quantity information contained in the second information. This can avoid or reduce the situation where the second communication device selects too few devices, resulting in insufficient data and failing to meet data requirements. It can also avoid or reduce the situation where the second communication device selects too many devices, resulting in redundant transmission of device information. In this way, the device selection process can be optimized through the indication of the second quantity information to improve data collection performance.

[0043] In one possible implementation of the second aspect, the device indicated by the first device information supports participation in data collection in the first state. For example, the device indicated by the first device information supports participation in data collection in the first state by default.

[0044] Based on the above scheme, the devices indicated by the first device information sent by the second communication device can all support participation in data collection in the first state. That is, the second communication device can select devices that support participation in data collection in the first state and indicate these selected devices through the first device information. Generally, the state of a device may change. If the first communication device indicates that it does not support participation in data collection in the first state, it is very likely that data collection will not be able to be performed due to the indicated device being currently in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. However, in the above process, the second communication device can avoid or reduce the occurrence of the above situation by indicating the devices that support participation in data collection in the first state through the first device information it sends, thereby reducing overhead.

[0045] In one possible implementation of the second aspect, the third information includes first indication information, which indicates whether the device indicated by the first device information supports or is allowed to participate in data collection in the first state.

[0046] Based on the above scheme, the recipient of the third information (such as the first communication device) can determine, through the first indication information contained in the third information, whether the device indicated by the first device information contained in the third information supports or is allowed to participate in data collection in the first state. Generally, the state of a device may change. If the first communication device indicates that it does not support participating in data collection in the first state, it is highly likely that the indicated device will be unable to perform data collection due to its current state in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. However, in the above process, the recipient of the third information can determine, through the received first indication information, whether the device indicated by the first device information supports or is allowed to participate in data collection in the first state. This allows the recipient to instruct the device that supports participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, without needing to instruct the device that does not support participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, thereby avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the aforementioned situation and reducing overhead.

[0047] In one possible implementation of the second aspect, the second information includes second indication information used to query the device status; wherein the third information further includes third indication information used to indicate the status of the device indicated by the first device information.

[0048] Based on the above scheme, the second information may further include second indication information for querying device status, enabling the second communication device to indicate the status of the device indicated by the first device information through the third indication information carried in the third information. In this way, the recipient of the third information (such as the first communication device) can determine the status of each device through the third indication information and, based on the status of each device, determine whether to instruct each device to perform data collection. For example, the recipient may instruct a device that is not currently in the first state or is currently in the second state to perform data collection. Alternatively, the recipient may instruct a device currently in the first state and capable of participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection.

[0049] A third aspect of this application provides a communication method applied to a first communication device. For example, the first communication device may be a network device, or it may be a module (e.g., a circuit, chip, or chip system) within a network device. Alternatively, the first communication device may be a circuit or chip within a network device responsible for communication and / or computing functions. Alternatively, the method may be executed by a logical node, logical module, or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the network device. The network device may be a network data analytics function (NWDAF) or other devices defined in the future network definition. In the following description, the method of the third aspect is executed by the first communication device.

[0050] In this method, a first communication device acquires sixth information, which indicates a data requirement; wherein the sixth information is used to determine fourth quantity information (e.g., the sixth information may include the fourth quantity information), and the fourth quantity information indicates the number of devices corresponding to the data requirement; the first communication device receives seventh information, which includes third device information; wherein the third device information and the fourth quantity information are used to determine the fourth device information. For example, the device indicated by the fourth device information is used to collect the data corresponding to the data requirement.

[0051] Based on the above scheme, the first communication device can determine the fourth quantity information based on the sixth information indicating the data requirement. Furthermore, after receiving the seventh information containing the third device information, the first communication device can determine the fourth device information based on the third device information and the fourth quantity information. Subsequently, the first communication device can collect data using the devices indicated by the fourth device information. In this way, the first communication device can select devices matching the quantity indicated by the fourth quantity information, enabling it to obtain the desired number of devices for the data requirement. This allows the first communication device to complete the data collection process corresponding to the data requirement using the appropriate number of devices indicated by the device information, thereby improving data collection performance.

[0052] As an example, the first communication device can select an appropriate number of devices based on the fourth quantity information. This can avoid or reduce the situation where the first communication device selects too few devices, resulting in insufficient data and failing to meet data requirements. It can also avoid or reduce the situation where the first communication device selects too many devices, resulting in redundant transmission of device information. In this way, the device selection process can be optimized through quantity information to improve data collection performance.

[0053] In one possible implementation of the third aspect, the sixth information includes at least one of the following: the data type corresponding to the data requirement, the region corresponding to the data requirement, the total amount of data corresponding to the data requirement, the use case corresponding to the data requirement, or, the data collection time information corresponding to the data requirement.

[0054] Based on the above scheme, the sixth piece of information used to indicate data requirements can be implemented through at least one of the above methods to improve the flexibility of the scheme implementation.

[0055] In one possible implementation of the third aspect, the device indicated by the third device information supports participation in data collection in the first state.

[0056] Based on the above scheme, the devices indicated by the third device information received by the first communication device can all support participating in data collection in the first state. That is, the sender of the device information (such as the first node) can select devices that support participating in data collection in the first state and indicate these selected devices through the device information. Generally, the state of a device may change. If the first communication device indicates that it does not support participating in data collection in the first state, it is very likely that the indicated device will be unable to perform data collection due to being in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. However, in the above process, the first communication device can determine the devices that support participating in data collection in the first state through the received third device information, thereby avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the above situation and reducing overhead.

[0057] In one possible implementation of the third aspect, the seventh information includes fourth indication information, which is used to indicate whether the device indicated by the third device information supports or allows participation in data collection in the first state.

[0058] Based on the above scheme, the first communication device can determine, through the fourth indication information included in the seventh information, whether the device indicated by the third device information in the seventh information supports or is allowed to participate in data collection in the first state. Generally, the state of a device may change. If the first communication device indicates that it does not support participating in data collection in the first state, it is highly likely that the indicated device will be unable to perform data collection due to its current state in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. However, in the above process, the first communication device can determine, through the received fourth indication information, whether the device indicated by the third device information supports or is allowed to participate in data collection in the first state. This allows the first communication device to instruct devices that support participation in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, without instructing devices that do not support participation in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, thereby avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the aforementioned situation and lowering overhead.

[0059] Optionally, the first communication device may obtain the fourth indication information through other means. For example, the first communication device may receive the fourth indication information from a third communication device, which may be a UDM, NRF, or other implementation defined in the future network. For instance, the first communication device may send a request message to the third communication device requesting the fourth indication information, causing the third communication device to send the fourth indication information to the first communication device based on the request message.

[0060] In one possible implementation of the third aspect, the method further includes: the first communication device sending an eighth message, the eighth message being used to request device information, and the seventh message being a response to the eighth message; wherein the eighth message includes a fifth indication message, the fifth indication message being used to query the device status, and the seventh message further includes a sixth indication message, the sixth indication message being used to indicate the status of the device indicated by the third device information.

[0061] Based on the above scheme, the seventh information can be a response to the eighth information used to request device information. The eighth information may include a fifth indication for querying device status, enabling the recipient of the eighth information to indicate the status of the device indicated by the third device information via the sixth indication carried in the seventh information. In this way, the first communication device can determine the status of each device through the sixth indication and, based on the status of each device, determine whether to instruct each device to perform data collection. For example, the first communication device can instruct a device that is not currently in the first state or is currently in the second state to perform data collection. Alternatively, the first communication device can instruct a device currently in the first state and capable of participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection.

[0062] In one possible implementation of the third aspect, the first communication device acquires the sixth information by receiving the sixth information from a third-party device.

[0063] Based on the above scheme, the first communication device can receive sixth information from a third-party device, that is, the sixth information can indicate the data needs of the third-party device, so that the above scheme can be applied to scenarios where data is collected through a communication network to meet the data needs of the third-party device.

[0064] Optionally, the first communication device acquires the sixth information, including: the first communication device determines the sixth information based on one or more parameters. For example, the one or more parameters may include at least one of the following: data acquisition requirements pre-configured locally or configured by network management elements, network optimization tasks triggered by network policies, model (re)training tasks triggered by local policies, etc.

[0065] A fourth aspect of this application provides a communication method applied to a first communication device. For example, the first communication device may be a network device, or it may be a module (e.g., a circuit, chip, or chip system) within a network device. Alternatively, the first communication device may be a circuit or chip within a network device responsible for communication and / or computing functions. Alternatively, the method may be executed by a logical node, logical module, or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the network device. The network device may be a network data analytics function (NWDAF) or other devices defined in a future network. In the following description, the method of the fourth aspect is exemplified by execution by the first communication device.

[0066] In this method, the first communication device receives a ninth message, which includes fifth device information; wherein the device indicated by the fifth device information supports participating in data collection in a first state; or, the ninth message includes an eighth indication message, which is used to indicate whether the device indicated by the fifth device information supports or allows participation in data collection in the first state; the first communication device sends a data collection request based on the fifth device information.

[0067] Based on the above scheme, after the first communication device receives the ninth information containing the fifth device information, the first communication device can send a data collection request based on the fifth device information. Wherein, the ninth information or the fifth device information satisfies the above scheme, communication overhead can be reduced.

[0068] For example, the device indicated by the fifth device information supports participating in data collection in the first state. In other words, all devices indicated by the fifth device information received by the first communication device can support participating in data collection in the first state. That is, the sender of the device information (such as the first node) can select devices that support participating in data collection in the first state and select these devices through the fifth device information. Generally, the state of a device may change. If the first communication device indicates that it does not support participating in data collection in the first state, it is very likely that data collection cannot be performed because the indicated device is currently in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. In the above process, the first communication device can determine the devices that support participating in data collection in the first state through the received fifth device information, thereby avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the above situation and reducing overhead.

[0069] For example, the ninth information includes eighth indication information, which indicates whether the device indicated by the fifth device information supports or is permitted to participate in data collection in the first state. In other words, the first communication device can determine whether the device indicated by the fifth device information in the ninth information supports or is permitted to participate in data collection in the first state by using the eighth indication information included in the ninth information. Generally, the state of a device may change. If the first communication device indicates that it does not support participating in data collection in the first state, it is very likely that the indicated device will be unable to perform data collection due to its current state in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. In the above process, the first communication device can determine whether the device indicated by the fifth device information supports or is permitted to participate in data collection in the first state by receiving the eighth indication information. This allows the first communication device to instruct the device that supports participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, without instructing the device that does not support participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, thereby avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the above situation and reducing overhead.

[0070] Optionally, the first communication device sending a data collection request based on the fifth device information includes: the first communication device sending a data collection request to some or all of the devices indicated by the fifth device information based on the fifth device information. For example, the first communication device may select some or all of the devices indicated by the fifth device information based on information indicating data demand, and send a data collection request to the selected devices. The information indicating data demand may be the first information or the sixth information mentioned above, etc., and specific implementations can be found in the preceding description.

[0071] Optionally, the first communication device may obtain the eighth indication information through other means. For example, the first communication device may receive the eighth indication information from a third communication device, which may be a UDM, NRF, or other implementation defined by a future network. For instance, the first communication device may send a request message to the third communication device requesting the eighth indication information, causing the third communication device to send the eighth indication information to the first communication device based on the request message.

[0072] In one possible implementation of the fourth aspect, the method further includes: the first communication device sending tenth information, the tenth information being used to request device information, and the ninth information being a response to the tenth information; wherein the tenth information includes ninth indication information, the ninth indication information being used to query the status of the device; the ninth information also includes tenth indication information, the tenth indication information being used to indicate the status of the device indicated by the fifth device information.

