CN114698130A

CN114698130A - Wireless communication method and device, terminal and network equipment

Info

Publication number: CN114698130A
Application number: CN202011574405.8A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 雷珍珠; 赵思聪; 周化雨
Original assignee: Spreadtrum Semiconductor Nanjing Co Ltd
Current assignee: Spreadtrum Semiconductor Nanjing Co Ltd
Priority date: 2020-12-25
Filing date: 2020-12-25
Publication date: 2022-07-01
Also published as: WO2022135052A1

Abstract

The embodiment of the application discloses a wireless communication method and device, a terminal and network equipment, which are applied to a non-ground network communication system. The method comprises the following steps: the network equipment sends first DCI to the terminal, wherein the first DCI carries first indication information; a terminal acquires the first DCI, and determines whether J PDCCH monitoring occasions for monitoring a target PDCCH exist in a repeated transmission period of data scheduled by the first DCI according to first indication information in the first DCI; or, determining whether to monitor the target PDCCH at J PDCCH monitoring occasions within the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI according to the first indication information, thereby being beneficial to ensuring the reasonability and flexibility of the PDCCH monitoring occasion configuration process within the period of repeated transmission of primary data in the non-terrestrial network communication system.

Description

Wireless communication method and device, terminal and network equipment

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of communications technologies, and in particular, to a wireless communication method and apparatus, a terminal, and a network device.

Background

Currently, the third generation partnership project (3 GPP) is developing a protocol standard for non-terrestrial network (NTN) communication, which mainly relates to space equipment (space-borne vehicle) or air-borne equipment (airborne vehicle), such as geostationary orbiting satellites, low earth orbiting satellites, high elliptic orbit satellites, High Altitude Platform Stations (HAPS), and the like.

In addition, in the internet of things protocol, in order to ensure a communication coverage, an existing narrowband internet of things (NB-IoT) or enhanced machine-type communication (eMTC) adopts a technology of repeated transmission. However, since the distance between the satellite in the NTN communication system and the ground is very long, and the satellite moves along a fixed orbit, the propagation distance (i.e., propagation delay) between the terminal and the satellite is often large. If the NTN communication system also considers the repetitive transmission technology in the internet of things protocol (i.e. a satellite internet of things scenario), it may result in a long duration of one data transmission of the terminal. Due to the rapid movement of the satellite, the terminal may perform beam switching during the data transmission, so as to receive a beam switching indication sent by the network during the data transmission (i.e., monitor the physical downlink control channel during the data transmission). In addition, regarding the beam switching problem, in the future, the beam switching may be implemented by means of carrier switching, that is, different beams correspond to different carriers. In other words, due to the rapid movement of the satellite, the terminal may need to perform carrier switching during the one-time data transmission process, and therefore how to receive the carrier switching indication issued by the network (i.e. monitor the physical downlink control channel during the one-time data transmission process) during the one-time data transmission process is a problem that needs to be solved currently.

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the application provides a wireless communication method and device, a terminal and network equipment, and aims to send first DCI carrying first indication information to the terminal through the network equipment, so that the rationality and flexibility of a PDCCH monitoring opportunity configuration process in a repeated transmission period of primary data in a non-ground network communication system are ensured.

In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a wireless communication method, which is applied to a terminal in a non-terrestrial network communication system, where the non-terrestrial network communication system includes the terminal and a network device; the method comprises the following steps:

acquiring first Downlink Control Information (DCI) from network equipment, wherein the first DCI carries first indication information;

determining whether J PDCCH monitoring occasions for monitoring a target Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) exist in the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI according to the first indication information, wherein the value of J is an integer larger than 1; or,

determining whether to monitor the target PDCCH on the J PDCCH monitoring occasions within the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI according to the first indication information.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a wireless communication method, which is applied to a network device in a non-terrestrial network communication system, where the non-terrestrial network communication system includes the network device and a terminal; the method comprises the following steps:

sending first Downlink Control Information (DCI) to the terminal, wherein the first DCI carries first indication information;

the first indication information is used for the terminal to determine whether J PDCCH monitoring occasions for monitoring a target Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) exist in a repeated transmission period of data scheduled by the first DCI, wherein the value of J is an integer greater than 1; or,

the first indication information is used for the terminal to determine whether to monitor the target PDCCH on the J PDCCH monitoring occasions during repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI.

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a wireless communication apparatus, which is applied to a terminal in a non-terrestrial network communication system, where the non-terrestrial network communication system includes the terminal and a network device; the apparatus comprises a processing unit and a communication unit, the processing unit being configured to:

acquiring first Downlink Control Information (DCI) from network equipment through the communication unit, wherein the first DCI carries first indication information;

determining whether J PDCCH monitoring occasions for monitoring a target Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) exist in the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI according to the first indication information, wherein the value of J is an integer larger than 1; or, determining whether to monitor the target PDCCH on the J PDCCH monitoring occasions within the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI according to the first indication information.

In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a wireless communication apparatus, which is applied to a network device in a non-terrestrial network communication system, where the non-terrestrial network communication system includes the network device and a terminal; the apparatus comprises a processing unit and a communication unit, the processing unit being configured to:

sending first Downlink Control Information (DCI) to the terminal through the communication unit, wherein the first DCI carries first indication information; the first indication information is used for the terminal to determine whether J PDCCH monitoring occasions for monitoring a target Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) exist in a repeated transmission period of data scheduled by the first DCI, wherein the value of J is an integer greater than 1; or, the first indication information is used for the terminal to determine whether to monitor the target PDCCH on the J PDCCH monitoring occasions during the repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI.

In a fifth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a terminal, including a processor, a memory, a communication interface, and one or more programs, where the one or more programs are stored in the memory and configured to be executed by the processor, and the one or more programs include instructions for performing the steps of any of the methods of the first aspect of the embodiments of the present application.

In a sixth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a network device, including a processor, a memory, a communication interface, and one or more programs, where the one or more programs are stored in the memory and configured to be executed by the processor, and the one or more programs include instructions for performing the steps of any of the methods of the second aspects of the embodiments of the present application.

In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a chip, including a processor, configured to call and run a computer program from a memory, so that a device in which the chip is installed performs some or all of the steps described in any one of the methods of the first aspect or the second aspect of the embodiments of the present application.

In an eighth aspect, the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, where the computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program for electronic data exchange, where the computer program makes a computer perform part or all of the steps described in any one of the methods of the first aspect or the second aspect of the present application.

In a ninth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a computer program, where the computer program is operable to cause a computer to perform some or all of the steps as described in any of the methods of the first or second aspects of the embodiments of the present application. The computer program may be a software installation package.

It can be seen that, in the embodiment of the present application, when the NTN communication system also considers a repeated transmission technology in the internet of things protocol, since a phenomenon that a duration of repeated transmission of data between a terminal and a satellite is long exists, the network device sends the first DCI carrying the first indication information to the terminal in the embodiment of the present application is considered, so that it is advantageous for the network to indicate to the terminal whether J monitoring occasions for monitoring the target PDCCH exist during the repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI; or, the network indicates the terminal whether to monitor the target PDCCH on J PDCCH monitoring occasions within the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI, and the reasonability and flexibility of the PDCCH monitoring occasion configuration process within the repeated transmission period of the primary data in the non-terrestrial network communication system are ensured.

Drawings

In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application, the drawings required for the embodiments or the prior art descriptions will be briefly described below, and it is obvious that the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present application, and it is obvious for those skilled in the art to obtain other drawings without creative efforts.

