CN112399618A

CN112399618A - Communication method and device

Info

Publication number: CN112399618A
Application number: CN201910760475.3A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 余政; 温容慧; 张兴炜; 冯淑兰
Original assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Current assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Priority date: 2019-08-16
Filing date: 2019-08-16
Publication date: 2021-02-23
Anticipated expiration: 2039-08-16
Also published as: CN112399618B

Abstract

The application provides a communication method and a device, and the method comprises the following steps: the terminal device determines, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in a first search space of a first time span, where the first time span is one or more time spans within the first time length, and the terminal device may determine which PDCCH candidates do not need to be monitored when the number of configured PDCCH candidates is in a certain range of values. By such a selective monitoring scheme with PDCCH candidates as granularity, the PDCCH can be monitored more flexibly.

Description

Communication method and device

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of communications, and more particularly, to a communication method and apparatus.

Background

In a New Radio (NR) communication system, in order to improve scheduling flexibility, a network device flexibly configures a Search Space (SS) for a terminal device, and the terminal device monitors a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) candidate (candidate) in the search space. However, the number of PDCCH candidates configured in each time period may exceed the number of PDCCH candidates that the terminal device can monitor in the time period, which may result in that the terminal device cannot reasonably monitor necessary PDCCH candidates, such as PDCCH candidates for low-latency and low-reliability services (URLLC).

Disclosure of Invention

The application provides a communication method and device, which can monitor a PDCCH more flexibly.

In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, where an execution subject of the method may be a terminal device or a chip applied to the terminal device. The method comprises the following steps: determining the number of Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) candidates configured in a first time length; determining, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in a first search space of a first time span when the number of PDCCH candidates is in a first range of values, wherein the first time span is one or more time spans within the first time length.

According to the scheme of the embodiment of the application, the terminal device can determine which PDCCH candidates do not need to be monitored when the number of the configured PDCCH candidates is in a specific value range. By such a selective monitoring scheme with PDCCH candidates as granularity, the PDCCH can be monitored more flexibly.

Specifically, if the number of PDCCH candidates configured for the terminal device exceeds the number of PDCCH candidates determined to be monitored by the terminal device, the terminal device cannot monitor all PDCCH candidates. Simply abandoning monitoring all PDCCH candidates in a certain search space may unreasonably affect the traffic delay or reliability. For example, if it is determined that PDCCH candidates containing URLLC in the search space that need not be monitored, transmission of this part of URLLC traffic is affected. The embodiment of the application determines whether to abandon monitoring or not by taking the PDCCH candidates as the granularity, and can more flexibly support the transmission of low-delay and high-reliability services.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the method further includes: information indicative of the first range of values is obtained.

The information indicating the first value range may be pre-stored in the terminal device, or may be obtained by the terminal device in a pre-agreed manner. Alternatively, the terminal device may also receive information indicating the first value range from the network device, for example by receiving the information via a broadcast message or a dedicated message of the network device; alternatively, the terminal device may receive information indicating the first value range from another data source, for example, another terminal device in device-to-device (D2D) communication with the terminal device. In this way, the terminal device may determine the first numerical range according to the acquired information, thereby determining whether to abandon the monitoring part of PDCCH candidates, and may more flexibly monitor the PDCCH.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the method further includes: determining one or more time spans with the largest number of search spaces configured within the first time length as the first time span.

According to the scheme of the embodiment of the application, the terminal equipment determines the PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored in the time span containing more search spaces as much as possible, and for the terminal equipment, more PDCCH candidates can be monitored in the time span as much as possible, so that the timeliness of service scheduling with the PDCCH candidates in the time span can be guaranteed as much as possible.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the first time span is one or more time spans within the first time length except for a jth time span, where j is a positive integer; or, the first time length includes at least one time span within one time slot, and the first time span includes one or more time spans within the time slot other than the first time span.

According to the scheme of the embodiment of the application, the terminal equipment can flexibly determine the first time span, and the PDCCH candidate in the jth time span is not influenced, so that the timeliness of carrying out service scheduling on the jth time span control channel in the first time length is ensured, or the PDCCH candidate in the 1 st time span is not influenced, and the timeliness of carrying out service scheduling on the first time span control channel in the time slot is ensured.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the determining, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in a first search space of a first time span includes: determining, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates corresponding to a first aggregation level that does not need to be monitored in the first search space within the first time span, wherein the first aggregation level comprises one or more aggregation levels.

According to the scheme of the embodiment of the application, the terminal device can flexibly determine the PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored according to the first aggregation level. For example, the PDCCH candidate corresponding to the first aggregation level may be a PDCCH candidate having a small influence on URLLC service scheduling, and the terminal device may ensure timeliness of URLLC service scheduling without monitoring the PDCCH candidate corresponding to the first aggregation level.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the method further includes: information indicating the first aggregation level is obtained.

The information indicating the first aggregation level may be pre-stored in the terminal device, or may be obtained by the terminal device in a pre-agreed manner. Alternatively, the terminal device may also receive information indicating the first aggregation level from a network device, for example by receiving the information via a broadcast message or a dedicated message of the network device; or the terminal device may also receive information indicating the first aggregation level from other data sources, for example other terminal devices in D2D communication with the terminal device. In this way, the terminal device may determine the first aggregation level according to the acquired information, thereby determining which PDCCH candidates do not need to be monitored, and more flexibly monitoring the PDCCH.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the first search space includes one or more search spaces other than a common search space, CSS.

According to the scheme of the embodiment of the application, the PDCCH candidates in the CSS can be ensured not to be influenced, so that the timeliness of the control channel in the CSS for carrying out service scheduling is ensured.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the method further includes: determining the first search space according to whether carrier aggregation is supported.

According to the scheme of the embodiment of the application, the terminal equipment can flexibly select which PDCCH candidates in the search spaces are not monitored according to the support capability of carrier aggregation.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the first search space is determined according to a priority rule of the search spaces within the first time span.

According to the scheme of the embodiment of the application, the terminal equipment can determine the first search space according to the priority rule, and can monitor the PDCCH candidates in the high-priority search space as far as possible, so that the scheduling of high-priority services can be guaranteed.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the first search space is a lowest priority search space within the first time span, and the method further includes: determining the search space with the lowest priority according to the priority rule of the search space and the service characteristics of the data scheduled by the PDCCH in the first time span, wherein the priority rule of the search space is as follows: the USS of the first service feature < the USS of the second service feature < the common search space CSS, or the USS of the first service feature < the USS of the second service feature < the CSS of the first service feature < the CSS of the second service feature, or the USS of the first service feature < the CSS of the first service feature < the USS of the second service feature < the CSS of the second service feature.

According to the scheme of the embodiment of the application, different service features have different control channel configurations, the searching space with the lowest priority is determined according to the priority rule of the searching space and the service features, the PDCCH candidate which does not need to be monitored is determined in the searching space with the lowest priority, the high priority of the public searching space can be ensured, the PDCCH candidate in the CSS and the PDCCH candidate in the searching space of the second service feature can be ensured to be monitored as much as possible, and therefore service scheduling with the CSS control channel and the timeliness of service scheduling of the control channel of the searching space of the second service feature are ensured.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the determining, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in a first search space of a first time span includes: determining from the configured PDCCH candidates that n1 PDCCH candidates do not need to be monitored in the first search space corresponding to a first traffic characteristic within the first time span; and/or determining from the configured PDCCH candidates that n2 PDCCH candidates need not be monitored in the first search space corresponding to a second traffic characteristic over the first time span; wherein the n1 and the n2 are positive integers.