[0073] Based on the above scheme, the ninth information can be a response to the tenth information used to request device information. The tenth information may include a ninth indication for querying device status, enabling the recipient of the tenth information to indicate the status of the device indicated by the fifth device information through the tenth indication carried in the ninth information. In this way, the first communication device can determine the status of each device through the tenth indication and, based on the status of each device, determine whether to instruct each device to perform data collection. For example, the first communication device can instruct a device that is not currently in the first state or is currently in the second state to perform data collection. Alternatively, the first communication device can instruct a device currently in the first state and capable of participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection.

[0074] This application provides a communication method applied to a second communication device. For example, the second communication device may be a network device, or it may be a module (e.g., a circuit, chip, or chip system) within a network device, or it may be a circuit or chip (e.g., a GPU, NPU, AI processor, or ASIC) within a network device responsible for communication and / or computing functions. Alternatively, the method may be executed by a logical node, logical module, or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the network device. The network device may be an access and mobility management function (AMF), a UDM, or other device defined by a future network. In the following description, the method of the fifth aspect is exemplified by execution by a second communication device.

[0075] In this method, the second communication device sends a ninth message, which includes fifth device information; wherein the device indicated by the fifth device information supports participating in data collection in the first state; or, the ninth message includes an eighth indication message, which is used to indicate whether the device indicated by the fifth device information supports or allows participation in data collection in the first state.

[0076] Optionally, if the device indicated by the fifth device information supports participation in data collection in the first state, the second communication device may be an AMF. If the ninth information includes the eighth indication information, the second communication device may be a UDM.

[0077] Based on the above scheme, after the second communication device sends the ninth information containing the fifth device information to the first communication device, the first communication device can send a data collection request based on the fifth device information. The ninth information or the fifth device information satisfies the above scheme, which can reduce communication overhead.

[0078] For example, the device indicated by the fifth device information supports participating in data collection in the first state. In other words, all devices indicated by the fifth device information received by the first communication device can support participating in data collection in the first state. That is, the sender of the device information (such as the first node) can select devices that support participating in data collection in the first state and select these devices through the fifth device information. Generally, the state of a device may change. If the first communication device indicates that it does not support participating in data collection in the first state, it is very likely that data collection cannot be performed because the indicated device is currently in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. In the above process, the first communication device can determine the devices that support participating in data collection in the first state through the received fifth device information, thereby avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the above situation and reducing overhead.

[0079] For example, the ninth information includes eighth indication information, which indicates whether the device indicated by the fifth device information supports or is permitted to participate in data collection in the first state. In other words, the first communication device can determine whether the device indicated by the fifth device information in the ninth information supports or is permitted to participate in data collection in the first state by using the eighth indication information included in the ninth information. Generally, the state of a device may change. If the first communication device indicates that it does not support participating in data collection in the first state, it is very likely that the indicated device will be unable to perform data collection due to its current state in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. In the above process, the first communication device can determine whether the device indicated by the fifth device information supports or is permitted to participate in data collection in the first state by receiving the eighth indication information. This allows the first communication device to instruct the device that supports participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, without instructing the device that does not support participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, thereby avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the above situation and reducing overhead.

[0080] In one possible implementation of the fifth aspect, the method further includes: the second communication device receiving tenth information, the tenth information being used to request device information, and the ninth information being a response to the tenth information; wherein the tenth information includes ninth indication information, the ninth indication information being used to query the status of the device; the ninth information also includes tenth indication information, the tenth indication information being used to indicate the status of the device indicated by the fifth device information.

[0081] Based on the above scheme, the ninth information can be a response to the tenth information used to request device information. The tenth information may include a ninth indication for querying device status, enabling the second communication device to indicate the status of the device indicated by the fifth device information to the first communication device via the ninth indication carried in the tenth information. In this way, the first communication device can determine the status of each device through the tenth indication and, based on the status of each device, determine whether to instruct each device to perform data collection. For example, the first communication device can instruct a device that is not currently in the first state or is currently in the second state to perform data collection. Alternatively, the first communication device can instruct a device currently in the first state and capable of participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection.

[0082] A sixth aspect of this application provides a communication apparatus, comprising a transceiver unit and a processing unit. The processing unit is configured to acquire first information indicating a data demand. The first information determines first quantity information, which indicates the number of devices corresponding to the data demand. The transceiver unit is configured to send second information to a first network element, requesting device information. The second information includes second quantity information indicating the number of devices, and this second quantity information is determined based on the first quantity information. The transceiver unit is further configured to receive third information from the first network element, the third information including first device information, wherein the number of devices indicated by the first device information is greater than or equal to the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information. For example, the devices indicated by the first device information can be used to collect data corresponding to the data demand.

[0083] In the sixth aspect of this application, the constituent modules of the communication device can also be used to perform the steps executed in various possible implementations of the first aspect and achieve the corresponding technical effects. For details, please refer to the first aspect, which will not be repeated here.

[0084] A seventh aspect of this application provides a communication device, the device including a transceiver unit for receiving second information for requesting device information; the second information includes second quantity information for indicating a number of devices; the transceiver unit is further configured to send third information, the third information including first device information, the number of devices indicated by the first device information being greater than or equal to the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information.

[0085] In the seventh aspect of this application, the constituent modules of the communication device can also be used to perform the steps executed in various possible implementations of the second aspect and achieve the corresponding technical effects. For details, please refer to the second aspect, which will not be repeated here.

[0086] An eighth aspect of this application provides a communication apparatus, comprising a transceiver unit and a processing unit; the processing unit is configured to acquire sixth information, the sixth information indicating a data demand; wherein the sixth information is used to determine fourth quantity information, the fourth quantity information indicating the number of devices corresponding to the data demand; the transceiver unit is configured to receive seventh information, the seventh information including third device information; wherein the third device information and the fourth quantity information are used to determine the fourth device information. For example, the device indicated by the fourth device information is used to collect data corresponding to the data demand.

[0087] In the eighth aspect of this application, the constituent modules of the communication device can also be used to perform the steps executed in various possible implementations of the third aspect and achieve the corresponding technical effects. For details, please refer to the third aspect, which will not be repeated here.

[0088] A ninth aspect of this application provides a communication device, which includes a transceiver unit and a processing unit; the transceiver unit is configured to receive ninth information, the ninth information including fifth device information; wherein the device indicated by the fifth device information supports participating in data collection in a first state; or, the ninth information includes eighth indication information, the eighth indication information being used to indicate whether the device indicated by the fifth device information supports or is allowed to participate in data collection in the first state; the processing unit is configured to send a data collection request based on the fifth device information.

[0089] In the ninth aspect of this application, the constituent modules of the communication device can also be used to perform the steps executed in various possible implementations of the fourth aspect and achieve the corresponding technical effects. For details, please refer to the fourth aspect, which will not be repeated here.

[0090] The tenth aspect of this application provides a communication device, which includes a transceiver unit; the transceiver unit is configured to transmit ninth information, the ninth information including fifth device information; wherein the device indicated by the fifth device information supports participation in data collection in a first state; or, the ninth information includes eighth indication information, the eighth indication information being used to indicate whether the device indicated by the fifth device information supports or is allowed to participate in data collection in the first state.

[0091] In the tenth aspect of this application, the constituent modules of the communication device can also be used to perform the steps executed in various possible implementations of the fifth aspect and achieve the corresponding technical effects. For details, please refer to the fifth aspect, which will not be repeated here.

[0092] The eleventh aspect of this application provides a communication device including at least one processor for executing computer programs or instructions to enable the device to implement the methods described in any of the first to fifth aspects and any possible implementation thereof.

[0093] Optionally, the at least one memory is coupled to a memory used to store computer programs or instructions.

[0094] Optionally, the communication device includes the memory.

[0095] The twelfth aspect of this application provides a communication device including at least one logic circuit and an input / output interface; the logic circuit is used to perform the method described in any one of the possible implementations of the first to fifth aspects described above.

[0096] The thirteenth aspect of this application provides a communication system, which includes the first communication device and the second communication device described above.

[0097] Optionally, the communication system may also include the aforementioned third communication device.

[0098] The fourteenth aspect of this application provides a computer-readable storage medium for storing one or more computer-executable instructions, which, when executed by a processor, perform the method as described in any possible implementation of any of the first to fifth aspects above.

[0099] The fifteenth aspect of this application provides a computer program product (or computer program) that, when executed by a processor, performs the method described in any possible implementation of any of the first to fifth aspects described above.

[0100] The sixteenth aspect of this application provides a chip or chip system including at least one processor for supporting a communication device in implementing the methods described in any possible implementation of any of the first to fifth aspects. For example, the chip may be a baseband chip, a modem chip, a system-on-chip (SoC) chip containing a modem core, a system-in-package (SIP) chip, or a communication module, etc.

[0101] In one possible design, the chip or chip system may further include a memory for storing program instructions and data necessary for the communication device. The chip system may be composed of chips or may include chips and other discrete devices. Optionally, the chip system may also include interface circuitry that provides program instructions and / or data to the at least one processor.

[0102] The technical effects of any of the design methods in aspects six through sixteen can be found in the technical effects of the different design methods in aspects one through five above, and will not be repeated here. Attached Figure Description

[0103] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the communication system provided in this application;

[0104] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the communication process provided in this application;

[0105] Figures 3 to 5 are schematic diagrams of the communication method provided in this application;

[0106] Figures 6a and 6b are schematic diagrams of the communication method provided in this application;

[0107] Figures 7 to 11 are schematic diagrams of the communication device provided in this application. Detailed Implementation

[0108] First, some terms used in the embodiments of this application will be explained to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

[0109] (1) Configuration and Pre-configuration: In this application, both configuration and pre-configuration are used. Configuration refers to the process by which network devices such as base stations or servers send configuration information or parameter values ​​to the terminal via messages or signaling, so that the terminal can determine the communication parameters or resources for transmission based on these values ​​or information. Pre-configuration is similar to configuration. It can be a method by which network devices such as base stations or servers send parameter information or values ​​to the terminal via a communication link or carrier; it can also be a method by defining the corresponding parameters or parameter values ​​in a standard, or by setting the relevant parameters or values ​​in the terminal device in advance. This application does not limit this method. Furthermore, these values ​​and parameters can be changed or updated.

[0110] (2) In this application, “for indicating” can include both direct and indirect indication. When describing an indication information as indicating A, it can be understood that the indication information carries A, directly indicates A, or indirectly indicates A.

[0111] In this application, the information indicated by the instruction information is called the information to be instructed. In specific implementation, there are many ways to instruct the information to be instructed. For example, it can be implemented through direct instruction, such as through the information to be instructed itself or its index. It can also be implemented indirectly by instructing other information, where there is a relationship between the other information and the information to be instructed. Alternatively, only a part of the information to be instructed can be indicated, while the other parts are known or pre-agreed upon. For example, the instruction of specific information can be achieved by using a pre-agreed (e.g., protocol-defined) arrangement of various pieces of information, thereby reducing instruction overhead to some extent.

[0112] The information to be instructed can be sent as a whole or divided into multiple sub-information messages, and the sending period and / or timing of these sub-information messages can be the same or different. This application does not limit the specific sending method. The sending period and / or timing of these sub-information messages can be predefined, for example, according to a protocol, or configured by the transmitting device by sending configuration information to the receiving device. This configuration information can include, for example, but not limited to, one or a combination of at least two of radio resource control (RRC) signaling, media access control (MAC) layer signaling, and physical layer signaling. MAC layer signaling includes, for example, a MAC control element (CE); physical layer signaling includes, for example, downlink control information (DCI).