Fig. 1 is a schematic architecture diagram of a non-terrestrial network communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of an architecture of a system with transparent satellite communication according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of comparing signal reception quality between a land network communication system and a non-land network communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 4 is a schematic architecture diagram illustrating an architecture comparison of a non-terrestrial network communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a wireless communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 6 is a schematic structural diagram illustrating a PDCCH monitoring occasion inserted during a repeat transmission period of data scheduled by a first DCI according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 7 is a schematic structural diagram illustrating that 1-bit information is used to indicate whether a PDCCH monitoring occasion exists within a retransmission deadline of primary data scheduled by a first DCI according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 8 is a schematic structural diagram illustrating that still another 1-bit information is used to indicate whether a PDCCH monitoring occasion exists within a repeat transmission deadline of primary data scheduled by a first DCI according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 9 is a schematic structural diagram of 1-bit information used to indicate whether a target PDCCH is monitored on a PDCCH monitoring occasion within a retransmission deadline of primary data scheduled by first DCI according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 10 is a schematic structural diagram of still another 1-bit information used to indicate whether to monitor a target PDCCH on a PDCCH monitoring occasion within a repeat transmission deadline of primary data scheduled by first DCI according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 11 is an architecture diagram of a non-terrestrial network communication scenario provided in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 12 is a block diagram illustrating functional units of a wireless communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 13 is a block diagram of functional units of another wireless communication apparatus provided in the embodiments of the present application;

fig. 14 is a schematic structural diagram of a terminal according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 15 is a schematic structural diagram of a network device according to an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

Technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application, and it is obvious that the described embodiments are some embodiments of the present application, but not all embodiments. All other embodiments obtained by a person of ordinary skill in the art without making any creative effort with respect to the embodiments in the present application belong to the protection scope of the present application.

The technical scheme of the embodiment of the application can be applied to a non-terrestrial network (NTN) communication system, and the NTN communication system generally provides communication service for a ground terminal in a satellite communication mode.

For example, the embodiment of the present application is applied to a non-terrestrial network communication system, as shown in fig. 1. The non-terrestrial network communication system 10 may include a terminal 110, an intra-cell reference point (reference point)120, a satellite 130, a non-terrestrial network gateway (NTN gateway)140, and a network device 150. Wherein the terminal 110, non-terrestrial network gateway 140, and network device 150 may be located on the surface of the earth while the satellite 130 is located in earth orbit. The satellite 130 may provide communication services to a geographic area of signal coverage and may communicate with terminals 110 located within the signal coverage area. Meanwhile, the terminal 110 is located in a cell, and the cell includes an intra-cell reference point 120. Further, the wireless communication link between the terminal 110 and the satellite 130 is referred to as a service link (service link), and the wireless communication link between the satellite 130 and the non-terrestrial network gateway (NTN gateway)140 is referred to as a feeder link (feeder link). It should be noted that the non-terrestrial network gateway (NTN gateway)140 and the network device 150 may be integrated into the same device, or may be separate devices, which is not limited in particular.

Embodiments of the present application have been described with reference to terminals, satellites, and network devices. This will be described in detail below.

Specifically, the terminal in this embodiment may be a User Equipment (UE), an access terminal, a subscriber unit, a subscriber station, a mobile station, a remote terminal, a mobile device, a user terminal, an intelligent terminal, a wireless communication device, a user agent, or a user equipment. The terminal may also be a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phone, a Wireless Local Loop (WLL) station, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a handheld device with wireless communication function, a computing device or other processing device connected to a wireless modem, a relay device, a vehicle-mounted device, a wearable device, an internet of things device, a terminal in a next generation communication system such as an NR network, a terminal in a future evolved Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN), or the like, which is not particularly limited.

Further, the terminal can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, hand-held, worn, or vehicle-mounted; can be deployed on the water surface (such as a ship and the like); and may also be deployed in the air (e.g., airplanes, balloons, satellites, etc.).

Further, the terminal may be a mobile phone (mobile phone), a tablet computer, a computer with a wireless transceiving function, a Virtual Reality (VR) terminal device, an Augmented Reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal device in industrial control (industrial control), a vehicle-mounted device in self driving (self driving), a wireless terminal device in remote medical (remote medical), a wireless terminal device in smart grid (smart grid), a wireless terminal device in transportation safety (transportation safety), a wireless terminal device in smart city (smart city), a wireless terminal device in smart home (smart home), or the like.

Specifically, the satellite in the embodiment of the present application may be a spacecraft loaded with a bent pipe payload (bent pipe payload) or a regenerative payload (regenerative payload) signal transmitter, which generally operates at a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) height between 300 and 1500km, a Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) height between 7000 and 25000km, a Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO) height between 35786km, or a High Elliptic Orbit (HEO) height between 400 and 50000 km. That is, the satellite may be a LEO satellite, MEO satellite, GEO satellite, HEO satellite, or the like according to the orbital altitude.

Further, the signals transmitted by the satellites in the embodiments of the present application will generally produce one or more beams (alternatively referred to as beam probes) over a given service area (given service area) bounded by its field of view. Also, a beam may be elliptical in shape on the ground, while the field of view of the satellite depends on the antenna and minimum elevation angle, etc.

In particular, the non-terrestrial network gateway in the embodiment of the present application may be an earth station or gateway located on the earth surface and capable of providing sufficient Radio Frequency (RF) power and RF sensitivity to connect to a satellite. Meanwhile, the non-terrestrial network gateway may be a Transport Network Layer (TNL) node.

Specifically, the network device in this embodiment may be a base station (BTS) in a global system for mobile communication (GSM) communication system or a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) communication system, a base station (NB) in a Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) communication system, an evolved base station (eNB or eNodeB) in a Long Term Evolution (LTE) communication system, or a base station (gNB) in a New Radio (NR) communication system. The network device may also be an Access Point (AP) in a wireless local area network WLAN, a relay station, a network device in a PLMN network for future evolution, or a network device in an NTN communication system, etc.

It should be noted that in some network deployments, the gNB may include a Centralized Unit (CU) and a Distributed Unit (DU), and the gNB may further include an Active Antenna Unit (AAU). The CU may implement part of the function of the gNB, and the DU may also implement part of the function of the gNB. For example, the CU is responsible for processing non-real-time protocols and services, and implementing functions of a Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer and a Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer; the DU is responsible for processing a physical layer protocol and a real-time service, and implements functions of a Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, a Medium Access Control (MAC) layer, and a Physical (PHY) layer. In addition, the AAU implements part of the physical layer processing functions, radio frequency processing, and active antenna related functions. Since the information of the RRC layer eventually becomes or is converted from the information of the PHY layer, the higher layer signaling (e.g., RRC layer signaling) may be considered to be transmitted by the DU or transmitted by the DU and the AAU. It will be appreciated that the network devices may include devices of one or more of the CU nodes, DU nodes, AAU nodes. In addition, the CU may be divided into network devices in a Radio Access Network (RAN), or may be divided into network devices in a Core Network (CN), which is not limited specifically.

For example, an architectural diagram of a communication system with transparent satellite (transparent satellite) is provided in the embodiment of the present application, as shown in fig. 2. Wherein the terminal, the non-terrestrial network gateway and the gNB are located on the surface of the earth, and the satellite is located in an orbit of the earth. Meanwhile, the satellite, the non-terrestrial network gateway and the gNB can serve as a 5G radio access network (NG-RAN), and the NG-RAN is connected with a 5G core network through an NG interface. It should be noted that the satellite payload implements frequency conversion and radio frequency amplifiers in both uplink and downlink directions, and the satellite corresponds to an analog RF repeater. In addition, different transparent satellites may be connected to the same gNB on the ground.

Before describing the carrier switching method provided by the embodiment of the present application in detail, the related communication technology related to the present application is described again.

1. Multi-carrier in narrowband band internet of things (NB-IoT)

Since an NB-IoT single frequency point cell has a bandwidth of only 180kHz, and the bandwidth has a small remaining traffic channel capacity except for the overhead of a narrowband-base primary synchronization signal (NPSS), a narrowband-base secondary synchronization signal (NSSS), and a narrowband system information block (SIB-NB), in order to support a large number of terminals, multiple frequency points are required to increase the network capacity.

NB-IoT supports multi-carrier configuration, whose carriers can be divided into two categories: anchor carrier (anchor carrier) and non-anchor carrier (non-anchor carrier). Meanwhile, the same cell may include one anchor carrier and several non-anchor carriers, and the spectrum bandwidth of each carrier is 180kHz, and the maximum spectrum span of all carriers in the cell does not exceed 20 MHz.

Anchoring carrier waves: there is one and only one carrier in the multi-carrier cell, which supports simultaneous carrying of NPSS, NSSS, Narrowband Physical Broadcast Channel (NPBCH), Narrowband Physical Downlink Control Channel (NPDCCH), and Narrowband Physical Downlink Shared Channel (NPDSCH), and the carrier is called an anchor carrier. Thus, the terminal may listen to NPSS, NSSS, NPBCH, NPDCCH, and NPDSCH information on the anchor carrier.