According to the scheme of the embodiment of the application, PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored are respectively selected from PDCCH candidates corresponding to different service characteristics, so that each service characteristic can be ensured to have more PDCCH candidates to be monitored as much as possible, and the timeliness of service scheduling of a control channel in a search space of the service characteristic is ensured.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the method further includes: obtaining information indicative of the n1 and/or information indicative of the n 2.

The information indicating the n1 and/or the information indicating the n2 may be pre-stored in the terminal device, or may be obtained by the terminal device in a pre-agreed manner. Alternatively, the terminal device may also receive information indicating the n1 and/or information indicating the n2 from a network device, for example, by a broadcast message or a dedicated message of the network device; alternatively, the terminal device may receive the information indicating the n1 and/or the information indicating the n2 from other data sources, such as other terminal devices in D2D communication with the terminal device. In this way, the terminal device may determine the n1 and/or the n2 according to the acquired information, thereby determining the number of PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored, and more flexibly monitoring the PDCCH.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, determining PDCCH candidates from the configured PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in a first search space of a first time span includes: determining PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored in a first search space within the first time span from the configured PDCCH candidates according to whether carrier aggregation is supported.

According to the scheme of the embodiment of the application, the terminal equipment can flexibly select which PDCCH candidates do not need to be monitored according to the support capability of carrier aggregation.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the method further includes: determining the first range of values based on whether carrier aggregation is supported.

According to the scheme of the embodiment of the application, the terminal equipment can determine the first numerical range according to the support capability of carrier aggregation, further determine whether monitoring part of PDCCH candidates need to be abandoned, and can monitor the PDCCH more flexibly.

In a second aspect, a communication method is provided, and an execution subject of the method may be a communication device or a chip applied to the communication device. The method comprises the following steps: sending information indicating a first numerical range to a terminal device, wherein the first numerical range is used for determining PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored by the terminal device within a first time length; and configuring Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) candidates for the terminal equipment.

According to the scheme of the embodiment of the application, the information indicating the first numerical range is sent to the terminal equipment, so that the terminal equipment can determine the first numerical range according to the received information, and further determine whether monitoring part PDCCH candidates need to be abandoned, and the PDCCH can be monitored more flexibly. The terminal device may determine which PDCCH candidates do not need to be monitored when the number of configured PDCCH candidates is in a certain range of values. By such a selective monitoring scheme with PDCCH candidates as granularity, the PDCCH can be monitored more flexibly.

With reference to the second aspect, in certain implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes: and sending information indicating the first aggregation level to the terminal equipment.

According to the scheme of the embodiment of the application, information indicating the first aggregation level is sent to the terminal equipment. And the terminal equipment can determine the first aggregation level according to the received information, and further flexibly determine PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored according to the first aggregation level. For example, the PDCCH candidate corresponding to the first aggregation level may be a PDCCH candidate having a small influence on URLLC service scheduling, and the terminal device may ensure timeliness of URLLC service scheduling without monitoring the PDCCH candidate corresponding to the first aggregation level.

With reference to the second aspect, in certain implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes: transmitting information indicating n1 and/or information indicating n2 to the terminal device, wherein n1 and n2 are positive integers, and n1 is used for indicating that the terminal device does not need to monitor the n1 PDCCH candidates in the first search space corresponding to the first traffic characteristic in the first time span from the configured PDCCH candidates; the n2 is used for instructing the terminal device to determine that monitoring of the n2 PDCCH candidates is not required from the first search space corresponding to a second traffic characteristic in the first time span among the configured PDCCH candidates.

According to the scheme of the embodiment of the application, the information indicating n1 and/or the information indicating n2 are sent to the terminal device, so that the terminal device can determine the n1 and/or the n2 according to the received information, and select a corresponding number of PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored from PDCCH candidates corresponding to different service features, thereby ensuring that each service feature can have as many PDCCH candidates as possible to be monitored, and ensuring the timeliness of service scheduling of the PDCCH candidates in the search space of the service feature.

In a third aspect, a communication apparatus is provided, which has a function of implementing the terminal device in the above method embodiment. These functions may be implemented by hardware, or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more units corresponding to the above functions.

In a fourth aspect, a communication apparatus is provided, which has a function of implementing the communication device in the above method embodiment. These functions may be implemented by hardware, or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more units corresponding to the above functions.

In a fifth aspect, a communication apparatus is provided, where the communication apparatus may be the terminal device in the above method embodiment, or a chip provided in the terminal device. The communication device comprises a memory for storing a computer program or instructions, a communication interface and a processor, wherein the processor is coupled to the memory and the communication interface, and when the processor executes the computer program or instructions, the communication device is caused to perform the method performed by the terminal device in the above method embodiments.

In a sixth aspect, a communication apparatus is provided, and the communication apparatus may be the communication device in the above method embodiment, or a chip provided in the communication device. The communication apparatus comprises a memory for storing a computer program or instructions, a communication interface, and a processor coupled to the memory and the communication interface, which when executed by the processor causes the communication apparatus to perform the method performed by the communication device in the above-mentioned method embodiments.

In a seventh aspect, a computer program product is provided, the computer program product comprising: computer program code which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method in the above aspects performed by the terminal device.

In an eighth aspect, there is provided a computer program product comprising: computer program code which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method performed by the communication device in the above-mentioned aspects.

In a ninth aspect, the present application provides a chip system, which includes a processor for implementing the functions of the terminal device in the method of the above aspects, for example, receiving or processing data and/or information involved in the method. In one possible design, the system-on-chip further includes a memory to hold program instructions and/or data. The chip system may be formed by a chip, or may include a chip and other discrete devices.

In a tenth aspect, the present application provides a chip system comprising a processor for implementing the functionality of the communication device in the method of the above aspects, e.g. for receiving or processing data and/or information involved in the above method. In one possible design, the system-on-chip further includes a memory to hold program instructions and/or data. The chip system may be formed by a chip, or may include a chip and other discrete devices.

In an eleventh aspect, the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program that, when executed, implements the method performed by the terminal device in the above-described aspects.

In a twelfth aspect, the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program that, when executed, implements the method performed by the communication device in the above-described aspects.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic architecture diagram of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of a search space configured for a UE in one time slot.

Fig. 3 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 4 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method according to another embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of a communication method according to another embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 6 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method according to another embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 7 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method according to another embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 8 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 9 is a schematic block diagram of a communication apparatus according to another embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 10 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device according to another embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 11 is a schematic block diagram of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

The technical solution in the present application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The technical scheme of the embodiment of the application can be applied to various communication systems, for example: a global system for mobile communications (GSM) system, a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) system, a Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) system, a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), a long term evolution (long term evolution, LTE) system, a LTE frequency division duplex (frequency division duplex, FDD) system, a LTE Time Division Duplex (TDD), a universal mobile telecommunications system (universal mobile telecommunications system, UMTS), a Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) communication system, a future fifth generation (5G) or new wireless telecommunications system (862) or another enhanced vehicle (NR) X, wherein the GSM system, the CDMA system, the WCDMA system, the GPRS system, the LTE system, the UMTS system, the wlan system, the WiMAX system, the wlan system, the future fifth generation (5G) or the new wlan (5G) system, the wlan system, or the NR 2 system, the wlan system, V2N), vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V), vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I), vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P), etc., long term evolution (long term evolution-vehicle) for vehicle-to-vehicle communication, LTE-V) for vehicle networking, Machine Type Communication (MTC), internet of things (IoT), long term evolution (long term evolution-machine) for machine-to-machine communication, M2M, etc.