[0113] (3) The terms "system" and "network" in the embodiments of this application can be used interchangeably. "At least one" means one or more, and "more than one" 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.

[0114] (4) In the embodiments of this application, "send" and "receive" indicate the direction of signal transmission. For example, "send information to device X" can be understood as the destination of the information being device X, which may include sending directly through the air interface or sending indirectly through the air interface by other units or modules. "Receive information from device Y" can be understood as the source of the information being device Y, which may include receiving directly from device Y through the air interface or receiving indirectly from device Y 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.

[0115] For example, consider the communication process between entity A and entity B. In this application, entity A sends information to entity B, either directly to B or indirectly through other entities. Similarly, entity B receives information from entity A, either directly or indirectly through other entities.

[0116] Please refer to Figure 1, which is a schematic diagram of the architecture of the communication system 10 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 10 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.

[0117] RAN100 can be an evolved universal terrestrial radio access (E-UTRA) system, a new radio (NR) system, or a future radio access system as defined in the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP). RAN100 can also include two or more of the above-mentioned different radio access systems. RAN100 can also be an open RAN (O-RAN).

[0118] RAN nodes, also known as radio access network devices, RAN entities, or access nodes, are used to help terminals access communication systems wirelessly. In one application scenario, an RAN node can be a base station, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), a transmission reception point (TRP), a next-generation NodeB (gNB) in a 5G mobile communication system, or a base station in a future mobile communication system. RAN nodes can be macro base stations (as shown in Figure 1, 110a), micro base stations or indoor stations (as shown in Figure 1, 110b), and can also be relay nodes or donor nodes.

[0119] In another application scenario, multiple RAN nodes can collaborate to help terminals achieve wireless access, with different RAN nodes implementing different functions of the base station. For example, a RAN node can be a central unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), or a radio unit (RU). Here, the CU performs the functions of the base station's Radio Resource Control (RRC) and Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP), and can also perform the functions of the Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP). The DU performs the functions of the base station's Radio Link Control (RANC) and Medium Access Control (MAC) layers, and can also perform some or all of the physical layer functions. For specific descriptions of these protocol layers, refer to the relevant 3GPP technical specifications. The RU can be used to implement radio frequency signal transmission and reception. The CU and DU can be two independent RAN nodes or integrated into the same RAN node, such as within a baseband unit (BBU). The RU can be included in radio frequency equipment, such as in a remote radio unit (RRU) or an active antenna unit (AAU). The CU can be further divided into two types of RAN nodes: CU-control plane and CU-user plane.

[0120] For ease of description, the following text uses a base station as an example of a RAN node.

[0121] A terminal can be a device with wireless transceiver capabilities, capable of sending signals to or receiving signals from a base station. Terminals can also be referred to as terminal equipment, user equipment (UE), mobile station, mobile terminal, etc. Terminals can be widely used in various scenarios, such as device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, machine-type communication (MTC), Internet of Things (IoT), virtual reality, augmented reality, industrial control, autonomous driving, telemedicine, smart grids, smart furniture, smart offices, smart wearables, smart transportation, smart cities, etc. Terminals can be mobile phones, tablets, computers with wireless transceiver capabilities, wearable devices, vehicles, airplanes, ships, robots, robotic arms, smart home devices, etc. The embodiments of this application do not limit the specific technology or device form used in the terminal.

[0122] Base stations and terminals can be fixed or mobile. They can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; they can also be deployed on water; and they can be deployed on aircraft, balloons, and satellites. The embodiments of this application do not limit the application scenarios of the base stations and terminals.

[0123] The roles of base stations and terminals can be relative. For example, the helicopter or drone 120i in Figure 1 can be configured as a mobile base station. For terminals 120j that access the wireless access network 100 through 120i, terminal 120i is a base station; however, for base station 110a, 120i is a terminal, meaning that 110a and 120i communicate via a wireless air interface protocol. Of course, 110a and 120i can also communicate via a base station-to-base station interface protocol. In this case, relative to 110a, 120i is also a base station. Therefore, both base stations and terminals can be collectively referred to as communication devices. 110a and 110b in Figure 1 can be called communication devices with base station functions, and 120a-120j in Figure 1 can be called communication devices with terminal functions.

[0124] Communication between base stations and terminals, between base stations, and between terminals can be conducted using licensed spectrum, unlicensed spectrum, or both simultaneously. Communication can be conducted using spectrum below 6 GHz, spectrum above 6 GHz, or both simultaneously. The embodiments of this application do not limit the spectrum resources used for wireless communication.

[0125] In the embodiments of this application, the functions of the network device can be executed by modules (such as chips) within the network device, or by a control subsystem that includes network device functions. This control subsystem, including network device functions, can be a control center in the aforementioned application scenarios such as smart grids, industrial control, intelligent transportation, and smart cities. Similarly, the functions of the terminal device can be executed by modules (such as chips or modems) within the terminal device, or by a device that includes terminal device functions.

[0126] Optionally, the core network's main functions are to provide user connections, manage users, and bear services, serving as the interface to external networks. User connection establishment includes one or more of the following: mobility management (MM), calling management (CM), switching / routing, and recording notification (combined with intelligent network services to establish connections to intelligent network peripheral devices). User management includes user description, quality of service (QoS) (adding descriptions of user service QoS), user communication records, virtual home environment (VHE) (providing a virtual home environment for communication with the intelligent network platform), and security (provided by the authentication center, including security management of mobile services and security processing for external network access). Bearer connections include connections to external public switched telephone networks (PSTN), external circuit-switched data networks and packet-switched data networks, the Internet and enterprise intranets, and Short Message Service (SMS) servers, etc. The core network can provide basic services including mobile office, e-commerce, communications, entertainment, travel and location-based services, telemetry – simple messaging services (surveillance and control), etc.

[0127] For example, core network devices / entities / network elements may include one or more of the following: location management function (LMF), access and mobility management function (AMF), network data analytics function (NWDAF), unified data management (UDM) network element, network repository function (NRF), etc.

[0128] The following sections will introduce the equipment or network elements that may be involved in this application.

[0129] Access and Mobility Management (AMM): Primarily used for terminal attachment, mobility management, and tracking area update procedures in mobile networks. The access management network element terminates non-access stratum (NAS) messages, completes registration management, connection management, reachability management, allocates tracking area lists (TA lists), and performs mobility management, and transparently routes session management (SM) messages to the session management network element. For example, in 5G or NR communication systems, AMF can be the access and mobility management function (AMF). In future networks, AMF can be the AMF or other implementations defined for the future network; the following implementation uses AMF as an example.

[0130] Network data analysis functionality: Data is collected, analyzed, and predicted from various network functions (NFs, such as AMF, SMF, PCF, etc.) through network exposure functions (NEFs), application functions (AFs), and operation, administration, and maintenance (OAM) systems. For example, in 5G or NR communication systems, network data analysis functionality can be implemented using NWDAF network elements or related systems of the management data analytics system (MDAS). In future networks, network data analysis functionality can be implemented using AMFs or other implementations defined for the future network. The following implementation uses NWDAF as an example.

[0131] Network storage function: Primarily used to receive registration messages from network elements and store network element information (profiles). It can provide query services to network elements, enabling them to discover other network elements. For example, in 5G or NR communication systems, the network storage function can be an NRF network element. In future networks, the network storage function can be NRF or other implementations defined in the future network. The following implementation uses NRF as an example.

[0132] With the development of communication technology, communication devices may handle data from other services besides wireless access communication. These other services include, but are not limited to, artificial intelligence (AI) services and sensing services. Generally, communication devices can acquire this data through data collection (or acquisition) to meet the needs of these other services. Taking AI services as an example, network devices can acquire AI data through terminal devices. This AI data can be used for model training to obtain customized AI models for specific scenarios, regions, and network environments. However, with the increasing number of devices accessing the communication network, how to select the appropriate devices for data collection from this vast number of devices is a pressing technical problem that needs to be solved.

[0133] As shown in Figure 2, a communication network can select terminal devices for data collection based on location-related information. For example, a location management function (LMF) entity / network element can collect data through the following steps.

[0134] Step 1a. The LMF sends a discovery request message to the NRF. For example, this discovery request message can be transmitted via the Nnrf_NFDiscovery_Request message. This discovery request message can carry the AoI, and correspondingly, it can be used to request the AMF serving that AoI.

[0135] Step 1b. The NRF sends a discovery response message to the LMF. For example, this discovery request message can be transmitted via the Nnrf_NFDiscovery_Request_Response message. In response to the request in step 1a, the discovery response message sent by the NRF in step 1b can indicate the AMF serving the AoI in step 1a.

[0136] Step 2. The LMF sends a subscription request to the AMF. The AMF can be determined in step 1b. For example, the subscription request can be transmitted via a Namf_EventExpousure_Subscribe message. The subscription request can include subscription information from the Namf_EventExpousure_Subscribe message, carrying "Any UE" and "Presence in AoI" indications to obtain information about any UE within the AoI from the AMF. Optionally, the subscription request may also include "UE location capability" indications, used by the AMF to return the UE's (i.e., the terminal device's) location capability (if any).

[0137] Step 3. The AMF sends a subscription response message to the LMF. For example, this subscription response message can be transmitted via the Namf_EventExpousure_Subscribe message, such as a notification message within the Namf_EventExpousure_Subscribe message. In response to the request in Step 2, the subscription response message sent by the AMF in Step 3 may carry relevant UE information, including a UE list indicating one or more UEs. For example, the UE list may indicate the UE's UE ID, "Presence in AoI" indication, etc. Optionally, the subscription response message may also include: UE positioning capability (if any), and / or, UE user plane (UP) positioning capability (if any), the former indicating that the UE supports positioning functionality, and the latter indicating that the UE also supports user plane positioning functionality.

[0138] Step 4. The LMF determines the terminal device's consent through the UDM. After obtaining the UE list in Step 3, in Step 4, the LMF can request and check the user consent of the UEs in the UE list from the UDM, that is, check whether the user agrees to data collection.

[0139] Step 5. The LMF obtains the data collected by the terminal device through a data collection process. For example, the LMF sends a data collection request to a terminal device within the AoI that supports positioning functions and agrees to data collection, through the AMF, RAN, etc., thereby obtaining the data collected by the terminal device. Optionally, the terminal device can also refuse the LMF's data collection request based on its own status, user input, and other information.

[0140] As can be seen from the above process, in the method shown in Figure 2, the LMF mainly selects the UE through the AoI, that is, the AMF selects the UE in the area corresponding to the AoI for data collection. However, this method of selecting devices still has some problems.

[0141] For example, the distribution of UE numbers in different areas may vary, and too many or too few UEs in the area corresponding to the AoI will affect data collection performance. Furthermore, the number of UEs providing data to the data collection request provider is likely a key factor affecting whether the data collection request can be met; however, the above scheme does not consider the impact of the number of UEs on the data collection process.

[0142] For example, the UE's state is not constant. If the UE is in a first state (such as CM-IDLE, RRC_INACTIVE, power-saving state, etc.), it may not participate in data collection in order to reduce device power consumption. In this case, it would lead to unnecessary overhead for the LMF to instruct all UEs in the corresponding AoI area on how to collect data.

[0143] To address the aforementioned problems, this application provides a communication method and related apparatus, which will be described below in conjunction with some accompanying drawings.

[0144] Please refer to Figure 3, which is a schematic diagram of an implementation of the communication method provided in this application. The method includes the following steps.

[0145] It should be noted that in Figure 3 and the related implementation examples below, the first communication device and other communication devices (such as the second communication device) are used as examples to illustrate the method in this interactive illustration, but this application does not limit the execution subject of this interactive illustration. For example, any communication device can be a communication device, or a chip, baseband chip, modem chip, system-on-chip (SoC) chip containing a modem core, system-in-package (SIP) chip, communication module, chip system, processor, logic module, or software in the communication device.