Non-anchor carrier: there may be several carriers in the multi-carrier cell that carry only NPDCCH, NPDSCH, but not NPSS, NSSS, and NPBCH, which are called non-anchor carriers. Accordingly, the terminal may transmit or receive data on the non-anchor carrier. In addition, before the terminal enters the connection state, the network designates a carrier for subsequent downlink data transmission through a message (Msg4) in the random access process. When the terminal is in an idle state, the terminal may monitor paging (paging) on a non-anchor carrier.

2. NTN communication system

In an NTN communication system, a satellite typically generates one or more beams (beam, otherwise known as a beam spot) on the ground, and a beam may be elliptical in shape on the ground. Wherein a portion of the terrestrially generated beams of a satellite (e.g., a LEO satellite) also move terrestrially as the satellite moves in its orbit; alternatively, a portion of the satellites (e.g., LEO or GEO satellites) produce beams or cells that do not move terrestrially as the satellites move in their orbits.

Since the distance between the satellite and the ground is very far (for example, the GEO satellite is 35786km), within the coverage area of the same beam or cell, the propagation distance difference between the terminal (e.g., UE) in different geographic positions and the satellite is small (i.e., the path loss difference of the signals corresponding to the terminals in different geographic positions within the coverage area of the same cell is small), which in turn results in very small difference in the signal reception quality (including the downlink reception quality of the terminal or the uplink reception quality of the base station) corresponding to the terminals in different geographic positions within the coverage area of the same beam/cell, as shown in fig. 3.

In the land network communication system shown in fig. 3 (a), a terminal 3201 and a terminal 3202 having different geographical positions are within the coverage area of the same cell. Since there is a large difference between the propagation distance from the network device 310 to the terminal 3201 and the propagation distance to the terminal 3202, there is a large difference between the signal reception quality corresponding to the terminal 3201 and the signal reception quality corresponding to the terminal 3202. In the NTN communication system shown in fig. 3 (b), the

terminals

3401 and 3402 having different geographical locations within the coverage area of the same beam/cell are located. Since the distance from the satellite 330 to the ground is very long, there is a small difference between the propagation distance from the satellite 330 to the terminal 3401 and the propagation distance to the terminal 3402, resulting in a small difference between the signal reception quality corresponding to the terminal 3401 and the signal reception quality corresponding to the terminal 3402.

3. Architecture of NTN communication system

In the embodiment of the present application, the architecture of the NTN communication system mainly includes an NTN communication architecture (i.e., a transparent forwarding mode) with a transparent satellite (or called a bent pipe payload) and an NTN communication architecture (i.e., a regenerated signal mode) with a regenerated satellite (refer to fig. 4). Among them, fig. 4 (a) illustrates an NTN communication architecture with a transparent satellite, and fig. 4 (b) illustrates an NTN communication architecture with a regenerative satellite. In fig. 4 (a), a transparent repeating mode satellite 410 generates at least one beam 420 on the ground, and the at least one beam 420 may form a cell on the ground. At this time, the terminal 430 located in the cell may measure one of all beams of the cell and establish a communication connection with the satellite 410 through the beam. Similarly, in fig. 4 (b), the satellite 440 regenerating the signal pattern generates at least one beam 450 on the ground, and the at least one beam 450 may form a cell on the ground. At this time, the terminal 460 located in the cell may measure one of all beams of the cell and establish a communication connection with the satellite 440 through the beam.

4. Repeated transmission of data

In order to ensure the communication coverage, the existing narrowband internet of things (NB-IoT) or enhanced machine-type communication (eMTC) adopts the technology of repeated transmission. The maximum number of repeated transmissions for downlink transmission is 2048, and the maximum number of repeated transmissions for uplink transmission is 128. In addition, the number of times of retransmission of a Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) or a Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) may be dynamically indicated by Downlink Control Information (DCI) scheduled by the Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH), that is, DCI has a specific bit field for indicating the number of times of retransmission of the PDSCH or the PUSCH. Meanwhile, the maximum number of times of repetition (Rmax) of a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) may be configured semi-statically by RRC signaling or a System Information Block (SIB).

In a land network communication system (as shown in fig. 3), since there is a large difference in propagation distance between a terminal and a base station at different geographic locations within the coverage area of the same cell, when the terminal receives or transmits data, the terminal at different geographic locations (such as the cell center or the cell edge) needs different data retransmission times (i.e., the PDSCH/PUSCH/PRACH/PDCCH retransmission times). Currently, for the problem of the number of repeated transmissions in terrestrial network communication, the network can dynamically indicate the number of repeated transmissions of PDSCH/PUSCH by a specific bit field in DCI scheduling PDSCH/PUSCH.

Since the distance of the satellite in the NTN communication system is very far from the ground, and the satellite moves along a fixed orbit, the propagation distance (i.e., propagation delay) between the terminal and the satellite is often large. If the NTN communication system also considers the repetitive transmission technology in the internet of things protocol (i.e. a satellite internet of things scenario), it may result in a long duration of one data transmission of the terminal. Due to the rapid movement of the satellite, the terminal may switch the beam (i.e., carrier) during the data transmission, so that how to receive the carrier switch indication (i.e., monitor the PDCCH during one data transmission) sent by the network during the data transmission is a problem that needs to be solved currently.

In conjunction with the above description, an embodiment of the present application provides a flowchart of a wireless communication method, which is applied to a non-terrestrial network communication system, please refer to fig. 5. The method comprises the following steps:

s510, the network device sends a first DCI to the terminal, wherein the first DCI carries first indication information.

The first indication information is used for the terminal to determine whether J PDCCH monitoring occasions for monitoring a target PDCCH exist in the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI, and the value of J is an integer greater than 1; or, the first indication information is used for the terminal to determine whether to monitor the target PDCCH on J PDCCH monitoring occasions within the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI.

It should be noted that, in order to ensure the communication coverage, the NB-IOT/eMTC employs a technology of repeated transmission. In the case that the NTN communication system also considers the duplicate transmission technology in the internet of things protocol, a one-time data transmission duration of the terminal may be longer. Due to the rapid movement of the satellite, the terminal may switch the beam (i.e., carrier) during the data transmission, so that how to receive the carrier switch indication (i.e., monitor the PDCCH during one data transmission) sent by the network during the data transmission is a problem that needs to be solved currently. Therefore, in the embodiment of the present application, it is considered that the network device sends the first DCI carrying the first indication information to the terminal, so that the network indicates to the terminal whether J monitoring occasions for monitoring the target PDCCH exist in the period of repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI; alternatively, indicating, by the network, to the terminal whether to monitor the target PDCCH on J PDCCH monitoring occasions during repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI is achieved.

It should be further noted that the technical solution in the embodiment of the present application is applicable to both the transparent forwarding mode and the regenerated signal mode. In the transparent forwarding mode, the first DCI is transmitted by a network device located on the ground. In the regenerated signal mode, the first DCI is transmitted by the network device located at the satellite because the network device is located at the satellite. In addition, the "first DCI" and the "second DCI" in this embodiment are mainly used to distinguish DCIs issued by the network device at different times, and the indication fields and the indication information carried by the DCIs issued at different times have different control purposes, which is not limited specifically.

The following embodiments of the present application will specifically describe resource allocation of J PDCCH monitoring occasions (PDCCH monitoring occasions). Wherein J is an integer greater than 1.

Specifically, the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions in the J PDCCH monitoring occasions satisfies one of the following manners: the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K repeating units, the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K subframes, the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K time slots, the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K radio Resource Units (RUs), and the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K milliseconds; k is an integer greater than or equal to 1.

It can be understood that during the repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI, the network may insert or configure one PDCCH monitoring occasion every K repeating units (every K subframes, every K slots, every K RUs, or every K milliseconds), as shown in fig. 6. Wherein each PDCCH monitoring occasion is used for monitoring a target PDCCH.

And the value of K is configured by the network equipment through RRC signaling or SIB.

Specifically, the duration of the PDCCH monitoring occasion is configured by the network device through RRC signaling or SIB.

Specifically, the duration of the PDCCH monitoring occasion is configured by the network device for each carrier individually.