The embodiment of the present application may be applied to a communication device in the communication system, for example, a terminal device or a network device.

The terminal device in the embodiments of the present application may also be referred to as 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, a wireless communication device, a user agent, or a user equipment. The terminal device in the embodiment of the present application may be a mobile phone (mobile phone), a tablet (pad), a computer with a wireless transceiving function, a Virtual Reality (VR) terminal device, an Augmented Reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal in industrial control (industrial control), a wireless terminal in self driving (self driving), a wireless terminal in remote medical (remote medical), a wireless terminal in smart grid (smart grid), a wireless terminal in transportation security (transportation security), a wireless terminal in smart city (smart city), a wireless terminal in smart home (smart home), a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a session initiation protocol (session initiation protocol, SIP) phone, a wireless local loop (wireless local area, PDA) station, a personal digital assistant (wldigital assistant), a handheld wireless communication device with a wireless transceiving function, and a handheld personal communication device with a wireless communication function, A computing device or other processing device connected to a wireless modem, an in-vehicle device, a wearable device, a terminal device in a 5G network or a terminal device in a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) for future evolution, etc.

Wherein, wearable equipment also can be called as wearing formula smart machine, is the general term of using wearing formula technique to carry out intelligent design, developing the equipment that can dress to daily wearing, like glasses, gloves, wrist-watch, dress and shoes etc.. A wearable device is a portable device that is worn directly on the body or integrated into the clothing or accessories of the user. The wearable device is not only a hardware device, but also realizes powerful functions through software support, data interaction and cloud interaction. The generalized wearable smart device includes full functionality, large size, and can implement full or partial functionality without relying on a smart phone, such as: smart watches or smart glasses and the like, and only focus on a certain type of application functions, and need to be used in cooperation with other devices such as smart phones, such as various smart bracelets for physical sign monitoring, smart jewelry and the like.

In addition, the terminal device may also be a terminal device in an internet of things (IoT) system. The IoT is an important component of future information technology development, and is mainly technically characterized in that articles are connected with a network through a communication technology, so that an intelligent network with man-machine interconnection and object interconnection is realized.

It should be understood that the embodiments of the present application are not limited to the specific form of the terminal device.

The network device in the embodiment of the present application may be any device having a wireless transceiving function. Such devices include, but are not limited to: evolved node B (eNB), Radio Network Controller (RNC), Node B (NB), Base Station Controller (BSC), Base Transceiver Station (BTS), home base station (e.g., home evolved node B or home node B, HNB), baseband unit (BBU), Access Point (AP) in wireless fidelity (WIFI) system, wireless relay node, wireless backhaul node, Transmission Point (TP) or transmission point (TRP) in 5G system, or one or a group of base stations in 5G system may include multiple antennas, or may form a panel of antennas, or a panel of antennas, such as NB, or a Distributed Unit (DU), etc.

In some deployments, the gNB may include a Centralized Unit (CU) and a DU. The gNB may further include an Active Antenna Unit (AAU). The CU implements part of the function of the gNB, and the DU implements 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 layer (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. 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, such as the RRC layer signaling, may also be considered to be transmitted by the DU or by the DU + AAU under this architecture. It is to be understood that the network device may be a device comprising one or more of a CU node, a DU node, an AAU node. In addition, the CU may be divided into network devices in an access network (RAN), or may be divided into network devices in a Core Network (CN), which is not limited in this application.

The network device provides a service for a cell, and a terminal device communicates with the cell through a transmission resource (e.g., a frequency domain resource, or a spectrum resource) allocated by the network device, where the cell may belong to a macro base station (e.g., a macro eNB or a macro gNB), or may belong to a base station corresponding to a small cell (small cell), where the small cell may include: urban cell (metro cell), micro cell (microcell), pico cell (pico cell), femto cell (femto cell), etc., and these small cells have the characteristics of small coverage and low transmission power, and are suitable for providing high-rate data transmission service.

It should be noted that, when the communication device is a network device, the embodiment of the present application may be applied to a communication system in which communication is performed between the network device and a terminal device, and when the communication device is a terminal device, the embodiment of the present application may also be applied to a communication system in which communication is performed between a plurality of terminal devices. Fig. 1 shows a schematic diagram of a network architecture provided in an embodiment of the present application, a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application may include a network device and a plurality of terminal devices, and inter-device communication may be performed between the plurality of terminal devices, and a communication device in the communication system may be a network device. The communication system in the embodiment of the present application may also include a plurality of terminal devices, and the plurality of terminal devices may perform inter-device communication, and the communication device in the communication system may be a terminal device. As shown in fig. 1, a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application may include a base station (base station) and user equipments UE1-UE6, where the base station may send information to one or more of UE1-UE6, and the base station is the communication equipment. The communication system of the embodiment of the present application may also include user equipments UE4 to UE6, in the communication system, UE5 may send information to one or more UEs of UE4 and UE6, and UE5 is the communication equipment.

The number of PDCCH candidates configured per time period may exceed the number of PDCCH candidates that the terminal device is able to monitor during that time period. For example, within the first time period, if the number of PDCCH candidates configured for the terminal device exceeds the maximum number of PDCCH candidates that the terminal device can monitor, the terminal device does not monitor all PDCCH candidates in the search space with the lowest priority. Illustratively, the first time length may be one slot (slot), and the terminal device may be a UE. Fig. 2 shows a schematic diagram of a search space configured for a UE in one slot, which includes a Common Search Space (CSS) 0, a CSS1, a UE-specific search space (USS) 1, and a USS 2. For a specific subcarrier interval, it is assumed that the maximum number of PDCCH candidates that the UE can monitor in a slot is 44, but there are 46 PDCCH candidates in the UE-configured search space, and at this time, the number of PDCCH candidates in the UE-configured search space exceeds the maximum number of PDCCH candidates that the UE can monitor in the slot.

At this time, the UE does not monitor PDCCH candidates in the low priority search space, e.g., assuming USS2 in fig. 2 is the lowest priority search space, the UE determines that 14 PDCCH candidates in USS2 need not be monitored, and the UE can monitor the other 32 PDCCH candidates in the slot (46-14 ═ 32).

If the USS2 includes PDCCH candidates of URLLC, the above-mentioned manner of determining PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored may result in that the terminal device does not monitor PDCCH candidates of the portion of URLLC, which may affect transmission of the control channel of URLLC, that is, may affect transmission of the portion of URLLC traffic.

Fig. 3 shows a schematic diagram of a communication method 300 of one embodiment of the present application. The method 300 of fig. 3 may be performed by a corresponding device in the communication system of fig. 1 or by a chip in a corresponding device, e.g., any one of the base stations or terminal devices UE1-UE6 of fig. 1.

S301, the communication device sends information indicating the first value range to the terminal device.

S310, the terminal device determines the number of PDCCH candidates configured in the first time length.