[0146] As an example, the communication device corresponding to the first communication device may be a network data analytics function (NWDAF) or other devices defined in the future network.

[0147] As an example, the communication device corresponding to the second communication device can be a first network element, which can be an AMF or other device defined in the future network. Alternatively, the communication device corresponding to the second communication device can be a UDM or other device defined in the future network.

[0148] S301. The first communication device acquires first information, which is used to indicate a data demand. For example, the first information is used to determine first quantity information (such as the first information may include the first quantity information), which indicates the number of devices corresponding to the data demand. In other words, the first communication device can determine the first quantity information based on the first information.

[0149] Alternatively, in this application, data requirement can be replaced with data collection requirement, data collection request, or other descriptions defined in the future network definition.

[0150] Alternatively, in this application, "collection" can be replaced with "acquisition," "acquisition," or other descriptions defined by the future network.

[0151] In one possible implementation, the first information mentioned above includes at least one of the following information A to information E.

[0152] Information A. The data type corresponding to the data requirement.

[0153] For example, the data type corresponding to a data requirement can indicate the data type that the data provider expects to obtain. Quantity type can be used to determine the data collection frequency, collection bandwidth, etc.

[0154] For example, data types may include one or more of the following: channel state information (CSI), reference signal receiving power (RSRP) information, beam measurement information, spectrum information, throughput, or power consumption, etc.

[0155] Information B. Data requirements corresponding to the region.

[0156] For example, a data requirement corresponding to a region may indicate that the provider of the data requirement expects the data to include data collected by devices within that region, or data within that region.

[0157] For example, the area corresponding to the data requirement may indicate one or more of the following: area of ​​interest (AoI), one or more tracking areas (TA), one or more radio access network (RAN) service areas, or scenario information.

[0158] For example, the RAN service area can be indicated by one or more of the following: RAN identifier, cell identifier, or cell index.

[0159] For example, scene information can indicate one or more of the following: indoor, outdoor, line of sight (LOS), non-line of sight (NLOS), country, or city.

[0160] Information C. The total amount of data corresponding to data requirements.

[0161] For example, the total amount of data corresponding to a data demand can indicate the total amount of data that the data provider expects to receive, and the unit of this total amount of data can be bytes (Byte), gigabit (GB), or other units used to represent the amount of data. Alternatively, the unit of this total amount of data can be the number of samples used to represent the amount of data.

[0162] Information D. Use cases corresponding to data requirements.

[0163] For example, the use case corresponding to a data requirement can indicate the use case to which the provider of the data requirement expects the data to belong. This use case could include network energy saving, load balancing, mobility optimization, channel state information (CSI) feedback enhancement, beam management enhancement, positioning accuracy enhancement, or other implementations defined in the future network.

[0164] Optionally, the use cases corresponding to the data requirements can be used to determine the total amount of data required. For example, the mapping relationship between one or more use cases and the total amount of data required by the use cases can be pre-configured (or server-configured). In this way, the first communication device can determine information C through information D, thus saving the transmission overhead of information C.

[0165] Information E. Data collection time information corresponding to data requirements.

[0166] For example, the data collection time information corresponding to a data request can indicate the time window to which the provider of the data request expects the data to be obtained; that is, the data that the provider expects to obtain is obtained by the device through data collection within the time window. Optionally, the collection time information may include one or more of the following: duration, start time, and end time.

[0167] Therefore, the first information used to indicate data requirements can be implemented by at least one of the aforementioned information A to information E, thereby improving the flexibility of the solution implementation.

[0168] As an example, taking the first information as including the aforementioned information A, information C, and information E, the relationship between the first information and the first quantity information is illustrated.

[0169] Example 1: The quantity indicated by the first quantity information can be determined by the data collection bandwidth determined by the data type indicated by information A and the duration of the time information indicated by information E. For example, the data type indicated by information A can be used to determine the data collection bandwidth, and the duration of the time information indicated by information E can satisfy:

[0170] The quantity of the first quantity information indication = total data volume ÷ duration ÷ data collection bandwidth.

[0171] For example, taking a total data volume of 1GB, a duration of 100 seconds (s), and a data collection bandwidth of 1 megabyte per second (1MB / s) as an example, the above process can determine that the quantity indicated by the first quantity information is 10, that is, at least 10 devices' data collection is needed to meet the data requirements indicated by the first information.

[0172] Example 2: The quantity indicated by the first quantity information can be determined by the data collection frequency determined by the data type indicated by information A and the duration of the time information indicated by information E. For example, the data type indicated by information A can be used to determine the data collection frequency, and the duration of the time information indicated by information E can satisfy:

[0173] The quantity of the first quantity information indication = total data volume ÷ duration ÷ data collection frequency.

[0174] For example, taking a total data volume of 1GB, a duration of 100 seconds (s), and a data collection frequency of 1 sample per second (1sample / s) as an example, the above process can determine that the quantity of the first quantity information indication is 10, that is, at least 10 devices' data collection is needed to meet the data requirements of the first information indication.

[0175] In one possible implementation, in step S301, the process of the first communication device acquiring the first information includes: the first communication device receiving the first information from a third-party device. Thus, the first communication device can receive the first information from the third-party device, meaning the first information can indicate the data requirements of the third-party device, enabling the above solution to be applied to scenarios where data is collected through a communication network to meet the data requirements of a third-party device.

[0176] Optionally, the third-party devices involved in this application may include: over-the-top (OTT) servers, OTT virtual machines, cloud servers, or other implementations defined by the future network.

[0177] Optionally, the first communication device acquires the first information, including: the first communication device determines the first information based on one or more parameters. For example, the one or more parameters may include at least one of the following: data acquisition requirements pre-configured locally or configured by network management elements, network optimization tasks triggered by network policies, or model (re)training tasks triggered by local policies, etc.

[0178] S302. The first communication device sends second information, and correspondingly, the second communication device receives the second information. The second information is used to request device information, and includes second quantity information indicating the number of devices. This second quantity information is determined based on the first quantity information. For example, the first communication device can determine the second quantity information in step S302 based on the first quantity information in step S301.

[0179] S303. The second communication device sends third information, and correspondingly, the first communication device receives the third information. The third information includes first device information, wherein the number of devices indicated by the first device information is greater than or equal to the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information.

[0180] For example, the device indicated by the first device information can be used to collect the data corresponding to the data requirement. In other words, after step S303, the first communication device can collect data through some or all of the devices indicated by the first device information (e.g., the first communication device can send a data collection request to some or all of the devices indicated by the first device information) to obtain data that meets the data requirement.

[0181] Optionally, in this application, the device indicated by the device information (such as the first device information mentioned above, the second device information described below, etc.) may include one or more terminal devices. Optionally, the device indicated by the device information may also include other devices, such as access network devices, IoT devices, AIoT devices, etc.

[0182] It should be noted that in step S302, the number of devices indicated by the first quantity information is greater than or equal to the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information.

[0183] As an example, when the first communication device determines that it has obtained device information for data collection through a network element (e.g., the first network element corresponding to the second quantity information), the number of devices indicated by the first quantity information is equal to the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information.

[0184] As another example, when the first communication device determines that it obtains device information for data collection through at least two network elements (e.g., the at least two network elements include the first network element corresponding to the second quantity information and other network elements), the number of devices indicated by the first quantity information is greater than the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information. This method can be referred to in the following description of the second network element and related information. The following explanation will take the case where the at least two network elements also include the second network element as an example.

[0185] In one possible implementation, the method shown in Figure 3 further includes: the first communication device sending fourth information to the second network element, the fourth information being used to request device information; the fourth information including third quantity information, the third quantity information being used to indicate the number of devices, the third quantity information being determined based on the first quantity information; the first communication device receiving fifth information from the second network element, the fifth information including second device information, the number of devices indicated by the second device information being greater than or equal to the number of devices indicated by the third quantity information. For example, the devices indicated by the second device information can be used to collect data corresponding to the data requirement. In other words, the second network element can select devices matching the number of devices indicated by the third quantity information, and the devices selected by the second network element are indicated by the second device information contained in the fifth information. In this way, the first communication device can obtain the number of device information that meets the expected number of data requirements through at least two network elements (the at least two network elements include the aforementioned first network element and second network element, and possibly 0 or 1 or more other network elements), so that the first communication device can realize the data collection process corresponding to the data requirement through the appropriate number of devices indicated by these device information, thereby improving data collection performance.

[0186] In the above process, the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information and the number of devices indicated by the third quantity information can be implemented in a variety of ways. The following will illustrate some possible implementation methods.

[0187] In Method A, the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information is equal to the number of devices indicated by the third quantity information. In other words, when the first communication device obtains the number of devices required to meet the data needs through at least two network elements, the number of devices corresponding to different network elements among the at least two network elements can be the same. That is, the first communication device can indicate the same number of devices to these network elements. By distributing the information equally among different network elements, the implementation complexity can be reduced.

[0188] In method B, the second quantity information is determined based on the first quantity information, the service area information of the first network element, and the area information corresponding to the data demand; and / or, the third quantity information is determined based on the first quantity information, the service area information of the second network element, and the area information corresponding to the data demand. The area information corresponding to the data demand can be referenced in the preceding information B and related implementations. In other words, when the first communication device obtains the quantity of equipment information corresponding to the data demand from at least two network elements, the first communication device can indicate to these network elements the first quantity information corresponding to the data demand, the service area information of each network element itself, and the quantity information determined by the area information corresponding to the data demand. In this way, each network element can feed back to the first communication device the quantity of equipment information that matches the data demand and its own service area.

[0189] Based on the scheme shown in Figure 3, the second communication device can select devices that match the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information, and indicate the selected devices by the first device information contained in the third information, so that the first communication device can obtain the number of device information that meets the data requirements, so that the first communication device can realize the data collection process corresponding to the data requirements by using the appropriate number of devices indicated by the device information, thereby improving the data collection performance.

[0190] As an example, the second communication device can be a first node, which can select an appropriate number of devices based on the second quantity information contained in the second information. This can avoid or reduce the situation where the first node selects too few devices, resulting in insufficient data and failing to meet data requirements. It can also avoid or reduce the situation where the first node selects too many devices, resulting in redundant transmission of device information. In this way, the device selection process can be optimized through the indication of the second quantity information to improve data collection performance.

[0191] As another example, the second node can select an appropriate number of devices based on the third quantity information contained in the fourth information. This can avoid or reduce the situation where the second node selects too few devices, resulting in insufficient data and failing to meet data requirements. It can also avoid or reduce the situation where the second node selects too many devices, resulting in redundant transmission of device information. In this way, the device selection process can be optimized through the indication of the third quantity information to improve data collection performance.

[0192] As shown in Figure 2 and the related implementation process above, in the method shown in Figure 2, since the LMF does not consider the impact of quantity information on the data collection process, the first communication device can select devices using the aforementioned quantity information (e.g., first quantity information, second quantity information, third quantity information, etc.) to avoid or reduce the impact of too many or too few devices on data collection performance. Furthermore, besides this implementation method, the state of the devices used for data collection (e.g., the state of the UE) may also affect data collection performance. More solutions to this problem will be provided below.

[0193] In one possible implementation of the method shown in Figure 3, the first communication device can obtain more information through the third information in step S303 to solve the above-mentioned problem. The following will describe some possible implementation examples.

[0194] Example A: The device indicated by the first device information supports participation in data collection in the first state. For example, the device indicated by the first device information supports participation in data collection in the first state by default.