It should be noted that a satellite in the NTN communication system generates one or more beams on the ground to form a cell, and a terminal located in the cell may be within the coverage of any beam of all beams in the cell. Therefore, the embodiment of the present application considers the durations of different PDCCH monitoring occasions corresponding to different beams.

Specifically, the duration of the PDCCH monitoring occasion may be applied to all carriers in one cell.

It should be noted that the duration of PDCCH is the same for all beams in the cell. Specifically, the unit of the duration of the PDCCH monitoring occasion may be a subframe, a frame, a time slot, or a millisecond, and the like, which is not particularly limited.

The first indication information will be specifically described in the following embodiments of the present application.

Specifically, the first indication information may be one indication field carried by the first DCI. In addition, the indication field may be a new or specific field in DCI defined by an existing standard.

Specifically, the first indication information may be used to indicate whether J PDCCH monitoring occasions exist during a period of repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI; alternatively, the first indication information may be used to indicate whether the terminal monitors the target PDCCH on J PDCCH monitoring occasions during repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI.

It should be noted that, as to whether J PDCCH monitoring occasions exist within the period of repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI, it can be understood whether the network inserts or configures J PDCCH monitoring occasions within the period of repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI. In addition, for whether to monitor the target PDCCH at J PDCCH monitoring occasions during the repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI, it can be understood that the network has inserted or configured J PDCCH monitoring occasions during the repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI, and at this time, the network issues the first indication information to indicate whether the terminal needs to monitor the target PDCCH at the J PDCCH monitoring occasions.

It should be further noted that, for whether J PDCCH monitoring occasions exist during the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI, it may also be understood that, when data is scheduled by the first DCI, the network device may indicate, to the terminal, whether the configuration for the J PDCCH monitoring occasions is in effect during the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI through the first indication information in the first DCI. That is, the interval K between the two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions and the duration of each PDCCH monitoring occasion are valid or not.

Wherein, the length of the first indication information may be 1 bit (bit).

It should be noted that the length of the first indication information in the first DCI sent by the network device to the terminal may be 1 bit (bit). At this time, the first indication information may be 1-bit information, and the bit value manner of the 1 bit includes 1 and 0. In addition, after the terminal acquires the first indication information in the first DCI from the network device, the terminal may determine, by using a bit value mode in the first indication information, whether J PDCCH monitoring occasions for monitoring the target PDCCH exist within the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI, or the terminal may determine, by using a bit value mode in the first indication information, whether the target PDCCH is monitored at J PDCCH monitoring occasions within the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI. This is exemplified below.

For example, the network device schedules primary data through a first DCI, and carries 1-bit information in the first DCI, where the 1-bit indication is used to indicate whether J PDCCH monitoring occasions exist within a period of repeated transmission of the primary data scheduled by the first DCI. If the value of the bit in the 1-bit information is 1, the 1-bit information is used to indicate that J PDCCH monitoring occasions exist within the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI (i.e., the configuration for the J PDCCH monitoring occasions is valid), as shown in fig. 7; if the value of the bit in the 1-bit information is 0, the 1-bit information is used to indicate that there are no J PDCCH monitoring occasions (i.e., the configuration for the J PDCCH monitoring occasions is not in effect) in the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI, as shown in fig. 8. Or, if the value of a bit in the 1-bit information is 0, the 1-bit information is used to indicate that J PDCCH monitoring occasions exist in the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI; if the value of the bit in the 1-bit information is 1, the 1-bit information is used to indicate that there are no J PDCCH monitoring occasions during the repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI, which is not limited in particular.

For example, the network device schedules primary data through a first DCI, and carries 1-bit information in the first DCI, where the 1-bit indication is used to indicate whether the terminal monitors the target PDCCH at J PDCCH monitoring occasions within a period of repeated transmission of the primary data scheduled by the first DCI. If the value of the bit in the 1-bit information is 1, the 1-bit information is used to instruct the terminal to monitor the target PDCCH at J PDCCH monitoring occasions within the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI, as shown in fig. 9; if the value of the bit in the 1-bit information is 0, the 1-bit information is used to instruct the terminal to monitor the target PDCCH on J PDCCH non-monitoring occasions within the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI, as shown in fig. 10. Or, if the value of the bit in the 1-bit information is 0, the 1-bit information is used to instruct the terminal to monitor the target PDCCH at J PDCCH monitoring occasions within the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI; if the value of the bit in the 1-bit information is 1, the 1-bit information is used to instruct the terminal not to monitor the target PDCCH at J PDCCH monitoring occasions within the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI, which is not specifically limited.

To sum up, in the embodiment of the present application, J PDCCH monitoring occasions within the period of the repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI are flexibly configured through the first indication information carried by the first DCI, so that the flexibility of the NTN communication system is ensured under the condition that the NTN communication system also considers the repeated transmission technology in the internet of things protocol.

Next, the embodiment of the present application will specifically explain the role of the target PDCCH.

Since a satellite in an NTN communication system typically generates one or more beams on the ground to form a cell, and a terminal located in the cell may be in the coverage area of any of all beams in the cell, as the satellite moves along a fixed orbit, the beams generated by the satellite on the ground also move on the ground as the satellite moves. In order to ensure that the communication connection between the terminal and the satellite is not interrupted, the terminal may need to perform frequent beam switching. The beam switching may be performed by performing beam management in a carrier switching manner, that is, each beam in all beams in a cell corresponds to one or more carriers (that is, one carrier corresponds to one beam), and the beam switching is implemented by the carrier switching.

In addition, the application considers a scenario of combining a repeated transmission technology in a wireless network networking protocol in an NTN communication system, and because a phenomenon that a repeated transmission of data between a terminal and a satellite may have a long duration in the scenario, a problem of carrier switching may also exist during the repeated transmission of the data.

For the problem that carrier switching may occur during the repeated transmission of primary data scheduled by DCI, the following two ways may be considered in the present application: one way is that the network guarantees that scheduled data can be transmitted on the current carrier (the carrier on which the DCI is transmitted) when scheduling data through DCI (i.e., scheduling DCI), and this way may cause severe limitation on network scheduling; another way is to support cross-carrier scheduling, but in order to support cross-carrier scheduling, the NTN communication system needs to design a new indication field or indication information for DCI to indicate whether to switch between cross-carriers.

In combination with the above description, in the embodiment of the present application, J PDCCH monitoring occasions are inserted or configured in the period of repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI, and a target PDCCH carrying second indication information in the second DCI is monitored in the J PDCCH monitoring occasions, so that the problem of cross-carrier in the period of repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI is solved through the second indication information, and the purpose of performing cross-carrier handover in the period of repeated transmission of one data is achieved. This will be specifically explained below.

Specifically, the target PDCCH is used to carry the second DCI.

It should be noted that, since the PDCCH channel may carry scheduling DCI or non-scheduling DCI, the embodiment of the present application considers that a target PDCCH monitored by the terminal at J PDCCH monitoring occasions carries second DCI.

Further, the second DCI carries second indication information, where the second indication information is used to indicate whether to perform carrier switching in a repeat transmission period of data scheduled by the first DCI.

Since repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI may have a long duration, there may be a case where carrier switching occurs during the repeated transmission of the data. For this reason, in conjunction with the above description, when J PDCCH monitoring occasions exist within the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI, if the terminal monitors the target PDCCH on the J PDCCH monitoring occasions, it is indicated that the target PDCCH itself also exists within the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI. At this time, when the terminal receives the second indication information in the second DCI carried by the target PDCCH within the J PDCCH monitoring occasions, the terminal may determine whether to perform carrier switching within a period of repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI according to the second indication information.

Wherein, the second indication information may be one indication field carried by the second DCI. In addition, the indication field may be a new or specific field in DCI defined by an existing standard.

In the following, the embodiment of the present application will specifically describe that the second indication information is used to indicate whether to perform carrier switching during the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI.

In one possible example, the second indication information is specifically used for indicating whether to switch from the current carrier to the target carrier during the repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI so as to repeatedly transmit the data.

Wherein the current carrier is a carrier used for transmitting the first DCI and the second DCI, and an index (index) of the target carrier is indicated by the second DCI.