It should be noted that monitoring in the embodiments of the present application may be understood as monitoring and/or receiving.

S320, when the number of the PDCCH candidates is in a first numerical range, determining PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored in a first search space of a first time span from the configured PDCCH candidates, wherein the first time span is one or more time spans in the first time length.

The first length of time may include at least one time span. At least one search space may be included within each time span.

It should be particularly noted that the execution sequence of S301 and S310 is not sequential, and in addition, before S310, the method may further include the communication device configuring a physical downlink control channel PDCCH candidate for the terminal device.

For example, the terminal device may determine, according to the following manner 1, manner 2 or manner 3, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in the first search space of the first time span from the configured PDCCH candidates.

According to the scheme of the embodiment of the application, the terminal device may determine, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in the first search space of the first time span. By such a selective monitoring scheme with PDCCH candidates as granularity, the PDCCH can be monitored more flexibly.

Specifically, if the number of PDCCH candidates configured for the terminal device exceeds the number of PDCCH candidates determined to be monitored by the terminal device, the terminal device cannot monitor all PDCCH candidates. Simply abandoning monitoring all PDCCH candidates in a certain search space may unreasonably affect the traffic delay or reliability. For example, if PDCCH candidates for URLLC are contained in the unmonitored search space, transmission of this part of URLLC traffic is affected. The embodiment of the application does not simply abandons monitoring of PDCCH candidates in a certain search space within a first time length, does not abandon monitoring of granularity PDCCH candidates larger than the search space, but determines PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored in the first search space of a first time span from the configured PDCCH candidates, so that the number of the PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored is less, the transmission flexibility of a control channel of communication equipment is improved, terminal equipment can monitor more PDCCH candidates, the timeliness of service scheduling is met, the service transmission delay is reduced, and the transmission of low-delay and high-reliability services can be supported more flexibly.

It should be understood that S301 described above is an optional step. For example, the terminal device may also receive information indicating the first range of values from a network device. The information is received, for example, via a broadcast message or a dedicated message of the network device. Alternatively, the terminal device may receive information indicating the first value range from another data source, for example, another terminal device in D2D communication with the terminal device. In this way, the terminal device may determine the first numerical range according to the acquired information, thereby determining whether to abandon the monitoring part of PDCCH candidates, and may more flexibly monitor the PDCCH.

Alternatively, the terminal device may determine the first value range from other ways. For example, the first range of values may be specified or predetermined by a protocol. Alternatively, the information indicating the first numerical range may be pre-stored in the terminal device, or may be obtained by the terminal device in another manner. In this way, the terminal device may determine the first numerical range according to the acquired information, thereby determining whether to abandon the monitoring part of PDCCH candidates, and may more flexibly monitor the PDCCH.

Illustratively, the terminal device may also determine the first value range according to whether carrier aggregation is supported. For example, if the terminal device supports carrier aggregation, the terminal device may monitor all PDCCH candidates configured within the first time length. For another example, if the terminal device does not support carrier aggregation, when the number of configured PDCCH candidates is in the first value range, some PDCCH candidates are not monitored. For another example, the first value range corresponding to the terminal device that supports carrier aggregation is different from the first value range corresponding to the terminal device that does not support carrier aggregation. The first value range corresponding to the terminal device supporting carrier aggregation is greater than y1, and the first value range corresponding to the terminal device not supporting carrier aggregation is greater than y2, where y1 is greater than y 2.

Therefore, the terminal equipment can determine the first numerical range according to the support capability of carrier aggregation, further determine whether monitoring part PDCCH candidates need to be abandoned, and can monitor the PDCCH more flexibly.

Specifically, the first numerical range may be [ x1, x2], or (x3, infinity), wherein x1, x2 and x3 are positive integers. For example, x3 may be the maximum number of PDCCH candidates that the terminal device can monitor for the first length of time. Thus, when the configured number of PDCCH candidates falls within the range of (x3, ∞), the terminal device determines that some PDCCH candidates are not monitored for the first length of time. In the embodiment of the present application, the communication method in the embodiment of the present application is described by taking (x3, ∞) as the first numerical range as an example, and should not be construed as limiting the present application. The first numerical range is (x3, ∞) equivalent to a configured number of PDCCH candidates greater than x 3.

Mode 1:

for example, the first time length may be specified or preset by a protocol, or may be configured for the terminal device by an external communication device (e.g., a network device or other terminal device).

For example, the first time length may be one slot, or one subframe, or one radio frame, or one half slot, or one sub-slot (sub-slot or mini-slot), and the like.

For example, the number and/or length of the time span may be specified or preset by a protocol, or may be configured for the terminal device by an external communication device (e.g., a network device or other terminal device). Or the number and/or length of the time spans may be determined according to the capability information of the UE or according to the control channel configuration of the base station. Illustratively, a time span may be a span (span).

The embodiments of the present application may flexibly determine the first time span according to the following examples, but not by way of limitation.

For example, the first time span may be configured for the terminal device by an external communication device (e.g., a network device or other terminal device), that is, the external communication device may specify one or more time spans for the terminal device as the first time span. For another example, the first time span may also be specified or preset by a protocol without additional configuration.

For example, the first time span may include one or more time spans within the first length of time except for a jth time span, where j is a positive integer. The value of j may be specified or preset by the protocol. Alternatively, the value of j may also be configured for the terminal device by an external communication device (e.g., a network device or other terminal device). Therefore, the terminal device can flexibly determine the first time span, and monitoring of the PDCCH candidate in the jth time span is not affected, so that the timeliness of service scheduling of the jth time span control channel in the first time length is ensured. Alternatively, the first length of time may include at least one time span within a time slot, and the first time span may include one or more time spans within the time slot other than the first time span. In this way, the monitoring of the PDCCH candidates for the first time span in the time slot is not affected, thereby ensuring the timeliness of the service scheduling performed by the control channel for the first time span in the time slot.

For example, the terminal device may determine, as the first time span, one or more time spans with the largest number of search spaces configured within the first time length. As an example, when determining the first time span, the terminal device may determine, as the first time span, one or more time spans with the largest number of search spaces configured in all time spans within the first time length. Or, as another example, the terminal device may also consider only determining, as the first time span, one or more time spans with the largest number of search spaces configured in a partial time span within the first time length. For example, one or more time spans with the largest number of configured search spaces among k time spans, where k is a positive integer, are determined as the first time span. Wherein the k time spans may be specified or predetermined by a protocol. Alternatively, the k time spans may also be configured for the terminal device by an external communication device (e.g., a network device or other terminal device).

If all or most of the PDCCH candidates within a search space or time span are not monitored, it may result in that the timeliness of service scheduling with the PDCCH candidates within the search space or time span is not guaranteed. The terminal equipment determines the PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored in the time span containing more search spaces as much as possible, and for the terminal equipment, more PDCCH candidates can be monitored in the time span as much as possible, so that the timeliness of service scheduling with the PDCCH candidates in the time span can be guaranteed as much as possible.

For example, if there is more than one time span with the largest number of configured search spaces within the first time length, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored may be determined alternately within the time spans with the largest number of configured search spaces.

Therefore, the terminal equipment does not select the PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored in a time span all the time, ensures that as many PDCCH candidates as possible are monitored in each time span, and can ensure the timeliness of service scheduling with the PDCCH candidates in the time span as possible.