[0195] Optionally, the first state involved in this application can be an idle state (such as CM-IDLE), a radio resource control inactive state (RRC_INACTIVE), a power-saving state, or other implementations defined by the future network.

[0196] In Example A, the device information received by the first communication device indicates that all devices can support participation in data collection in the first state. That is, the sender of the device information (such as the first node or the second node) can select devices that support participation in data collection in the first state and indicate these selected devices through the device information. Generally, the state of a device may change. If the first communication device indicates that it does not support participation in data collection in the first state, it is highly likely that data collection will be impossible due to the indicated device currently being in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. However, in the above process, the first communication device can determine the devices that support participation in data collection in the first state through the received first device information, thus avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the above situation and lowering overhead.

[0197] Optionally, during the above process, the first communication device can also communicate with the second node. In Example A, the fifth message sent by the second node may include second device information, indicating that the device supports participation in data collection in the first state. Accordingly, the first communication device can determine the device supporting participation in data collection in the first state through the received second device information, thus avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the aforementioned situation and lowering overhead.

[0198] Example B, the third information includes first indication information, which is used to indicate whether the device indicated by the first device information supports or is allowed to participate in data collection in the first state.

[0199] Optionally, the first communication device may obtain the first indication information through other means. For example, the first communication device may receive the first indication information from a third communication device, which may be a UDM, NRF, or other implementation defined in the future network. For instance, the first communication device may send a request message to the third communication device requesting the first indication information, causing the third communication device to send the first indication information back to the first communication device based on the request message.

[0200] In Example B, the first communication device can determine, through the first indication information contained in the third information, whether the device indicated by the first device information in the third information supports or is permitted to participate in data collection in the first state. Generally, the state of a device may change. If the first communication device indicates that it does not support participating in data collection in the first state, it is highly likely that data collection will be impossible due to the indicated device currently being in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. However, in the above process, the first communication device can determine, through the received first indication information, whether the device indicated by the first device information supports or is permitted to participate in data collection in the first state. This allows the first communication device to instruct devices that support participation in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, without needing to instruct devices that do not support participation in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, thereby avoiding or reducing the aforementioned situation and lowering overhead.

[0201] Optionally, during the above process, the first communication device can also communicate with the second node. In the scheme of Example B, the fifth information may also include an indication message indicating whether the device indicated by the second device information supports or allows participation in data collection in the first state. Accordingly, the first communication device can determine whether the device indicated by the second device information supports or allows participation in data collection in the first state by receiving the indication message. This allows the first communication device to instruct devices that support participation in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, without instructing devices that do not support participation in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, thereby avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the aforementioned situation and reducing overhead.

[0202] In one possible implementation of Example A or Example B above, the second information in step S302 includes second indication information used to query the device status; wherein, the third information in step S303 also includes third indication information used to indicate the status of the device indicated by the first device information. In other words, the second information may also include second indication information for querying the device status, so that the recipient of the second information can indicate the status of the device indicated by the first device information through the third indication information carried in the third information. In this way, the first communication device can determine the status of each device through the third indication information, and determine whether to instruct each device to perform data collection based on the status of each device. For example, the first communication device can instruct a device that is not currently in the first state or is currently in the second state to perform data collection. As another example, the first communication device can instruct a device that is currently in the first state and supports participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection.

[0203] Optionally, the second state may include a connected state (such as a connection management connected state, an RRC connected state, or another implementation defined by the future network), a non-energy-saving state, or other implementations.

[0204] Optionally, after step S303, the first communication device can collect data through some or all of the devices indicated by the first device information to obtain data that meets the data requirements.

[0205] For example, the first communication device can send a data collection request to some or all of the devices indicated by the first device information via a NAS message. For instance, the first communication device can send a data collection request to some or all of the devices in the second state indicated by the first device information via a NAS message.

[0206] For example, if the devices indicated by the first device information include one or more devices in a first state, the first communication device can send a paging request to the AMF serving the one or more devices. This paging request is used to request paging of the one or more devices. For instance, after paging the one or more devices, the first communication device can send a data collection request to some or all of the devices indicated by the first device information via a NAS message. Exemplarily, the one or more devices can switch from a first state to a second state based on the paging, allowing the first communication device to send a data collection request to some or all of the devices in the second state indicated by the first device information via a NAS message.

[0207] Alternatively, in this application, paging can be replaced by activation, wake-up, or other implementations defined by the network in the future.

[0208] Please refer to Figure 4, which is a schematic diagram of an implementation of the communication method provided in this application. The method includes the following steps.

[0209] S401. The first communication device acquires sixth information, which is used to indicate a data requirement. The sixth information is used to determine fourth quantity information (e.g., the sixth information may include the fourth quantity information), which indicates the number of devices corresponding to the data requirement.

[0210] It should be noted that the sixth information used to indicate data requirements can refer to the first information used to indicate data requirements and its related implementation described above. Furthermore, the process by which the first communication device determines the fourth quantity information based on the sixth information can also refer to the process by which the first communication device determines the first quantity information based on the first information described above.

[0211] S402. The second communication device sends a seventh message, and correspondingly, the first communication device receives the seventh message, which includes third device information. The third device information and the fourth quantity information are used to determine the fourth device information.

[0212] For example, the device indicated by the fourth device information is used to collect the data corresponding to the data requirement. In other words, after the first communication device receives the seventh information containing the third device information in step S402, the first communication device can determine the fourth device information based on the third device information and the fourth quantity information in step S401. Furthermore, the first communication device can collect data through some or all of the devices indicated by the fourth device information (e.g., the first communication device can send a data collection request to some or all of the devices indicated by the fourth device information) to obtain data that meets the data requirement.

[0213] Based on the scheme shown in Figure 4, the first communication device can select devices that match the number of devices indicated by the fourth quantity information, so that the first communication device can obtain the number of devices that meet the data requirements. This allows the first communication device to complete the data collection process corresponding to the data requirements through the appropriate number of devices indicated by the device information, thereby improving data collection performance.

[0214] As an example, the first communication device can select an appropriate number of devices based on the fourth quantity information. This can avoid or reduce the situation where the first communication device selects too few devices, resulting in insufficient data and failing to meet data requirements. It can also avoid or reduce the situation where the first communication device selects too many devices, resulting in redundant transmission of device information. In this way, the device selection process can be optimized through quantity information to improve data collection performance.

[0215] In one possible implementation, the fourth device information and at least one of the following are used to determine the number of devices corresponding to one or more network elements, including: the fourth quantity information, the service area information of one or more network elements, or, the area information corresponding to the data demand. In other words, the first communication device can determine the number of devices corresponding to one or more network elements based on the fourth device information and at least one of the above, and collect data through the devices connected to these network elements based on the number of devices.

[0216] As an example, taking one or more network elements including a first network element and a second network element, the first communication device can determine the number of devices corresponding to the first network element (denoted as device number information_1) and the number of devices corresponding to the second network element (denoted as device number information_2) based on the above process. Subsequently, the first communication device can instruct devices with a quantity of device number information_1 to collect data through the first network element, and can also instruct devices with a quantity of device number information_2 to collect data through the second network element. For a detailed implementation process, refer to the process described above for determining the second and / or third quantity information based on the first quantity information.

[0217] Therefore, when the first communication device obtains the desired number of devices through one or more network elements, it can indicate to these network elements the first quantity information corresponding to the data requirement, the service area information of each network element, and the quantity information determined by the area information corresponding to the data requirement. In this way, the first communication device can collect data by instructing each network element to use a number of devices that match the data requirement and its own service area. This results in a more reasonable distribution of terminals participating in data collection, improves the quality of the collected data, and ensures the generalization of model training.

[0218] In one possible implementation of the method shown in Figure 4, the first communication device can obtain more information through the seventh information. The following will describe some possible implementation examples.

[0219] Example C: The device indicated by the third device information supports participation in data collection in the first state. For example, the device indicated by the third device information supports participation in data collection in the first state by default.

[0220] In Example C, the devices indicated by the third device information received by the first communication device can all support participation in data collection in the first state. That is, the sender of the device information (such as the first node) can select devices that support participation in data collection in the first state and indicate these selected devices through the device information. Generally, the state of a device may change. If the first communication device indicates that it does not support participation in data collection in the first state, it is highly likely that data collection will be impossible due to the indicated device currently being in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. However, in the above process, the first communication device can determine the devices that support participation in data collection in the first state through the received third device information, thus avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the above situation and lowering overhead.

[0221] Example D, the seventh information includes fourth indication information, which is used to indicate whether the device indicated by the third device information supports or is allowed to participate in data collection in the first state.

[0222] In Example D, the first communication device can determine, through the fourth indication information included in the seventh information, whether the device indicated by the third device information in the seventh information supports or is permitted to participate in data collection in the first state. Generally, the state of a device may change. If the first communication device indicates that it does not support participating in data collection in the first state, it is highly likely that data collection will be impossible due to the indicated device currently being in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. However, in the above process, the first communication device can determine, through the received fourth indication information, whether the device indicated by the third device information supports or is permitted to participate in data collection in the first state. This allows the first communication device to instruct the device that supports participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, without instructing the device that does not support participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, thereby avoiding or reducing the aforementioned situation and lowering overhead.

[0223] Optionally, the first communication device may obtain the fourth indication information through other means. For example, the first communication device may receive the fourth indication information from a third communication device, which may be a UDM, NRF, or other implementation defined in the future network. For instance, the first communication device may send a request message to the third communication device requesting the fourth indication information, causing the third communication device to send the fourth indication information to the first communication device based on the request message.

[0224] In one possible implementation of Example C or Example D, the method shown in Figure 4 further includes: the first communication device sending an eighth message, which requests device information, and the seventh message being a response to the eighth message; wherein the eighth message includes fifth indication information for querying device status, and the seventh message also includes sixth indication information for indicating the status of the device indicated by the third device information. In other words, the seventh message can be a response to the eighth message requesting device information, wherein the eighth message may include the fifth indication information for querying device status, so that the recipient of the eighth message can indicate the status of the device indicated by the third device information through the sixth indication information carried in the seventh message. In this way, the first communication device can determine the status of each device through the sixth indication information, and determine whether to instruct each device to perform data collection based on the status of each device. For example, the first communication device can instruct a device that is not currently in the first state or is currently in the second state to perform data collection. As another example, the first communication device can instruct a device that is currently in the first state and supports participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection.

[0225] Optionally, after step S402, the first communication device can collect data through some or all of the devices indicated by the fourth device information (e.g., the first communication device can send a data collection request to some or all of the devices indicated by the fourth device information) to obtain data that meets its data requirements. For example, the first communication device can send a data collection request to some or all of the devices in the second state indicated by the fourth device information via a NAS message.

[0226] For example, the first communication device can send a data collection request to some or all of the devices indicated by the fourth device information via NAS messages.

[0227] For example, if the fourth device information indicates that the devices include one or more devices in the first state, the first communication device can send a paging request to the AMF serving the one or more devices. This paging request requests the paging of the one or more devices. For instance, after paging the one or more devices, the first communication device can send a data collection request to some or all of the devices indicated by the fourth device information via a NAS message. Exemplarily, the one or more devices can switch from the first state to the second state based on the paging, allowing the first communication device to send a data collection request to some or all of the devices in the second state indicated by the first device information via a NAS message.

[0228] To facilitate understanding of the above scheme, the following will take NWDAF as the first communication device and AMF as the second communication device as an example to illustrate the methods shown in Figures 3 and 4.

[0229] Figure 5 shows an example of an implementation of the above method, which includes the following steps.