It should be noted that, the terminal may determine the target carrier according to the index of the target carrier indicated by the second DCI, so as to configure or indicate, by the network, the target carrier to be switched to the terminal during the period of the repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI.

It should be further noted that, since the distance between the satellite and the ground is very far, the propagation distance between the terminal and the satellite changes little even if the terminal moves (i.e., the position of the terminal changes) for a while. That is, the motion of the terminal is less varied with respect to the motion of the satellite. Based on this, the embodiment of the present application considers that the current position of the terminal is approximately fixed for a period of time, and mainly analyzes the situation of beam switching caused by the continuous movement of the satellite.

In order to solve the problem of beam switching in the NTN communication system, in the embodiment of the present application, beam management is performed by performing beam switching in a carrier switching manner, that is, each beam in all beams in a cell corresponds to one or more carriers (that is, one carrier corresponds to one beam), and beam switching is implemented by performing carrier switching. Therefore, in the embodiment of the present application, the terminal monitors the target PDCCH to obtain the second indication information in the second DCI, and then the terminal determines whether to switch from the current carrier to the target carrier during the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI according to the second indication information so as to repeatedly transmit the data, so that the beam switching management (i.e., whether to switch from the current carrier to the target carrier) is implemented through the carrier switching management (i.e., whether to switch from the beam corresponding to the current carrier to the beam corresponding to the target carrier), which is beneficial to avoiding interruption of the NTN network communication due to the movement of the satellite, and improving the reliability of the NTN network communication.

Further, the current carrier and the target carrier correspond to different beams respectively. Wherein the beam is a beam of all beams in the serving cell where the terminal is located.

It should be noted that, based on the above description, a satellite in the NTN communication system generates one or more beams on the ground to form a cell, and a terminal located in the cell may be in the coverage of any beam of all beams in the cell. At this time, the cell is referred to as a serving cell in which the terminal is located.

Specifically, the second indication information may be 1-bit information or X-bit information, and a value of X is an integer greater than 1; the 1-bit information may be used to determine whether to switch from the current carrier to the target carrier by a bit dereferencing mode, or the 1-bit information may be used to determine whether to switch from the current carrier to the target carrier by a bit flipping mode; the X-bit information can be used to determine whether to switch from the current carrier to the target carrier by bit encoding.

Wherein, the value of X can be configured by the network device through RRC dedicated signaling.

It should be noted that the length of the second indication information in the second DCI acquired by the terminal monitoring the target PDCCH may be 1 bit (bit) or X bits (bits). When the length of the second indication information is 1 bit, the second indication information may be referred to as 1-bit information, and the bit manner of the 1-bit information includes 1 and 0, or the bit flipping manner of the 1-bit information includes bit flipping (for example, 1 is converted into 0, 0 is converted into 1) and bit not flipped.

When the length of the second indication information is X bits, the second indication information may be referred to as X-bit information, and the bit encoding mode of the X-bit information includes any encoding combination of X bits. For example, when X is 2, the bit encoding scheme of 2 bits of information includes 00, 01, 10, and 11.

Therefore, after the terminal acquires the second indication information, the terminal can determine whether to switch the current carrier to the target carrier through a bit value mode in the second indication information; or, the terminal may determine whether to switch from the current carrier to the target carrier by using a bit flipping manner in the second indication information; or, the terminal may determine whether to switch from the current carrier to the target carrier by a bit encoding mode in the X-bit information. This is exemplified below.

Illustratively, the terminal monitors the target PDCCH to obtain 1-bit information in the second DCI. If the value of the bit in the 1-bit information is 1, the 1-bit information is used for indicating the terminal to switch the current carrier to the target carrier in the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI so as to repeatedly transmit the data; if the bit value in the 1-bit information is 0, the 1-bit information is used to instruct the terminal to repeatedly transmit the data by the current carrier within the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI, without performing carrier switching. Or, if the value of the bit in the 1-bit information is 0, the 1-bit information is used to instruct the terminal to switch from the current carrier to the target carrier during the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI so as to repeatedly transmit the data; if the value of the bit in the 1-bit information is 1, the 1-bit information is used to instruct the terminal to repeatedly transmit the data by switching the current carrier within the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI, without performing carrier switching.

Illustratively, the terminal monitors the target PDCCH to obtain 1-bit information in the second DCI. If the bit in the 1-bit information is inverted (e.g. 1 is converted into 0, 0 is converted into 1), the 1-bit information is used to instruct the terminal to switch from the current carrier to the target carrier during the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI so as to repeatedly transmit the data; if the bit in the 1-bit information is not flipped, the 1-bit information is used to instruct the terminal to repeatedly transmit the data by the current carrier switch within the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI, without performing the carrier switch. Or, if the bit in the 1-bit information is not flipped, the 1-bit information is used to instruct the terminal to switch from the current carrier to the target carrier during the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI so as to repeatedly transmit the data; if the bit in the 1-bit information is flipped, the 1-bit information is used to instruct the terminal to repeatedly transmit the data from the current carrier switch within the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI, without performing the carrier switch.

Illustratively, the terminal monitors the target PDCCH to obtain 2-bit information in the second DCI. If the bit encoding mode in the 2-bit information is 00, the 2-bit information is used for indicating the terminal to repeatedly transmit the data by switching the current carrier within the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI, and not to execute carrier switching; if the bit encoding scheme in the 2-bit information is not 00 (e.g., 01, 10, or 11), the 2-bit information is used to instruct the terminal to switch from the current carrier to the target carrier during the retransmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI so as to retransmit the data.

S520, the terminal acquires the first DCI from the network equipment.

In conjunction with the above description, the following embodiments of the present application will specifically describe how the terminal determines a target carrier through an index of the target carrier indicated by the second DCI.

Specifically, the second DCI also carries third indication information, where the third indication information is used to indicate an index of a target carrier.

It should be noted that, in the embodiment of the present application, it is considered that the second DCI carries the second indication information and the third indication information, and the terminal may determine the target carrier according to the index of the target carrier indicated by the third indication information, so that the target carrier to be switched is configured or indicated to the terminal by the network in the period of the repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI.

Further, the index of the target carrier is in the carrier index set information.

The carrier index set information comprises indexes of M carriers and a candidate carrier index set associated with each carrier index in the indexes of the M carriers, the indexes of the M carriers comprise the index of the current carrier, and the index of the target carrier is specifically in the candidate carrier index set associated with the index of the current carrier; the index of each carrier in the carrier index set information corresponds to a beam, and the value of M is an integer greater than 1; the candidate carrier index set is composed of indexes of N carriers in the indexes of the M carriers, and the value of N is less than or equal to that of M.

Further, the carrier index set information may be configured by the network device through RRC dedicated signaling; alternatively, the carrier index set information is preconfigured.

It should be noted that, in the embodiment of the present application, it is considered that a candidate carrier index set associated with each of the indexes of M carriers and the indexes of M carriers, that is, carrier index set information, is configured to a terminal. Wherein, there is no permutation order between carrier indexes in the indexes of M carriers and between carrier indexes in the candidate carrier index set. Then, the network device may transmit the first DCI to the terminal through a certain carrier (i.e., the current carrier). And finally, the terminal monitors the target PDCCH to acquire second DCI. In addition, since the index of each carrier in the carrier index set information is associated with one candidate carrier index set, and the index of the target carrier is specifically in the candidate carrier index set associated with the index of the current carrier, the carrier index in the candidate carrier index set associated with the index of the current carrier needs to be considered.

In the following, how the indexes of M carriers and the indexes of N carriers in the candidate carrier index set are determined will be described in detail in this embodiment of the application.

Specifically, the carrier index set information may satisfy at least one of the following manners: indexes of M carriers in the carrier index set information are determined by current position information of the terminal and a preset satellite ephemeris, and indexes of N carriers in a candidate carrier index set in the carrier index set information are determined by distribution of beams corresponding to the indexes of the M carriers.

It should be noted that the terminal may calculate current position information through a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), and then send the current position information to the network device. Then, the network device may determine indexes of M carriers in the carrier index set information according to the current position information of the terminal and a preset satellite ephemeris, thereby establishing a mapping relationship between the current position of the terminal and the running trajectory of the satellite and the carrier indexes in the carrier index set information.