The embodiments of the present application may flexibly determine the first search space according to the following examples, but not by way of limitation.

For example, the first search space may be configured for the terminal device by an external communication device (e.g., a network device or other terminal device), that is, the communication device may designate one or more search spaces for the terminal device as the first search space. Alternatively, the first search space may also be specified or preset by a protocol.

For example, the first search space may include one or more search spaces other than the common search space CSS. Therefore, monitoring of PDCCH candidates in the CSS can be guaranteed not to be influenced, and timeliness of service scheduling of a control channel in the CSS is guaranteed.

Illustratively, the terminal device may determine the first search space based on whether carrier aggregation is supported. In this way, the terminal device can flexibly select which PDCCH candidates in the search spaces do not need to be monitored according to the support capability of carrier aggregation. For example, if the terminal device supports carrier aggregation, the terminal device may monitor all PDCCH candidates configured within the first time length. For another example, if the terminal device does not support carrier aggregation, when the number of configured PDCCH candidates is in the first value range, some PDCCH candidates are not monitored. For another example, the first value range corresponding to the terminal device that supports carrier aggregation is different from the first value range corresponding to the terminal device that does not support carrier aggregation. The first value range corresponding to the terminal device supporting carrier aggregation is greater than y1, and the first value range corresponding to the terminal device not supporting carrier aggregation is greater than y2, where y1 is greater than y 2.

Illustratively, the terminal device may also determine the first search space according to a priority rule within the first time span. For example, the terminal device may determine the lowest priority search space or spaces according to the priority rule within the first time span. The first search space may be the lowest priority search space or spaces within the first time span. That is, the terminal device may determine PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored within the lowest priority search space or spaces within the first time span.

According to the scheme of the embodiment of the application, the first search space is determined according to the priority rule, monitoring of PDCCH candidates in the high-priority search space can be guaranteed to be unaffected as much as possible, and therefore scheduling of high-priority services can be guaranteed.

As an example, when determining the first search space, the terminal device may determine, as the first search space, one or more search spaces with a lowest priority among all search spaces within the first time span according to the priority rule. Or, as another example, the terminal device may also consider only one or more search spaces with the lowest priority as the first search space in the partial search spaces within the first time span according to the priority rule. For example, the terminal device may use one or more search spaces of the lowest priority as the first search space according to the priority rule among L search spaces within the first time span, where L is a positive integer. Wherein the L search spaces may be specified or preset by a protocol. Alternatively, the L search spaces may also be configured for the terminal device by an external communication device (e.g., a network device or other terminal device). The L search spaces may or may not include a common search space CSS. If the L search spaces do not include the CSS, that is, the first search space cannot be the CSS. Therefore, PDCCH candidates in the CSS can be guaranteed not to be affected, and timeliness of service scheduling of the PDCCH in the CSS space is guaranteed.

Illustratively, the priority rules may be specified or preset by a protocol. Alternatively, the priority rule may be configured for the terminal device by an external communication device (e.g., a network device or other terminal device). For example, a PDCCH scheduling a high priority service (e.g., URLLC) always preferentially maps from a search space with a low index, the priority rule may be to determine the priorities of the search spaces in order of their indexes from high to low, and the search space with the highest index may be the search space with the lowest priority.

For example, when the terminal device determines the lowest priority search space as the first search space in the first time span, if there is more than one lowest priority search space, the terminal device may alternatively determine PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in the search spaces.

Therefore, the terminal equipment does not determine the PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored in one search space all the time, ensures that each search space has as many PDCCH candidates as possible to be monitored, and can ensure the timeliness of service scheduling with the PDCCH candidates in the search space as possible.

For example, the terminal device determining, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in the first search space within the first time span may be: PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in the first search space within the first time span are randomly determined from the configured PDCCH candidates. This may allow for better randomness and fairness.

For example, the determining, by the terminal device, the PDCCH candidate that does not need to be monitored in the first search space within the first time span from the configured PDCCH candidates may also be: determining, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates corresponding to a first Aggregation Level (AL) that do not need to be monitored in the first search space within the first time span.

Illustratively, the first aggregation level may be specified or preset by a protocol.

Illustratively, the terminal device may obtain information indicating the first aggregation level.

The information indicating the first aggregation level may be pre-stored in the terminal device, or may be obtained by the terminal device in a pre-agreed manner. Alternatively, the terminal device may also receive information indicating the first aggregation level from a network device. The information is received, for example, via a broadcast message or a dedicated message of the network device. Or the terminal device may also receive information indicating the first aggregation level from other data sources, for example other terminal devices in D2D communication with the terminal device. In this way, the terminal device may determine the first aggregation level according to the acquired information, thereby determining which PDCCH candidates do not need to be monitored, and more flexibly monitoring the PDCCH.

Illustratively, the first aggregation level may be one or more of the lowest aggregation levels, and for URLLC traffic, a larger aggregation level AL is typically used to guarantee PDCCH performance. Therefore, the influence of not monitoring the PDCCH candidate corresponding to the smaller aggregation level on the URLLC service is smaller, and the scheduling of the service can be preferentially ensured.

If there is more than one PDCCH candidate corresponding to the first aggregation level AL, the PDCCH candidates not requiring monitoring may be determined according to an increasing or decreasing order of candidate indexes (candidate indexes) among the PDCCH candidates corresponding to the first aggregation level AL. For example, the PDCCH candidates that do not need monitoring are determined in ascending index order among the PDCCH candidates corresponding to the first aggregation level.

The terminal device may repeat the above process until the PDCCH monitoring capability of the terminal device within the first time period is satisfied. For example, the number of PDCCH candidates that need to be monitored by the terminal device for the first length of time is not in the first range of values.

For example, the terminal device may determine, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in the first search space within the first time span, and may determine, from the configured PDCCH candidates, that all PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in the first search space within the first time span are determined. This may reduce the complexity of the determination algorithm.

It should be noted that not all the steps described above are required to be performed. For example, the terminal device determines, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates that may not need monitoring in the first time span. Further, the terminal device may monitor none of the PDCCH candidates in the first time span. Alternatively, the terminal device may determine, from the configured PDCCH candidates, a PDCCH candidate corresponding to the first aggregation level that does not need to be monitored in the first time span. For another example, the terminal device may determine the first search space according to the priority rule within the first time length, and determine a PDCCH that does not need to be monitored in the first search space from the configured PDCCH candidates. Further, the terminal device may determine, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates corresponding to which monitoring for the first aggregation level is not required in the first search space within the first time period.

Fig. 4 shows a schematic diagram of a communication method 400 of another embodiment of the present application. The method 400 of fig. 4 may be performed by a terminal device or by a chip in a terminal device, such as any one of the terminal devices UE1-UE6 of fig. 1. The method 400 includes the following steps.

S410, the terminal equipment determines the number of PDCCH candidates configured in the first time length.

S420, when the number of PDCCH candidates is in a first range, the terminal device determines one or more time spans with the largest number of search spaces configured within the first time length as the first time span.

And S430, determining one or more search spaces with the lowest priority as a first search space according to a priority rule in a first time span.

For example, the priority rule may be the priority rule described above, and a description thereof will not be repeated.

S440, the terminal device determines that monitoring of PDCCH candidates corresponding to the first aggregation level is not required in the first search space.

For example, the first aggregation level may be the lowest aggregation level.