[0230] Step 0. The terminal device sends a NAS message to the AMF. Step 0 is optional. One or more terminal devices can use the NAS message in Step 0 to indicate their respective capability information to the AMF, such as positioning capabilities (if any), and / or user plane (UP) positioning capabilities.

[0231] Step 1. The third-party device sends a data request to the NWDAF. For example, this data request is an implementation example of the first and sixth information described above.

[0232] Step 2. NWDAF determines the quantity information. For example, NWDAF can determine the first quantity information using the first information mentioned above. Similarly, NWDAF can determine the fourth quantity information using the sixth information mentioned above. For specific implementation details, please refer to the previous description.

[0233] Method 1:

[0234] Step 3a. NWDAF sends a subscription request to AMF, which carries quantity information. The quantity information in step 3a is related to the quantity information in step 2; for example, the former can be the second or third quantity information mentioned earlier, while the latter can be the first quantity information mentioned earlier.

[0235] For example, NWDAF can transmit the subscription request via the Namf_EventExpousure_Subscribe message, which is an implementation example of the second, fourth, or eighth information described above. In other words, the second, fourth, or eighth information described above can be transmitted via the Namf_EventExpousure_Subscribe message.

[0236] Step 4a. The AMF sends a subscription notification / response to the NWDAF, which contains device information. For example, the AMF can transmit this subscription response via the Namf_EventExpousure_Subscribe_Notify / Response message, which is an implementation example of the third, fifth, or seventh information described above. In other words, the third, fifth, or seventh information described above can be transmitted via the Namf_EventExpousure_Subscribe_Notify / Response message.

[0237] Optionally, if step 0 is performed, the AMF can determine the capability information of each terminal device based on the NAS message in step 0, so that the AMF can generate or obtain the device information contained in the subscription response in step 4a based on the capability information.

[0238] In method one, NWDAF can determine the quantity information based on the data request in step 1 in step 2. Furthermore, NWDAF can carry the quantity information in the subscription request based on this quantity information, enabling AMF to select an appropriate number of devices based on the quantity information carried in the subscription request. This can avoid or reduce the situation where the AMF selects too few devices, resulting in insufficient data and failing to meet data requirements. It can also avoid or reduce the situation where the AMF selects too many devices, leading to redundant transmission of device information. In this way, the device selection process is optimized through the indication of quantity information, thereby improving data collection performance.

[0239] It should be noted that the implementation process of Method 1 can be found in Figure 3 and related descriptions above.

[0240] Method 2:

[0241] Step 3b. NWDAF sends a subscription request to AMF. For example, NWDAF can transmit this subscription request via the Namf_EventExpousure_Subscribe message, which is an implementation example of the second, fourth, or eighth information described above. In other words, the second, fourth, or eighth information described above can be transmitted via the Namf_EventExpousure_Subscribe message.

[0242] Step 4b. The AMF sends a subscription notification / response to the NWDAF, which contains device information (denoted as device information A). For example, the AMF can transmit this subscription response via the Namf_EventExpousure_Subscribe_Notify / Response message, which is an implementation example of the third, fifth, or seventh information described above. In other words, the third, fifth, or seventh information described above can be transmitted via the Namf_EventExpousure_Subscribe_Notify / Response message.

[0243] Optionally, if step 0 is performed, the AMF can determine the capability information of each terminal device based on the NAS message in step 0, so that the AMF can generate or obtain the device information A contained in the subscription response in step 4b based on the capability information.

[0244] Step 5. NWDAF determines device information based on quantity information. For example, NWDAF determines device information B based on quantity information and device information A from step 4b.

[0245] In method two, NWDAF can determine the quantity information based on the data request in step 1 in step 2. After receiving the device information A indicated by AMF in step 4b, NWDAF can select an appropriate number of devices based on the quantity information. This can avoid or reduce the situation where the NWDAF selects too few devices, resulting in insufficient data and failing to meet data requirements. It can also avoid or reduce the situation where the NWDAF selects too many devices, resulting in redundant transmission of device information. Thus, by optimizing the device selection process through quantity information, data collection performance can be improved.

[0246] It should be noted that the implementation process of Method 2 can be referred to Figure 4 and related descriptions above.

[0247] Optionally, after step 4a of method one or step 5 of method two, NWDAF can perform data collection in step 6. For details of the implementation process, please refer to Figure 2 above and related descriptions.

[0248] Please refer to Figure 6a, which is a schematic diagram of an implementation of the communication method provided in this application. The method includes the following steps.

[0249] S601. The second communication device sends a ninth message, and correspondingly, the first communication device receives the ninth message, which includes fifth device information; wherein the device indicated by the fifth device information supports participating in data collection in the first state; or, the ninth message includes eighth indication information, which is used to indicate whether the device indicated by the fifth device information supports or is allowed to participate in data collection in the first state; the first communication device sends a data collection request based on the fifth device information.

[0250] Based on the scheme shown in Figure 6a, after the first communication device receives the ninth information containing the fifth device information in step S601, the first communication device can send a data collection request based on the fifth device information. Wherein, the ninth information or the fifth device information satisfies the above scheme, which can reduce communication overhead.

[0251] Optionally, if the device indicated by the fifth device information supports participation in data collection in the first state, the second communication device may be an AMF. If the ninth information includes the eighth indication information, the second communication device may be a UDM.

[0252] For example, the device indicated by the fifth device information supports participating in data collection in the first state. In other words, all devices indicated by the fifth device information received by the first communication device can support participating in data collection in the first state. That is, the sender of the device information (such as the first node) can select devices that support participating in data collection in the first state and select these devices through the fifth device information. Generally, the state of a device may change. If the first communication device indicates that it does not support participating in data collection in the first state, it is very likely that data collection cannot be performed because the indicated device is currently in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. In the above process, the first communication device can determine the devices that support participating in data collection in the first state through the received fifth device information, thereby avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the above situation and reducing overhead.

[0253] For example, the ninth information includes eighth indication information, which indicates whether the device indicated by the fifth device information supports or is permitted to participate in data collection in the first state. In other words, the first communication device can determine whether the device indicated by the fifth device information in the ninth information supports or is permitted to participate in data collection in the first state by using the eighth indication information included in the ninth information. Generally, the state of a device may change. If the first communication device indicates that it does not support participating in data collection in the first state, it is very likely that the indicated device will be unable to perform data collection due to its current state in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. In the above process, the first communication device can determine whether the device indicated by the fifth device information supports or is permitted to participate in data collection in the first state by receiving the eighth indication information. This allows the first communication device to instruct the device that supports participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, without instructing the device that does not support participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, thereby avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the above situation and reducing overhead.

[0254] Optionally, the first communication device sending a data collection request based on the fifth device information includes: the first communication device sending a data collection request to some or all of the devices indicated by the fifth device information based on the fifth device information. For example, the first communication device may select some or all of the devices indicated by the fifth device information based on information indicating data demand, and send a data collection request to the selected devices. The information indicating data demand may be the first information or the sixth information mentioned above, etc., and specific implementations can be found in the preceding description.

[0255] In one possible implementation of the method shown in Figure 6a, the method further includes:

[0256] S600. The first communication device sends a tenth message, and correspondingly, the second communication device receives the tenth message, which is used to request device information, and the ninth message is a response to the tenth message; wherein, the tenth message includes ninth indication information, which is used to query the status of the device; the ninth message also includes tenth indication information, which is used to indicate the status of the device indicated by the fifth device information. In other words, the ninth message can be a response to the tenth message used to request device information, wherein the tenth message can include ninth indication information for querying the device status, so that the recipient of the tenth message can indicate the status of the device indicated by the fifth device information through the tenth indication information carried by the tenth message. In this way, the first communication device can determine the status of each device through the tenth indication information, and determine whether to instruct each device to perform data collection based on the status of each device. For example, the first communication device can instruct a device that is not currently in the first state or is currently in the second state to perform data collection. As another example, the first communication device can instruct a device that is currently in the first state and supports participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection.

[0257] Optionally, in the above process, the second communication device may trigger the transmission of the ninth information based on the tenth information in step S600. Alternatively, the second communication device may also transmit the ninth information in other ways; for example, the second communication device may receive information indicating data demand and transmit the ninth information based on that data demand.

[0258] Optionally, after step S601, the first communication device can collect data through some or all of the devices indicated by the fifth device information (e.g., the first communication device can send a data collection request to some or all of the devices indicated by the fifth device information) to obtain data that meets its data requirements. For example, the first communication device can send a data collection request to some or all of the devices in the second state indicated by the fifth device information via a NAS message.

[0259] For example, the first communication device can send a data collection request to some or all of the devices indicated by the fifth device information via NAS messages.

[0260] For example, if the devices indicated by the fifth device information include one or more devices in a first state, the first communication device can send a paging request to the AMF serving the one or more devices, requesting to page the one or more devices. For instance, after paging the one or more devices, the first communication device can send a data collection request to some or all of the devices indicated by the fifth device information via a NAS message. Exemplarily, the one or more devices can switch from a first state to a second state based on the paging, allowing the first communication device to send a data collection request to some or all of the devices in the second state indicated by the first device information via a NAS message.

[0261] To facilitate understanding of the above scheme, the method shown in Figure 6a will be illustrated below using NWDAF as the first communication device and AMF as the second communication device as an example.

[0262] Figure 6b shows an example of an implementation of the above method, which includes the following steps.

[0263] Step 0. The terminal device sends a NAS message to the AMF. Step 0 is optional. One or more terminal devices can use the NAS message in Step 0 to indicate to the AMF whether each terminal device participates in data acquisition in the first state.

[0264] Step 1. The third-party device sends a data request to the NWDAF. For example, this data request is an implementation example of the first and sixth information described above.

[0265] Step 2. NWDAF sends a subscription request to AMF. For example, NWDAF can transmit this subscription request via the Namf_EventExpousure_Subscribe message, which is an implementation example of the tenth message described above. In other words, the tenth message described above can be transmitted via the Namf_EventExpousure_Subscribe message.

[0266] Step 3. The AMF sends a subscription response to the NWDAF, which contains device information (denoted as device information A). For example, the AMF can transmit this subscription response via the Namf_EventExpousure_Subscribe_Response message, which is an implementation example of the ninth information described above. In other words, the ninth information described above can be transmitted via the Namf_EventExpousure_Subscribe_Response message.

[0267] Optionally, if step 0 is executed, the AMF can determine whether each terminal device participates in data acquisition in the first state based on the NAS message in step 0, so that the AMF can generate or obtain the device information contained in the subscription response in step 4a based on this information. Alternatively, the AMF can determine whether each terminal device participates in data acquisition in the first state through other network elements (such as UDM, etc.), which is not limited here.

[0268] Step 4. NWDAF determines device information based on the subscription response. For example, NWDAF determines device information B based on device information A contained in the subscription response.

[0269] As an example, the device information A included in the subscription response sent by the AMF in step 3 indicates that all devices supported participation in data collection in the first state. In other words, the AMF can select devices that support participation in data collection in the first state and indicate these selected devices through device information A in step 3. Generally, the state of a device may change. If the NWDAF indicates that it does not support participation in data collection in the first state, it is very likely that data collection will not be able to be performed due to the indicated device being currently in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. However, in the above process, the NWDAF can determine the devices that support participation in data collection in the first state through the device information received in step 3, thus avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the above situation and reducing overhead.