Additionally, a satellite in an NTN communication system may have a beam distribution between one or more beams generated on the ground by the satellite, and the beam distribution is referred to as a beam ground profile. Therefore, the embodiment of the present application considers that the network device determines the carrier index in the candidate carrier index set associated with the index of the M carriers according to the distribution of the beam corresponding to the index of the M carriers.

Specifically, the determining of the indexes of the N carriers by the distribution of the beams corresponding to the indexes of the M carriers may specifically include the following steps: and determining respective adjacent beams of the beams corresponding to the indexes of the M carriers, and forming the indexes of the N carriers by the carriers corresponding to the respective adjacent beams. Specific examples are described below.

Illustratively, in fig. 11, a satellite 1110 generates 10 beams in turn on the ground along a fixed trajectory, and each of the 10 beams corresponds to one carrier, i.e., 10 carriers. At this time, the current position of the terminal 1120 is in a region corresponding to the carrier index C3, so that communication between the satellite 1110 and the terminal 1120 is performed through the carrier index C3 (i.e., the index of the current carrier). Then, the network device determines, according to the current location information of the terminal 1120 and a preset satellite ephemeris, a carrier index set { C3, C4, C5, C6, C7, C8, C9} and a candidate carrier index set (i.e., carrier index set information) associated with each carrier index in the carrier index set. Since the adjacent carrier indexes of the beam corresponding to the carrier index C3 include carrier index C0, carrier index C1, carrier index C2, carrier index C4, carrier index C5 and carrier index C6, and the satellite 1110 runs along the "satellite motion direction" shown in the figure, the candidate carrier index set associated with the carrier index C3 is { C4, C5, C6 }. Similarly, the candidate carrier index set associated with carrier index C4 is { C5, C9}, the candidate carrier index set associated with carrier index C5 is { C7, C8, C9}, and so on. And finally, the network equipment issues the carrier index set and the candidate carrier index set associated with each carrier index in the carrier index set to the terminal through RRC dedicated signaling.

The third indication information is described in detail in the following embodiments of the present application.

Specifically, the third indication information may be Y-bit information, and a value of Y is an integer greater than 1. Wherein the Y-bit information may have an index for indicating the target carrier by a bit encoding manner.

Further, the value of Y may be configured by the network device through RRC dedicated signaling.

When the length of the third indication information is Y bits, the third indication information may be referred to as Y-bit information, and the bit encoding scheme of the Y bits includes any encoding combination of the Y bits. For example, when Y is 2, the bit encoding scheme of 2 bits includes 00, 01, 10, and 11. For this purpose, the terminal may indicate the index of the target carrier by a bit encoding manner in the Y-bit information.

Further, the value of Y satisfies at least one of the following modes: the value of Y is determined by the number of carrier indexes in a candidate carrier index set associated with the index of the current carrier, and the value of Y and the value of N have a mapping relation.

It can be understood that the network device may configure the value of Y by the number of carrier indexes in the candidate carrier index set in the carrier index set information, thereby implementing that the network configures Y bit information to indicate the index of the target carrier, and avoiding the signaling overhead from being too large. Meanwhile, there may be a reserved bit case in the Y bit information. For example, if the number of carrier indexes in the candidate carrier index set associated with the index of the current carrier is 3, the value of Y may be 2; if the number of carrier indexes in the candidate carrier index set associated with the index of the current carrier is 5, the value of Y may be 3. At this time, there may be a case where a reserved bit exists in the 3-bit information. The following description will be given by way of example with reference to the second indication information, the third indication information, and fig. 11.

For example, first, the network device issues, to the terminal, a carrier index set { C3, C4, C5, C6, C7, C8, C9} and a candidate carrier index set associated with each carrier index in the carrier index set through RRC dedicated signaling. The carrier corresponding to the carrier index C3 is a carrier for transmitting the first DCI and the second DCI (that is, the current carrier is the carrier corresponding to the carrier index C3), and the candidate carrier index set associated with the carrier index C3 is { C4, C5, C6 }.

Secondly, the terminal monitors the target PDCCH to acquire second indication information and third indication information in the second DCI. Wherein, the second indication information is 1 bit information, and the third indication information is 2 bit information.

Again, the value of the bit in the 1-bit information is 1, so the 1-bit information is used to instruct the terminal to switch from the current carrier to the target carrier during the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI, so as to repeatedly transmit the data. Meanwhile, the 2-bit information is used to indicate the index of the target carrier by a bit encoding manner. Wherein, if the bit encoding scheme in the 2-bit information is 00, the 2-bit information is used to indicate a first carrier index (i.e., C4) in the candidate carrier index set { C4, C5, C6} associated with the carrier index C3; if the bit encoding scheme in the 2-bit information is 01, the 2-bit information is used to indicate the second carrier index (i.e., C5) in the candidate carrier index set { C4, C5, C6} associated with the carrier index C3; if the bit encoding scheme in the 2-bit information is 10, the 2-bit information is used to indicate the third carrier index (i.e., C6) in the candidate carrier index set { C4, C5, C6} associated with the carrier index C3; if the bit encoding method in the 2-bit information is 11, the 2-bit information is used as a reserved bit.

Finally, when the 2-bit information is used to indicate the first carrier index in the candidate carrier index set { C4, C5, C6}, the index of the target carrier is the carrier index C4. At this time, the current carrier is a carrier corresponding to the carrier index C3, and the target carrier is an index corresponding to the carrier index C4.

As can be seen, whether the current carrier is switched to the target carrier for repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI within the repeated transmission period is indicated by the second indication information in the second DCI, and the index of the target carrier is indicated by the third indication information in the second DCI, so that cross-carrier data transmission in the repeated transmission process of the data scheduled by the first DCI is achieved.

S530, the terminal determines whether J PDCCH monitoring occasions for monitoring a target PDCCH exist in the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI according to the first indication information; or, determining whether to monitor the target PDCCH on J PDCCH monitoring occasions within a period of repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI according to the first indication information.

It can be seen that, in the embodiment of the present application, when the NTN communication system also considers a repeated transmission technology in the internet of things protocol, since a phenomenon that a duration of repeated transmission of data between a terminal and a satellite is long exists, the network device sends the first DCI carrying the first indication information to the terminal in the embodiment of the present application is considered, so that it is advantageous for the network to indicate to the terminal whether J monitoring occasions for monitoring the target PDCCH exist during the repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI; or, whether the target PDCCH is monitored or not is indicated to the terminal by the network at J PDCCH monitoring occasions in the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI, and the reasonability and flexibility of the PDCCH monitoring occasion configuration process in the repeated transmission period of the primary data in the non-ground network communication system are favorably ensured.

The above-mentioned scheme of the embodiment of the present application is introduced mainly from the perspective of interaction between network elements in the method side. It is understood that the terminal or the network device includes a hardware structure and/or a software module for performing the respective functions in order to implement the above functions. Those of skill in the art will readily appreciate that the various illustrative elements and algorithm steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as hardware or combinations of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is performed in hardware or computer software drives hardware depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the solution. Skilled artisans may implement the described functionality in varying ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the present application.

In the embodiment of the present application, the terminal or the network device may be divided into the functional units according to the above method examples, for example, each functional unit may be divided corresponding to each function, or two or more functions may be integrated into one processing unit. The integrated unit may be implemented in the form of hardware, or may be implemented in the form of a software program module. It should be noted that the division of the units in the embodiment of the present application is illustrative, and is only one division of the logic functions, and there may be another division in actual implementation.

Where integrated units are employed, fig. 12 provides a block diagram of the functional units of a wireless communication device. The wireless communication apparatus 1200 is applied to a terminal in a non-terrestrial network communication system, and specifically includes: a processing unit 1202 and a communication unit 1203. The processing unit 1202 is configured to control and manage actions of the terminal, for example, the processing unit 1202 is configured to support the terminal to execute the steps in fig. 5 and other processes for the technical solutions described in this application. The communication unit 1203 is configured to support communication between the terminal and other devices in the non-terrestrial network communication system. The wireless communication apparatus 1200 may further include a storage unit 1201 for storing program codes and data of the terminal.