The terminal device may repeat the above process until the PDCCH monitoring capability of the terminal device within the first time period is satisfied.

In the following description of the method 400 by taking the communication device as a base station and the terminal device as a UE as an example, assuming that the first time length is a time slot, the maximum number of PDCCH candidates that the UE can monitor in the time slot is 44, that is, the maximum number of Blind Detections (BDs) of the UE in the time slot is limited to 44. The first range of values may be greater than 44. Fig. 5 shows the number of blind detections required in each search space, where the total number of blind detections required in the search space SS in fig. 5 is 46, where S411 is a specific implementation manner of S410 in fig. 4, and specifically, the UE determines the number of PDCCH candidates configured by the base station for the UE in the time slot. S421 in fig. 5 is a specific implementation manner of S420 in fig. 4, where when the number of PDCCH candidates exceeds the maximum number of PDCCH candidates that the UE can monitor in the time slot, the UE determines the time span with the largest number of configured search spaces as the first time span, specifically, a first time span includes the largest number of search spaces SS, so that the UE takes the first time span as the first time span. S431 in fig. 5 is a specific implementation of S430 in fig. 4, where the search space with the largest index is the SS with the lowest priority in the first time span. S441 in fig. 5 is a specific implementation manner of S440 in fig. 4, and specifically, the UE determines that monitoring of the PDCCH candidate corresponding to the minimum aggregation level is not required in the USS 2.

Repeating S411 to S441 until the PDCCH monitoring capability of the UE in the time slot is satisfied, for example, until the number of PDCCH candidates that the UE can monitor in the time slot is less than or equal to 44. As shown in fig. 5, after determining that two PDCCH candidates do not need to be monitored in USS2 in the first time span, the PDCCH monitoring capability of the UE in the time slot is satisfied.

The data transmission of the terminal device may include a first service characteristic and a second service characteristic, and a transmission requirement of the first service characteristic is different from a transmission requirement of the second service characteristic. For example, the first service feature is enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) -related service, and the second service feature is low-latency high-reliability URLLC service. For another example, the first service characteristic is a service related to the internet of things or a service related to the internet of vehicles, and the second service characteristic is a service with low time delay and high reliability. When the control information configurations of the first service feature and the second service feature are not configured independently, when monitoring the control channel, the terminal device cannot determine whether the monitored control channel is used for the first service feature or the second service feature according to the configuration of a search space or a control resource set (core set).

When the control information configuration of the first service feature and the control information configuration of the second service feature are independent configurations, the terminal device may determine whether the monitored control channel is used for the service of the first service feature or the service of the second service feature according to the configuration of the control information.

The control information configuration may be used to configure or indicate one or more of a search space SS, a control channel resource set CORESET, a Control Channel Element (CCE), a blind detection BD, a DCI format (format), power, or UE capability (capability).

The communication method in the method 1 can be applied to the above two cases.

When the control information configuration of the first service characteristic and the control information configuration of the second service characteristic are independent configurations, the terminal device may further implement a manner of determining, from the configured PDCCH candidates, a PDCCH candidate that does not need to be monitored in the first search space within the first time span by means of the manner 2 and the manner 3.

Mode 2:

for example, the first search space may be a lowest priority search space within the first time span. The terminal device may determine, in the first time span, the search space with the lowest priority according to a priority rule of the search space and a service characteristic of data scheduled by the PDCCH, where the priority rule of the search space may be:

USS of the first traffic feature < USS of the second traffic feature < common search space CSS, or

USS of first service feature < USS of second service feature < CSS of the first service feature < CSS of the second service feature, or

USS of a first service feature < CSS of the first service feature < USS of a second service feature < CSS of the second service feature.

It should be noted that the symbol < identify < is smaller than, for example, USS of the first service feature < USS of the second service feature < common search space CSS representation: the priority of the USS of the first service feature is smaller than the priority of the USS of the second service feature, and the priority of the USS of the second service feature is smaller than the common search space CSS.

Different service features have different control channel configurations, a searching space with the lowest priority is determined according to the priority rule of the searching space and the service features, PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored are determined in the searching space with the lowest priority, the high priority of the public searching space can be ensured, the PDCCH candidates in the CSS and the PDCCH candidates in the searching space of the second service features can be ensured to be monitored as much as possible, and therefore the PDCCH candidates in the CSS are ensured to carry out related service scheduling and the PDCCH candidates in the searching space of the second service features are ensured to carry out scheduling on the second service.

Determining that PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in the lowest priority search space may determine for the terminal device that all PDCCH candidates within the lowest priority search space do not need to be monitored. Alternatively, the PDCCH candidates determined not to need monitoring in the lowest priority search space may also be n PDCCH candidates in the lowest priority search space that do not need monitoring, where n is a positive integer. n may be specified or preset by the protocol. Alternatively, n may be configured for the terminal device by an external communication device (e.g., a network device or other terminal device).

Fig. 6 shows a schematic diagram of a communication method 500 of another embodiment of the present application. The method 500 of FIG. 6 may be performed by a terminal device, e.g., a UE of terminal devices UE1-UE6 of FIG. 1. The method 500 includes the following steps.

S510, the terminal equipment determines the number of the PDCCH candidates configured in the first time length.

S520, when the number of the PDCCH candidates is in the first numerical range, determining the service characteristics of the control channel.

S530, according to the service characteristics and the priority rules of the control channel, determining the search space with the lowest priority.

For example, the priority rule may be the priority rule described in the above manner 2, and a description thereof will not be repeated.

And S540, determining PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored in the search space with the lowest priority.

The terminal device may repeat the above process until the PDCCH monitoring capability of the terminal device in the first time period is satisfied, for example, until the number of PDCCH candidates that the terminal device needs to monitor in the first time period is not in the first value range.

Mode 3:

the determining, by the terminal device, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in the first search space within the first time span from the configured PDCCH candidates may be that n1 PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in the first search space corresponding to the first traffic characteristic within the first time span are determined from the configured PDCCH candidates; determining from the configured PDCCH candidates that n2 PDCCH candidates need not be monitored in the first search space corresponding to a second traffic characteristic within the first time span, wherein the n1 and the n2 are positive integers.

And selecting PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored from the PDCCH candidates corresponding to different service characteristics respectively, so that the PDCCH candidates of each service characteristic can be ensured to be monitored as many as possible, and the timeliness of service scheduling of the PDCCH candidates in the search space of the service characteristics is ensured.

Illustratively, n1 may be specified or preset by a protocol. Alternatively, n1 may also be configured for the terminal device by an external communication device (e.g., a network device or other terminal device), that is, a value directly or indirectly indicated by the communication device for the terminal device. n2 may be specified or preset by the protocol. Alternatively, n2 may also be configured for the terminal device by an external communication device (e.g., a network device or other terminal device), that is, a value directly or indirectly indicated by the communication device for the terminal device.

For example, there may be a correspondence between n1 and n2, for example, α ═ n1/n2, α may be defined or preset by a protocol. Alternatively, α may be configured for the terminal device by an external communication device (e.g. a network device or other terminal device), i.e. a value that the communication device indicates directly or indirectly for the terminal device. In this case, the communication device may transmit only information of α to the terminal device, which is capable of determining n1 and/or n2 from α.

The first search space may include a lowest priority search space corresponding to the first service feature and a lowest priority search space corresponding to the second service feature.