[0270] As another example, the subscription response sent by the AMF in the step may include, in addition to the device information A, an indication message. This indication message indicates whether the device indicated by device information A supports or is permitted to participate in data collection in the first state. In other words, the NWDAF can determine whether each device supports or is permitted to participate in data collection in the first state through this indication message. Generally, the state of a device may change. If the NWDAF indicates that it does not support participating in data collection in the first state, it is very likely that the indicated device will be unable to perform data collection due to its current state in the first state, resulting in unnecessary overhead. However, in the above process, the NWDAF can determine whether the device indicated by device information A supports or is permitted to participate in data collection in the first state through the received indication message. This allows the NWDAF to instruct devices that support participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, without instructing devices that do not support participating in data collection in the first state to perform data collection, thereby avoiding or reducing the occurrence of the above situation and reducing overhead.

[0271] Optionally, the subscription request sent by NWDAF to AMF in step 2 can also be used to query the device status. Correspondingly, the subscription response sent by AMF to NWDAF in step 3 can also be used to indicate the status of each device. In this way, NWDAF can determine the status of each device through the subscription response and, based on the status of each device, determine whether to instruct each device to perform data collection. For example, NWDAF can instruct devices that are not currently in a first state (e.g., the first state is RRC idle state, power-saving state, etc.) or are currently in a second state (e.g., the second state is RRC connected state, non-power-saving state, etc.) to perform data collection. As another example, NWDAF can instruct devices currently in the first state and supporting participation in data collection in the first state to perform data collection.

[0272] It should be noted that the implementation process of Figure 6b can be referred to Figure 6a and related descriptions above.

[0273] Optionally, after step 4, NWDAF can perform data collection in step 5. For details, please refer to Figure 2 and related descriptions above.

[0274] Please refer to Figure 7. This application embodiment provides a communication device 700, which can realize the functions of the second communication device or the first communication device in the above method embodiments, and thus can also achieve the beneficial effects of the above method embodiments. In this application embodiment, the communication device 700 can be the first communication device (or the second communication device), or it can be an integrated circuit or component inside the first communication device (or the second communication device), such as a chip.

[0275] It should be noted that the transceiver unit 702 may include a transmitting unit and a receiving unit, which are used to perform transmitting and receiving respectively.

[0276] In one possible implementation, when the device 700 is used to execute the method performed by the first communication device in the aforementioned FIG3 and related embodiments, the processing unit 701 is used to acquire first information, which is used to indicate a data demand; wherein, the first information is used to determine first quantity information, which is used to indicate the number of devices corresponding to the data demand; the transceiver unit 702 is used to send second information to the first network element, which is used to request device information; the second information includes second quantity information, which is used to indicate the number of devices, and the second quantity information is determined based on the first quantity information; the transceiver unit 702 is also used to receive third information from the first network element, which includes first device information, and the number of devices indicated by the first device information is greater than or equal to the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information.

[0277] In one possible implementation, when the device 700 is used to execute the method performed by the second communication device in the aforementioned FIG3 and related embodiments, the device 700 includes a transceiver unit 702; the transceiver unit 702 is used to receive second information, the second information being used to request device information; the second information includes second quantity information, the second quantity information being used to indicate the number of devices; the transceiver unit 702 is also used to send third information, the third information including first device information, the number of devices indicated by the first device information being greater than or equal to the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information.

[0278] In one possible implementation, when the device 700 is used to execute the method performed by the first communication device in the aforementioned FIG4 and related embodiments, the device 700 includes a processing unit 701 and a transceiver unit 702; the processing unit 701 is used to acquire sixth information, which is used to indicate a data demand; wherein the sixth information is used to determine fourth quantity information, which is used to indicate the number of devices corresponding to the data demand; the transceiver unit 702 is used to receive seventh information, which includes third device information; wherein the third device information and the fourth quantity information are used to determine the fourth device information.

[0279] In one possible implementation, when the device 700 is used to execute the method performed by the first communication device in the aforementioned FIG6a and related embodiments, the device 700 includes a processing unit 701 and a transceiver unit 702; the transceiver unit 702 is used to receive ninth information, which includes fifth device information; wherein the device indicated by the fifth device information supports participating in data collection in a first state; or, the ninth information includes eighth indication information, which is used to indicate whether the device indicated by the fifth device information supports or allows participation in data collection in the first state; the processing unit 701 is used to send a data collection request based on the fifth device information.

[0280] In one possible implementation, when the device 700 is used to execute the method performed by the second communication device in the aforementioned FIG6a and related embodiments, the device 700 includes a processing unit 701 and a transceiver unit 702; the transceiver unit 702 is used to send a ninth message, the ninth message including fifth device information; wherein the device indicated by the fifth device information supports participating in data collection in a first state; or, the ninth message includes eighth indication information, the eighth indication information being used to indicate whether the device indicated by the fifth device information supports or is allowed to participate in data collection in the first state.

[0281] It should be noted that the information execution process of the unit of the above-mentioned communication device 700 can be specifically described in the method embodiment shown above in this application, and will not be repeated here.

[0282] Please refer to Figure 8, which is another schematic diagram of the communication device 800 provided in this application. The communication device 800 includes a logic circuit 801 and an input / output interface 802. The communication device 800 can be a chip or an integrated circuit.

[0283] In this context, the transceiver unit 702 shown in Figure 7 can be a communication interface, which can be the input / output interface 802 in Figure 8, and the input / output interface 802 can include an input interface and an output interface. Alternatively, the communication interface can also be a transceiver circuit, which can include an input interface circuit and an output interface circuit.

[0284] Optionally, the logic circuit 801 is used to acquire first information, which indicates a data requirement; wherein the first information is used to determine first quantity information, which indicates the number of devices corresponding to the data requirement; the input / output interface 802 is used to send second information to the first network element, which requests device information; the second information includes second quantity information, which indicates the number of devices, and the second quantity information is determined based on the first quantity information; the input / output interface 802 is also used to receive third information from the first network element, which includes first device information, and the number of devices indicated by the first device information is greater than or equal to the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information.

[0285] Optionally, the input / output interface 802 is used to receive second information, which is used to request device information; the second information includes second quantity information, which is used to indicate the number of devices; the input / output interface 802 is also used to send third information, which includes first device information, and the number of devices indicated by the first device information is greater than or equal to the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information.

[0286] Optionally, the logic circuit 801 is used to acquire sixth information, which is used to indicate a data requirement; wherein the sixth information is used to determine fourth quantity information, which is used to indicate the number of devices corresponding to the data requirement; the input / output interface 802 is used to receive seventh information, which includes third device information; wherein the third device information and the fourth quantity information are used to determine the fourth device information.

[0287] Optionally, the input / output interface 802 is used to receive ninth information, which includes fifth device information; wherein the device indicated by the fifth device information supports participating in data collection in the first state; or, the ninth information includes eighth indication information, which is used to indicate whether the device indicated by the fifth device information supports or allows participation in data collection in the first state; the logic circuit 801 is used to send a data collection request based on the fifth device information.

[0288] Optionally, the input / output interface 802 is used to send a ninth message, which includes fifth device information; wherein the device indicated by the fifth device information supports participating in data collection in the first state; or, the ninth message includes an eighth indication message, which is used to indicate whether the device indicated by the fifth device information supports or is allowed to participate in data collection in the first state.

[0289] The logic circuit 801 and the input / output interface 802 can also perform other steps performed by the first or second communication device in any embodiment and achieve corresponding beneficial effects, which will not be elaborated here.

[0290] In one possible implementation, the processing unit 701 shown in FIG7 can be the logic circuit 801 in FIG8.

[0291] Optionally, the logic circuit 801 can be a processing device, the functions of which can be partially or entirely implemented in software.

[0292] Optionally, the processing apparatus may include a memory and a processor, wherein the memory is used to store a computer program, and the processor reads and executes the computer program stored in the memory to perform the corresponding processing and / or steps in any of the method embodiments.

[0293] Optionally, the processing device may consist of only a processor. A memory for storing computer programs is located outside the processing device, and the processor is connected to the memory via circuitry / wires to read and execute the computer programs stored in the memory. The memory and processor may be integrated together or physically independent of each other.

[0294] Optionally, the processing device may be one or more chips, or one or more integrated circuits. For example, the processing device may be one or more field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), system-on-chips (SoCs), central processing units (CPUs), network processors (NPs), digital signal processors (DSPs), microcontroller units (MCUs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), or other integrated chips, or any combination of the above chips or processors.

[0295] Please refer to Figure 9, which shows the communication device 900 involved in the above embodiments provided in the embodiments of this application. Specifically, the communication device 900 can be the communication device as a terminal device in the above embodiments. The example shown in Figure 9 is that the terminal device is implemented through the terminal device (or the components in the terminal device).

[0296] The present invention provides a possible logical structure diagram of the communication device 900, which may include, but is not limited to, at least one processor 901 and a communication port 902.

[0297] In Figure 7, the transceiver unit 702 can be a communication interface, which can be the communication port 902 in Figure 9. The communication port 902 can include an input interface and an output interface. Alternatively, the communication port 902 can also be a transceiver circuit, which can include an input interface circuit and an output interface circuit.

[0298] Further optionally, the device may also include at least one of a memory 903 and a bus 904. In the embodiments of this application, the at least one processor 901 is used to control the operation of the communication device 900.

[0299] Furthermore, the processor 901 can be a central processing unit, a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit, a field-programmable gate array, or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components, or any combination thereof. It can implement or execute the various exemplary logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the disclosure of this application. The processor can also be a combination that implements computing functions, such as a combination of one or more microprocessors, a combination of a digital signal processor and a microprocessor, etc. Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that, for the sake of convenience and brevity, the specific working processes of the systems, devices, and units described above can be referred to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0300] It should be noted that the communication device 900 shown in Figure 9 can be used to implement the steps implemented by the terminal device in the aforementioned method embodiments and to achieve the corresponding technical effects of the terminal device. The specific implementation of the communication device shown in Figure 9 can be referred to the description in the aforementioned method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0301] Please refer to Figure 10, which is a schematic diagram of the structure of the communication device 1000 involved in the above embodiments provided in the embodiments of this application. The communication device 1000 can specifically be a communication device as a network device in the above embodiments. The example shown in Figure 10 is that the network device is implemented through a network device (or a component in the network device). The structure of the communication device can refer to the structure shown in Figure 10.

[0302] The communication device 1000 includes at least one processor 1011 and at least one network interface 1014. Optionally, the communication device further includes at least one memory 1012, at least one transceiver 1013, and one or more antennas 1015. The processor 1011, memory 1012, transceiver 1013, and network interface 1014 are connected, for example, via a bus. In this embodiment, the connection may include various interfaces, transmission lines, or buses, etc., and this embodiment is not limited thereto. The antenna 1015 is connected to the transceiver 1013. The network interface 1014 enables the communication device to communicate with other communication devices through a communication link. For example, the network interface 1014 may include a network interface between the communication device and a core network device, such as an S1 interface; the network interface may also include a network interface between the communication device and other communication devices (e.g., other network devices or core network devices), such as an X2 or Xn interface.

[0303] In this context, the transceiver unit 702 shown in Figure 7 can be a communication interface, which can be the network interface 1014 in Figure 10. The network interface 1014 can include an input interface and an output interface. Alternatively, the network interface 1014 can also be a transceiver circuit, which can include an input interface circuit and an output interface circuit.

[0304] The processor 1011 is primarily used to process communication protocols and communication data, control the entire communication device, execute software programs, and process data from these programs, for example, to support the actions described in the embodiments of the communication device. The communication device may include a baseband processor and a central processing unit (CPU). The baseband processor is primarily used to process communication protocols and communication data, while the CPU is primarily used to control the entire terminal device, execute software programs, and process data from these programs. The processor 1011 in Figure 10 can integrate the functions of both a baseband processor and a CPU. Those skilled in the art will understand that the baseband processor and CPU can also be independent processors interconnected via technologies such as buses. Those skilled in the art will understand that a terminal device can include multiple baseband processors to adapt to different network standards, and multiple CPUs to enhance its processing capabilities. Various components of the terminal device can be connected via various buses. The baseband processor can also be described as a baseband processing circuit or a baseband processing chip. The CPU can also be described as a central processing circuit or a central processing chip. The function of processing communication protocols and communication data can be built into the processor or stored in memory as a software program, which is then executed by the processor to implement the baseband processing function.