The processing unit 1202 may be a processor or a controller, and may be, for example, a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a general purpose processor, a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), or other programmable logic device, a transistor logic device, a hardware component, or any combination thereof. Which may implement or execute the various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the disclosure herein. The processing unit 1202 may also be a combination of computing functions, e.g., comprising one or more microprocessors in combination, a DSP and a microprocessor in combination, or the like. The communication unit 1203 may be a communication interface, a transceiver, a transmitting-receiving circuit, or the like, and the storage unit 1201 may be a memory. When the processing unit 1202 is a processor, the communication unit 1203 is a communication interface, and the storage unit 1201 is a memory, the wireless communication apparatus 1200 according to the embodiment of the present application may be a terminal shown in fig. 14.

In a specific implementation, the processing unit 1202 is configured to perform any step performed by the terminal in the above method embodiment, and when performing data transmission such as sending, optionally invokes the communication unit 1203 to complete the corresponding operation. The following is a detailed description.

The processing unit 1202 is configured to: acquiring first Downlink Control Information (DCI) from network equipment, wherein the first DCI carries first indication information; determining whether J PDCCH monitoring occasions for monitoring a target Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) exist in the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI according to the first indication information, wherein the value of J is an integer larger than 1; or, determining whether to monitor the target PDCCH on J PDCCH monitoring occasions within a period of repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI according to the first indication information.

It should be noted that specific implementation of each operation in the embodiment shown in fig. 12 may be detailed in the description of the method embodiment shown in fig. 5, and details are not described herein again.

It can be seen that, in the embodiment of the present application, in the case that the NTN communication system also considers the repeated transmission technology in the internet of things protocol, since the repeated transmission of data between the terminal and the satellite may have a phenomenon of a long duration, the embodiment of the present application considers that the network device sends the first DCI carrying the first indication information to the terminal, thereby facilitating the network to indicate to the terminal whether J monitoring occasions for monitoring the target PDCCH exist during the repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI; or, whether the target PDCCH is monitored or not is indicated to the terminal by the network at J PDCCH monitoring occasions in the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI, and the reasonability and flexibility of the PDCCH monitoring occasion configuration process in the repeated transmission period of the primary data in the non-ground network communication system are favorably ensured.

In one possible example, the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions of the J PDCCH monitoring occasions satisfies one of the following: the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K repeating units, the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K subframes, the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K time slots, the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K wireless resource units, and the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K milliseconds; k is an integer greater than or equal to 1.

In one possible example, the value of K is configured by the network device through radio resource control RRC signaling or system information block SIB.

In one possible example, the duration of the PDCCH monitoring occasion is configured by the network device through RRC signaling or SIB.

In one possible example, the duration of the PDCCH monitoring occasion is configured by the network device for each carrier individually.

In one possible example, the duration of a PDCCH monitoring occasion applies to all carriers within one cell.

In one possible example, the first indication information is to indicate whether there are J PDCCH monitoring occasions during repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI; or, the first indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal monitors the target PDCCH on J PDCCH monitoring occasions within the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI.

In one possible example, the target PDCCH is used to carry a second DCI.

In one possible example, the second DCI carries second indication information, where the second indication information is used to indicate whether to perform carrier switching during a repeat transmission period of data scheduled by the first DCI.

In one possible example, the first indication information is specifically used for indicating whether to switch from the current carrier to the target carrier during the repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI so as to repeatedly transmit the data; the current carrier is a carrier used for transmitting the first DCI, and an index (index) of the target carrier is indicated by the second DCI.

In one possible example, the current carrier and the target carrier each correspond to a different beam.

In one possible example, the second indication information may be 1-bit information or X-bit information, where X is an integer greater than 1; the 1-bit information may be used to determine whether to switch from the current carrier to the target carrier by a bit dereferencing mode, or the 1-bit information may be used to determine whether to switch from the current carrier to the target carrier by a bit flipping mode; the X-bit information can be used to determine whether to switch from the current carrier to the target carrier by bit encoding.

In one possible example, the value of X may be configured by the network device through RRC dedicated signaling.

In one possible example, the second DCI further carries third indication information, where the third indication information is used to indicate an index of the target carrier.

In one possible example, the index of the target carrier is in the carrier index set information; the carrier index set information includes indexes of M carriers and a candidate carrier index set associated with each carrier index in the indexes of M carriers, the indexes of M carriers include an index of a current carrier, and the index of a target carrier is specifically in the candidate carrier index set associated with the index of the current carrier; the index of each carrier in the carrier index set information corresponds to a beam, and the value of M is an integer greater than 1; the candidate carrier index set is composed of indexes of N carriers in the indexes of the M carriers, and the value of N is less than or equal to that of M.

In one possible example, the carrier index set information may be configured by the network device through RRC dedicated signaling; alternatively, the carrier index set information is preconfigured.

In one possible example, the carrier index set information may satisfy at least one of the following: indexes of M carriers in the carrier index set information are determined by current position information of the terminal and a preset satellite ephemeris, and indexes of N carriers in a candidate carrier index set in the carrier index set information are determined by distribution of beams corresponding to the indexes of the M carriers.

In one possible example, the third indication information is Y-bit information, and the value of Y is an integer greater than 1; the Y-bit information has an index for indicating a target carrier by a bit encoding manner.

In one possible example, the value of Y may be configured by the network device through RRC dedicated signaling.

In one possible example, the value of Y satisfies at least one of the following: the value of Y is determined by the number of carrier indexes in a candidate carrier index set associated with the index of the current carrier, and the value of Y and the value of N have a mapping relation.

Where integrated units are employed, fig. 13 provides a block diagram of the functional units of yet another wireless communication device. The wireless communication apparatus 1300 is applied to a network device in a non-terrestrial network communication system, and specifically includes: a processing unit 1302 and a communication unit 1303. The processing unit 1302 is configured to control and manage actions of the network device, for example, the processing unit 1302 is configured to support the network device to execute the steps in fig. 5 and other processes for the technical solutions described in this application. The communication unit 1303 is used to support communication between the network device and other devices in the non-terrestrial network communication system. Wireless communications apparatus 1300 may also include a storage unit 1301 to store program codes and data for the network devices.

The processing unit 1302 may be a processor or a controller, and may be, for example, a CPU, a DSP, an ASIC, an FPGA or other programmable logic device, a transistor logic device, a hardware component, or any combination thereof. Which may implement or perform the various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the disclosure. The processing unit 1302 may also be a combination of computing functions, e.g., comprising one or more microprocessors, a combination of DSPs and microprocessors, or the like. The communication unit 1303 may be a communication interface, a transceiver, a transmitting and receiving circuit, and the like, and the storage unit 1301 may be a memory. When processing section 1302 is a processor, communication section 1303 is a communication interface, and storage section 1301 is a memory, wireless communication apparatus 1300 according to the embodiment of the present application may be a network device shown in fig. 15.

In a specific implementation, the processing unit 1302 is configured to execute any step executed by the network device in the above method embodiment, and when data transmission such as sending is executed, the communication unit 1303 may be optionally called to complete the corresponding operation. The details will be described below.

The processing unit 1302 is configured to: sending first Downlink Control Information (DCI) to a terminal, wherein the first DCI carries first indication information; the first indication information is used for determining whether J PDCCH monitoring occasions for monitoring a target physical downlink control channel PDCCH exist in a repeated transmission period of data scheduled by the first DCI, and the value of J is an integer larger than 1; or, the first indication information is used to determine whether to monitor the target PDCCH on J PDCCH monitoring occasions during repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI.

It should be noted that specific implementation of each operation in the embodiment shown in fig. 13 may be detailed in the description of the method embodiment shown in fig. 5, and details are not described herein again.

In one possible example, the first indication information is for indicating whether there are J PDCCH monitoring occasions during repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI; or, the first indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal monitors the target PDCCH on J PDCCH monitoring occasions within the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI.

In one possible example, the target PDCCH is used to carry a second DCI.

In one possible example, the second DCI carries second indication information, where the second indication information is used to indicate whether to perform carrier switching in a period of repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI.

Referring to fig. 14, fig. 14 is a schematic structural diagram of a terminal according to an embodiment of the present application. Terminal 1400 can include, among other things, processor 1410, memory 1420, communication interface 1430, and at least one communication bus that couples processor 1410, memory 1420, and communication interface 1430.