Illustratively, the priority of the search space may be determined according to a priority rule. The priority rule may be specified or preset by a protocol, or may be configured for the terminal device by an external communication device (e.g., a network device or other terminal device).

For example, the priority rule may be the following rule: USS for the service feature < CSS for the service feature.

Therefore, PDCCH candidates in the CSS can be monitored as much as possible, and timeliness of service scheduling with a control channel in the CSS is guaranteed.

Fig. 7 shows a schematic diagram of a communication method 600 of another embodiment of the present application. The method 600 of fig. 7 may be performed by a terminal device or by a chip in a terminal device, such as any one of the terminal devices UE1-UE6 of fig. 1. The method 600 includes the following steps.

S610, the terminal device determines that the number of the PDCCH candidates configured within the first time length is within a first numerical range.

S620, the terminal device may determine that it is not necessary to monitor n1 PDCCH candidates in the search space with the lowest priority corresponding to the first traffic characteristic in the first time span. Wherein n1 is a positive integer.

S630, the terminal device may determine that it is not necessary to monitor n2 PDCCH candidates in the search space of the lowest priority corresponding to the second traffic characteristic in the first time span. Wherein n2 is a positive integer.

It should be noted that S620 and S630 may be executed simultaneously, or S620 and then S630 may be executed first, or S630 and then S620 may be executed first. The terminal device may repeatedly perform S620 and S630, that is, may determine PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in the search space corresponding to the first service feature and the search space corresponding to the second service feature in turn, until the PDCCH monitoring capability of the terminal device in the first time period is satisfied.

According to the embodiment, the PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored are selected in turn from the PDCCH candidates corresponding to different service features, so that the PDCCH candidates of each service feature can be monitored as many as possible, and the timeliness of service scheduling of the PDCCH candidates in the search space of the service feature is ensured.

As another embodiment, the terminal device determining, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in the first search space within the first time span may be: determining, from the configured PDCCH candidates, that there is no need to monitor PDCCH candidates corresponding to a particular DCI format (format) in a first search space within a first time span; for example, the specific DCI format may be a DCI format that is not desired by the terminal device, or may be protocol-specified, preset, or configured by an external device. In this way, the terminal device can flexibly select which PDCCH candidates do not need to be monitored according to the DCI format.

Alternatively, the determining, by the terminal device, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in the first search space within the first time span from the configured PDCCH candidates may be: determining, from the configured PDCCH candidates, that there is no need to monitor PDCCH candidates corresponding to a particular DCI payload size (payload size) in a first search space within a first time span; the specific DCI payload size may be a DCI payload size that is not desired by the terminal device, or may be protocol-specified, predetermined, or configured by an external device. In this way, the terminal device can flexibly select which PDCCH candidates to monitor according to the DCI payload size.

Still alternatively, the determining, by the terminal device, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in the first search space within the first time span from the configured PDCCH candidates may be: and determining PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored in a first search space within a first time span from the configured PDCCH candidates according to whether the terminal equipment supports carrier aggregation. For example, a terminal device supporting carrier aggregation may monitor all configured PDCCH candidates. For example, a terminal device that does not support carrier aggregation does not monitor some PDCCH candidates when the configured PDCCH candidates are in the first range. For another example, the first range corresponding to the terminal device that supports carrier aggregation is different from the first range corresponding to the terminal device that does not support carrier aggregation. The first range corresponding to the terminal device supporting carrier aggregation is greater than y1, and the first range corresponding to the terminal device supporting carrier aggregation is greater than y2, where y1 is greater than y 2. In this way, the terminal device can determine which PDCCH candidates to monitor according to the support capability of carrier aggregation.

It should be noted that the above-mentioned DCI format, DCI payload size, or carrier aggregation related scheme may be used in combination with the above-described manner 1, manner 2, and/or manner 3. Two or three of the above-described

modes

1, 2, and 3 may be used in combination.

It should be understood that, in the foregoing embodiments, the sequence numbers of the processes do not imply an execution sequence, and the execution sequence of the processes should be determined by functions and internal logic of the processes, and should not constitute any limitation to the implementation process of the embodiments of the present application.

Fig. 8 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device provided in one embodiment of the present application. The communication device may be used to execute the behavior function of the terminal device in the above method embodiments, or the communication device may also be a chip or a circuit of the terminal device. This process is not described in detail to avoid redundancy. As shown in fig. 8, the communication device 700 may include a processing unit 710 and a storage unit 720. The storage unit 720 is used to store computer programs.

The processing unit 710 is configured to determine the number of PDCCH candidates configured for a first time span, and determine PDCCH candidates that do not need monitoring in a first search space of the first time span from the configured PDCCH candidates when the number of PDCCH candidates is in a first range of values, where the first time span is one or more time spans in the first time length

Fig. 9 is a schematic block diagram of a communication apparatus 800 according to an embodiment of the present application. The communication device 800 is capable of performing the behavior function of the network device in the above method embodiments. To avoid repetition, this is not described in detail here. The communication apparatus 800 may be a network device or a chip applied to the network device. The communication apparatus 800 includes: a transceiving unit 810 and a processing unit 820.

A transceiving unit 810, configured to send information indicating a first value range to a terminal device, where the information of the first value range is used for the terminal device to determine a PDCCH candidate that does not need to be monitored within a first time period;

a processing unit 820, configured to configure a physical downlink control channel, PDCCH, candidate for the terminal device.

Fig. 10 is a schematic block diagram of a communication apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present application. It should be understood that the communication device may be configured to perform each step performed by the terminal device in the above method example, and may also be configured to perform each step performed by the network device in the above method embodiment. To avoid repetition, this is not described in detail here. The communication apparatus 1000 includes:

a memory 1010 for storing a program;

a communication interface 1020 for communicating with other devices;

a processor 1030 configured to execute the program in memory 1010, the processor 1030 being configured, when the program is executed, to determine the number of physical downlink control channel, PDCCH, candidates configured for a first length of time in general, and to determine, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in a first search space of a first time span, when the number of PDCCH candidates is in a first range of values, wherein the first time span is one or more time spans within the first length of time.

Alternatively, the processor 1030 is configured to send information indicating a first value range to a terminal device through the communication interface 1020, where the information of the first value range is used by the terminal device to determine a PDCCH candidate that does not need to be monitored for a first time period; and configuring Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) candidates for the terminal equipment.

It should be understood that the communication device 1000 shown in fig. 10 may be a chip or a circuit. Such as a chip or circuit that may be provided within a terminal device or a chip or circuit that is provided within a network device. The communication interface 1020 may also be a transceiver. The transceiver includes a receiver and a transmitter. Further, the communication apparatus 1000 may also include a bus system.

The processor 1030, the memory 1010, the receiver and the transmitter are connected through a bus system, and the processor 1030 is configured to execute instructions stored in the memory 1010 to control the receiver to receive signals and control the transmitter to transmit signals, so as to complete the steps of the network device in the communication method of the present application. Wherein the receiver and the transmitter may be the same or different physical entities. When the same physical entity, may be collectively referred to as a transceiver. The memory 1010 may be integrated with the processor 1030 or may be provided separately from the processor 1030.

As an implementation manner, the functions of the receiver and the transmitter may be considered to be implemented by a transceiving circuit or a transceiving dedicated chip. Processor 1030 may be considered to be implemented by a special purpose processing chip, processing circuit, processor, or a general purpose chip.