[0305] The memory is primarily used to store software programs and data. The memory 1012 can exist independently or be connected to the processor 1011. Optionally, the memory 1012 can be integrated with the processor 1011, for example, integrated within a single chip. The memory 1012 can store program code that executes the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, and its execution is controlled by the processor 1011. The various types of computer program code being executed can also be considered as drivers for the processor 1011.

[0306] Figure 10 shows only one memory and one processor. In actual terminal devices, there may be multiple processors and multiple memories. Memory can also be called storage medium or storage device, etc. Memory can be a storage element on the same chip as the processor, i.e., an on-chip storage element, or it can be a separate storage element; this application does not limit this.

[0307] Transceiver 1013 can be used to support the reception or transmission of radio frequency (RF) signals between a communication device and a terminal. Transceiver 1013 can be connected to antenna 1015. Transceiver 1013 includes a transmitter Tx and a receiver Rx. Specifically, one or more antennas 1015 can receive RF signals. The receiver Rx of transceiver 1013 is used to receive the RF signals from the antennas, convert the RF signals into digital baseband signals or digital intermediate frequency (IF) signals, and provide the digital baseband signals or IF signals to processor 1011 so that processor 1011 can perform further processing on the digital baseband signals or IF signals, such as demodulation and decoding. In addition, the transmitter Tx in transceiver 1013 is also used to receive modulated digital baseband signals or IF signals from processor 1011, convert the modulated digital baseband signals or IF signals into RF signals, and transmit the RF signals through one or more antennas 1015. Specifically, the receiver Rx can selectively perform one or more stages of downmixing and analog-to-digital conversion on the radio frequency signal to obtain a digital baseband signal or a digital intermediate frequency (IF) signal. The order of these downmixing and IF conversion processes is adjustable. The transmitter Tx can selectively perform one or more stages of upmixing and digital-to-analog conversion on the modulated digital baseband signal or digital IF signal to obtain a radio frequency signal. The order of these upmixing and IF conversion processes is also adjustable. The digital baseband signal and the digital IF signal can be collectively referred to as digital signals.

[0308] The transceiver 1013 can also be called a transceiver unit, transceiver, transceiver device, etc. Optionally, the device in the transceiver unit that performs the receiving function can be regarded as the receiving unit, and the device in the transceiver unit that performs the transmitting function can be regarded as the transmitting unit. That is, the transceiver unit includes a receiving unit and a transmitting unit. The receiving unit can also be called a receiver, input port, receiving circuit, etc., and the transmitting unit can be called a transmitter, transmitter, or transmitting circuit, etc.

[0309] It should be noted that the communication device 1000 shown in Figure 10 can be used to implement the steps implemented by the network device in the aforementioned method embodiments and to achieve the corresponding technical effects of the network device. The specific implementation of the communication device 1000 shown in Figure 10 can be referred to the description in the aforementioned method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0310] Please refer to Figure 11, which is a schematic diagram of the structure of the communication device involved in the above embodiments provided in the embodiments of this application.

[0311] It is understood that the communication device 110 includes, for example, modules, units, elements, circuits, or interfaces, which are appropriately configured together to execute the technical solutions provided in this application. The communication device 110 may be the terminal device or network device described above, or a component (e.g., a chip) within these devices, used to implement the methods described in the following method embodiments. The communication device 110 includes one or more processors 111. The processor 111 may be a general-purpose processor or a dedicated processor, for example, a baseband processor or a central processing unit. The baseband processor can be used to process communication protocols and communication data, and the central processing unit can be used to control the communication device (e.g., a RAN node, terminal, or chip), execute software programs, and process data from the software programs.

[0312] Optionally, in one design, the processor 111 may include a program 113 (sometimes also referred to as code or instructions) that can be executed on the processor 111 to cause the communication device 110 to perform the methods described in the embodiments below. In yet another possible design, the communication device 110 includes circuitry (not shown in FIG11).

[0313] Optionally, the communication device 110 may include one or more memories 112 storing a program 114 (sometimes referred to as code or instructions), which can be run on the processor 111 to cause the communication device 110 to perform the methods described in the above method embodiments.

[0314] Optionally, the processor 111 and / or memory 112 may include AI modules 117 and 118, which are used to implement AI-related functions. The AI ​​modules can be implemented through software, hardware, or a combination of both. For example, the AI ​​module may include a radio intelligence control (RIC) module. For example, the AI ​​module may be a near real-time RIC or a non-real-time RIC.

[0315] Optionally, the processor 111 and / or memory 112 may also store data. The processor and memory may be configured separately or integrated together.

[0316] Optionally, the communication device 110 may further include a transceiver 115 and / or an antenna 116. The processor 111, sometimes referred to as a processing unit, controls the communication device (e.g., a RAN node or terminal). The transceiver 115, sometimes referred to as a transceiver unit, transceiver, transceiver circuit, or transceiver, is used to realize the transmission and reception functions of the communication device through the antenna 116.

[0317] In this context, the processing unit 701 shown in Figure 7 can be a processor 111. The transceiver unit 702 shown in Figure 7 can be a communication interface, which can be the transceiver 115 in Figure 11. The transceiver 115 can include an input interface and an output interface. Alternatively, the transceiver 115 can also be a transceiver circuit, which can include an input interface circuit and an output interface circuit.

[0318] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium for storing one or more computer-executable instructions. When the computer-executable instructions are executed by a processor, the processor performs the method described in the possible implementations of the first or second communication device in the foregoing embodiments.

[0319] This application also provides a computer program product (or computer program) containing programs or instructions. When the computer program product is executed by the processor, the processor executes the method of the first communication device or the second communication device that may be implemented as described above.

[0320] This application also provides a chip system including at least one processor for supporting a communication device in implementing the functions involved in the possible implementations of the communication device described above. Optionally, the chip system further includes an interface circuit that provides program instructions and / or data to the at least one processor. In one possible design, the chip system may further include a memory for storing the program instructions and data necessary for the communication device. The chip system may be composed of chips or may include chips and other discrete devices, wherein the communication device may specifically be the first communication device or the second communication device in the aforementioned method embodiments.

[0321] This application also provides a communication system, the network system architecture of which includes a first communication device and a second communication device in any of the above embodiments.

[0322] 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.

[0323] 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.

[0324] 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. 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 technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes, 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, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical disks.

Claims

A communication method, characterized in that, include: Obtain first information, which is used to indicate data requirements; wherein, the first information is used to determine first quantity information, which is used to indicate the number of devices corresponding to the data requirements; Send a second message to the first network element, the second message being used to request device information; the second message includes a second quantity message, the second quantity message being used to indicate the number of devices, the second quantity message being determined based on the first quantity message; Receive third information from the first network element, the third information including first device information, wherein the number of devices indicated by the first device information is greater than or equal to the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The method further includes: Send a fourth message to the second network element, the fourth message being used to request device information; the fourth message includes a third quantity message, the third quantity message being used to indicate the number of devices, the third quantity message being determined based on the first quantity message; The system receives fifth information from the second network element, the fifth information including second device information, wherein the number of devices indicated by the second device information is greater than or equal to the number of devices indicated by the third quantity information. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The number of devices indicated by the second quantity information is equal to the number of devices indicated by the third quantity information. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The second quantity information is determined based on the first quantity information, the service area information of the first network element, and the area information corresponding to the data demand; and / or, the third quantity information is determined based on the first quantity information, the service area information of the second network element, and the area information corresponding to the data demand. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, The first information includes at least one of the following: The data type corresponding to the data requirement, the region corresponding to the data requirement, the total amount of data corresponding to the data requirement, the use case corresponding to the data requirement, or the data collection time information corresponding to the data requirement. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, The device indicated by the first device information supports participation in data collection in the first state; or, The third information includes first indication information, which is used to indicate whether the device indicated by the first device information supports or is allowed to participate in data collection in the first state. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, The second information includes second indication information, which is used to query the device status; wherein, the third information further includes third indication information, which is used to indicate the status of the device indicated by the first device information. The method according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that, The first state includes an idle state, a wireless resource control inactive state, or a power-saving state. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that, The acquisition of the first information includes: Receive the first information from a third-party device. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that, The method further includes: Send a data collection request to some or all of the devices indicated by the first device information. A communication method, characterized in that, include: Receive second information, the second information being used to request device information; the second information includes second quantity information, the second quantity information being used to indicate the number of devices; Send a third message, the third message including first device information, wherein the number of devices indicated by the first device information is greater than or equal to the number of devices indicated by the second quantity information. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that, The device indicated by the first device information supports participation in data collection in the first state; or, The third information includes first indication information, which is used to indicate whether the device indicated by the first device information supports or is allowed to participate in data collection in the first state. The method according to claim 11 or 12 is characterized in that, The second information includes second indication information, which is used to query the device status; wherein, the third information further includes third indication information, which is used to indicate the status of the device indicated by the first device information. The method according to claim 12 or 13 is characterized in that, The first state includes CM-IDLE or Radio Resource Control inactive state RRC_INACTIVE or power-saving state. A communication method, characterized in that, include: Obtain sixth information, which is used to indicate data requirements; wherein, the sixth information is used to determine fourth quantity information, which is used to indicate the number of devices corresponding to the data requirements; Receive seventh information, the seventh information including third device information; wherein, the third device information and the fourth quantity information are used to determine the fourth device information. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that, The fourth device information and at least one of the following are used to determine the number of devices corresponding to one or more network elements, including: The fourth quantity information, the service area information of the one or more network elements, or the area information corresponding to the data requirement. The method according to claim 15 or 16 is characterized in that, The sixth piece of information includes at least one of the following: The data type corresponding to the data requirement, the region corresponding to the data requirement, the total amount of data corresponding to the data requirement, the use case corresponding to the data requirement, or the data collection time information corresponding to the data requirement. The method according to claim 16 or 17, characterized in that, The device indicated by the third device information supports participation in data collection in the first state; or... The seventh information includes a fourth indication information, which is used to indicate whether the device indicated by the third device information supports or allows participation in data collection in the first state. The method according to any one of claims 15 to 18, characterized in that, The method further includes: Send an eighth message, which is used to request device information, and the seventh message is a response to the eighth message; wherein, the eighth message includes a fifth indication message, which is used to query the device status, and the seventh message also includes a sixth indication message, which is used to indicate the status of the device indicated by the third device information. The method according to claim 18 or 19, characterized in that, The first state includes an idle state, a wireless resource control inactive state, or a power-saving state. The method according to any one of claims 15 to 20, characterized in that, The acquisition of the sixth information includes: Receive the sixth information from a third-party device. The method according to any one of claims 15 to 21, characterized in that, The method further includes: Send a data collection request to some or all of the devices indicated by the fourth device information; or, The fourth device information indicates that the device includes one or more devices in the first state, and sends a paging request to the mobility management network element serving the one or more devices. The paging request is used to request paging of the one or more devices. A communication device, characterized in that, Includes a module for performing the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 22. A communication device, characterized in that, It includes at least one processor, said at least one processor being used to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 22. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program or instructions that, when executed by a communication device, implement the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 22. A computer program product, characterized in that, It includes a computer program or instructions that, when executed by a computer, implement the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 22. A chip or chip system, characterized in that, It includes at least one processor, said at least one processor being used to implement the method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 22.

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