Memory 1420 includes, but is not limited to, Random Access Memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), or portable read-only memory (CD-ROM), where memory 1420 is used for associated instructions and data.

Communication interface 1430 is used to receive and transmit data.

The processor 1410 may be one or more CPUs, and in the case where the processor 1410 is one CPU, the CPU may be a single-core CPU or a multi-core CPU.

The processor 1410 in the terminal 1400 is configured to read one or more programs 1421 stored in the memory 1420 to perform the following steps: acquiring first Downlink Control Information (DCI) from network equipment, wherein the first DCI carries first indication information; determining whether J PDCCH monitoring occasions for monitoring a target Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) exist in the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI according to the first indication information, wherein the value of J is an integer larger than 1; or, determining whether to monitor the target PDCCH on J PDCCH monitoring occasions within a period of repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI according to the first indication information.

It should be noted that specific implementation of each operation in the embodiment shown in fig. 14 may be detailed in the description of the method embodiment shown in fig. 5, and details are not described herein again.

In one possible example, the target PDCCH is used to carry a second DCI.

Referring to fig. 15, fig. 15 is a schematic structural diagram of a network device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The network device 1500 includes a processor 1510, a memory 1520, a communication interface 1530, and at least one communication bus connecting the processor 1510, the memory 1520, and the communication interface 1530.

The memory 1520 includes, but is not limited to, RAM, ROM, PROM or CD-ROM, and the memory 1520 is used to store relevant instructions and data.

Communication interface 1530 is used to receive and transmit data.

The processor 1510 may be one or more CPUs, and in the case where the processor 1510 is one CPU, the CPU may be a single-core CPU or a multi-core CPU.

The processor 1510 in the network device 1500 is configured to read one or more programs 1521 stored in the memory 1520 to perform the following steps: sending first Downlink Control Information (DCI) to a terminal, wherein the first DCI carries first indication information; the first indication information is used for determining whether J PDCCH monitoring occasions for monitoring a target physical downlink control channel PDCCH exist in a repeated transmission period of data scheduled by the first DCI, and the value of J is an integer larger than 1; or, the first indication information is used to determine whether to monitor the target PDCCH on J PDCCH monitoring occasions within a period of repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI.

It should be noted that specific implementation of each operation in the embodiment shown in fig. 15 may be detailed in the description of the method embodiment shown in fig. 5, and details are not described herein again.

In one possible example, the target PDCCH is used to carry a second DCI.

The present application further provides a chip, where the chip includes a processor, and is configured to call and run a computer program from a memory, so that a device in which the chip is installed performs some or all of the steps described in the terminal or the network device in the foregoing method embodiments.

The present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, where the computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program for electronic data exchange, where the computer program makes a computer perform some or all of the steps described in the above method embodiments for a terminal or a network device.

Embodiments of the present application further provide a computer program product, where the computer program product includes a computer program operable to cause a computer to perform some or all of the steps described in the above method embodiments for a terminal or a network device. The computer program product may be a software installation package.

The steps of a method or algorithm described in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented in hardware, or may be implemented by a processor executing software instructions. The software instructions may consist of corresponding software modules that may be stored in RAM, flash memory, ROM, Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EPROM), Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EEPROM), registers, a hard disk, a removable hard disk, a compact disc read only memory (CD-ROM), or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor such the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. Of course, the storage medium may also be integral to the processor. The processor and the storage medium may reside in an ASIC. In addition, the ASIC may reside in a terminal or network device. Of course, the processor and the storage medium may reside as discrete components in a terminal or network device.

It will be appreciated by those of skill in the art that in one or more of the examples described above, the functionality described in the embodiments of the application may be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, may be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When loaded and executed on a computer, cause the processes or functions described in accordance with the embodiments of the application to occur, in whole or in part. The computer may be a general purpose computer, a special purpose computer, a network of computers, or other programmable device. The computer instructions may be stored in a computer readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer readable storage medium to another computer readable storage medium. For example, the computer instructions may be transmitted from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wired (e.g., coaxial cable, fiber optic, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) means. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device, such as a server, a data center, etc., that includes one or more of the available media. The usable medium may be a magnetic medium (e.g., a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (e.g., a Digital Video Disc (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., a Solid State Disk (SSD)), among others.

The above-mentioned embodiments are intended to illustrate the objects, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present application in further detail, and it should be understood that the above-mentioned embodiments are only specific embodiments of the present application, and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of the present application, and any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements and the like made on the basis of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application should be included in the scope of the embodiments of the present application.

Claims

1. A wireless communication method is applied to a terminal in a non-terrestrial network communication system, wherein the non-terrestrial network communication system comprises the terminal and a network device; the method comprises the following steps:

determining whether to monitor the target PDCCH on the J PDCCH monitoring occasions within a period of repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI according to the first indication information.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein an interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions in the J PDCCH monitoring occasions satisfies one of: the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K repeating units, the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K subframes, the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K time slots, the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K wireless resource units, and the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K milliseconds; the value of K is an integer greater than or equal to 1.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the value of K is configured by the network device through Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling or a System Information Block (SIB).

4. The method of claim 1, wherein a duration of the PDCCH monitoring occasion is configured by the network device through RRC signaling or SIB.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein a duration of the PDCCH monitoring occasion is configured by the network device for each carrier individually.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein a duration of the PDCCH monitoring occasion applies to all carriers within a cell.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first indication information is used to indicate whether the J PDCCH monitoring occasions exist during repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI; or,

the first indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal monitors the target PDCCH on the J PDCCH monitoring occasions within the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the target PDCCH is used to carry a second DCI.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the second DCI carries second indication information indicating whether to perform carrier switching during a repeat transmission period of data scheduled by the first DCI.

10. A wireless communication method is applied to network equipment in a non-terrestrial network communication system, wherein the non-terrestrial network communication system comprises the network equipment and a terminal; the method comprises the following steps:

11. The method of claim 10, wherein an interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions of the J PDCCH monitoring occasions satisfies one of: the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K repeating units, the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K subframes, the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K time slots, the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K radio resource units, and the interval between two adjacent PDCCH monitoring occasions is K milliseconds; the value of K is an integer greater than or equal to 1.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the value of K is configured by the network device through Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling or a System Information Block (SIB).

13. The method of claim 10, wherein a duration of the PDCCH monitoring occasion is configured by the network device through RRC signaling or SIB.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein a duration of the PDCCH monitoring occasion is configured by the network device for each carrier individually.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein the duration of the PDCCH monitoring occasion applies to all carriers within a cell.

16. The method of claim 10, wherein the first indication information is used to indicate whether the J PDCCH monitoring occasions exist during repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI; or,

17. The method of claim 10, wherein the target PDCCH is used to carry a second DCI.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the second DCI carries second indication information, and wherein the second indication information is used to indicate whether to perform carrier switching during a period of repeated transmission of data scheduled by the first DCI.

19. The wireless communication device is applied to a terminal in a non-terrestrial network communication system, wherein the non-terrestrial network communication system comprises the terminal and network equipment; the apparatus comprises a processing unit and a communication unit, the processing unit being configured to:

determining whether J PDCCH monitoring occasions for monitoring a target Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) exist in the repeated transmission period of the data scheduled by the first DCI according to the first indication information, wherein the value of J is an integer larger than 1; or determining whether to monitor the target PDCCH on the J PDCCH monitoring occasions within the period of repeated transmission of the data scheduled by the first DCI according to the first indication information.

20. The wireless communication device is applied to network equipment in a non-terrestrial network communication system, wherein the non-terrestrial network communication system comprises the network equipment and a terminal; the apparatus comprises a processing unit and a communication unit, the processing unit being configured to:

21. A terminal comprising a processor, memory, a communication interface, and one or more programs stored in the memory and configured to be executed by the processor, the one or more programs including instructions for performing the steps in the method of any of claims 1-9.

22. A network device comprising a processor, memory, a communication interface, and one or more programs stored in the memory and configured to be executed by the processor, the one or more programs including instructions for performing the steps in the method of any of claims 10-18.

23. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that it stores a computer program for electronic data exchange, wherein the computer program causes a computer to perform the method according to any one of claims 1-9 or 10-18.