Fig. 11 shows a simplified schematic diagram of a possible design structure of the terminal device involved in the above-described embodiment. The terminal device includes a transmitter 1101, a receiver 1102, a controller/processor 1103, a memory 1104, and a modem processor 1105.

The transmitter 1101 is configured to transmit an uplink signal, which is transmitted to the network device in the above-described embodiment via the antenna. On the downlink, the antenna receives a downlink signal (DCI) transmitted by the network device in the above-described embodiment. The receiver 1102 is configured to receive a downlink signal (DCI) received from an antenna. In modem processor 1105, an encoder 1106 receives and processes traffic data and signaling messages to be sent on the uplink. A modulator 1107 further processes (e.g., symbol maps and modulates) the encoded traffic data and signaling messages and provides output samples. A demodulator 1109 processes (e.g., demodulates) the input samples and provides symbol estimates. A decoder 1108 processes (e.g., decodes) the symbol estimates and provides decoded data and signaling messages that are sent to the terminal device. Encoder 1106, modulator 1107, demodulator 1109, and decoder 1108 may be implemented by a combined modem processor 1105. These elements are processed according to the radio access technology employed by the radio access network.

The controller/processor 1103 controls and manages the operation of the terminal device, and is configured to execute the processing performed by the terminal device in the above-described embodiment. For example, the terminal device is controlled to receive the indication information from the second device, and determine the characteristic parameters monitored in one or more time spans in the N time spans included in the first time length according to the received indication information; receiving a control channel and/or other processes of the techniques described herein on a control channel element resource corresponding to a characteristic parameter monitored over one or more time spans. As an example, the controller/processor 1103 is configured to support the terminal device to perform the procedures S310 and S320 in fig. 3.

Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the various illustrative elements and algorithm steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware or combinations of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the implementation. 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.

It is clear to those skilled in the art that, for convenience and brevity of description, the specific working processes of the above-described systems, apparatuses and units may refer to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and are not described herein again.

In the several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the above-described apparatus embodiments are merely illustrative, for example, the division of the units is only one logical function division, and there may be other division manners in actual implementation, for example, a plurality of units or components may be combined or may be integrated into another system, or some features may be omitted, or not executed. In addition, the communication connections shown or discussed may be indirect couplings or communication connections between devices or units through interfaces, and may be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

In addition, each unit in the embodiments of the apparatus of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist alone physically, or two or more units are integrated into one unit.

It is understood that the processor in the embodiments of the present application may be a Central Processing Unit (CPU), other 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. The general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but may be any conventional processor.

The methods in the embodiments of the present 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 programs or instructions. When the computer program or instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present application are performed 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 program or instructions may be stored in or transmitted over a computer-readable storage medium. 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 that integrates one or more available media. The usable medium may be a magnetic medium, such as a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape; or optical media, such as CD-ROM, DVD; it may also be a semiconductor medium, such as a Solid State Disk (SSD), a Random Access Memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), a register, and the like.

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 network device or a terminal device. Of course, the processor and the storage medium may reside as discrete components in a transmitting device or a receiving device.

In the embodiments of the present application, unless otherwise specified or conflicting with respect to logic, the terms and/or descriptions in different embodiments have consistency and may be mutually cited, and technical features in different embodiments may be combined to form a new embodiment according to their inherent logic relationship.

In the present application, "and/or" describes an association relationship of associated objects, which means that there may be three relationships, for example, a and/or B, which may mean: a exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, and B exists alone, wherein A and B can be singular or plural. In the description of the text of the present application, the character "/" generally indicates that the former and latter associated objects are in an "or" relationship; in the formula of the present application, the character "/" indicates that the preceding and following related objects are in a relationship of "division".

It is to be understood that the various numerical references referred to in the embodiments of the present application are merely for descriptive convenience and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of the present application. The sequence numbers of the above-mentioned processes do not mean the execution sequence, and the execution sequence of the processes should be determined by their functions and inherent logic.

Claims

1. A method of communication, comprising:

determining the number of Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) candidates configured in a first time length;

determining, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in a first search space of a first time span when the number of PDCCH candidates is in a first range of values, wherein the first time span is one or more time spans within the first time length.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

information indicative of the first range of values is obtained.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the method further comprises:

determining one or more time spans with the largest number of search spaces configured within the first time length as the first time span.

4. The method according to claim 1 or 2,

the first time span comprises one or more time spans within the first length of time except for a jth time span, where j is a positive integer; or the like, or, alternatively,

the first length of time comprises at least one time span within a time slot and the first time span comprises one or more time spans within the time slot other than the first time span.

5. The method according to any of claims 1 to 4, wherein the determining, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in a first search space of a first time span comprises:

determining, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates corresponding to a first aggregation level that does not need to be monitored in the first search space within the first time span, wherein the first aggregation level comprises one or more aggregation levels.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

information indicating the first aggregation level is obtained.

7. The method of any of claims 1 to 6, wherein the first search space comprises one or more search spaces other than a Common Search Space (CSS).

8. The method of any of claims 1 to 6, wherein the first search space is a lowest priority search space within the first time span, and

the method further comprises the following steps:

determining the search space with the lowest priority according to the priority rule of the search space and the service characteristics of the data scheduled by the PDCCH in the first time span, wherein the priority rule of the search space is as follows:

user equipment UE specific search space USS of first service feature < USS of second service feature < common search space CSS, or

9. The method according to any of claims 1 to 4, wherein the determining, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in a first search space of a first time span comprises:

determining from the configured PDCCH candidates that n1 PDCCH candidates do not need to be monitored in the first search space corresponding to a first traffic characteristic within the first time span; and/or

Determining from the configured PDCCH candidates that n2 PDCCH candidates do not need to be monitored in the first search space corresponding to a second traffic characteristic within the first time span;

wherein the n1 and the n2 are positive integers.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

obtaining information indicative of the n1 and/or information indicative of the n 2.

11. The method according to any of claims 1 to 4, wherein determining PDCCH candidates from the configured PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in a first search space of a first time span comprises:

determining PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored in a first search space within the first time span from the configured PDCCH candidates according to whether carrier aggregation is supported.

12. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, further comprising:

determining the first range of values based on whether carrier aggregation is supported.

13. A method of communication, comprising:

sending information indicating a first numerical range to a terminal device, wherein the information of the first numerical range is used for the terminal device to determine PDCCH candidates which do not need to be monitored within a first time length;

and configuring Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) candidates for the terminal equipment.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

and sending information indicating the first aggregation level to the terminal equipment.

15. The method according to claim 13 or 14, characterized in that the method further comprises:

transmitting information indicating n1 and/or information indicating n2 to the terminal device, wherein the n1 and the n2 are positive integers,

the n1 is configured to instruct the terminal device to determine that n1 PDCCH candidates do not need to be monitored in the first search space corresponding to a first traffic characteristic in the first time span from the configured PDCCH candidates;

the n2 is used to instruct the terminal device to determine from the configured PDCCH candidates that n2 PDCCH candidates do not need to be monitored in the first search space corresponding to a second traffic characteristic within the first time span.

16. A communication device, comprising a memory unit and a processing unit, the memory unit being connected to the processing unit,

the storage unit is used for storing a computer program;

the processing unit is configured to determine the number of PDCCH candidates configured in a first time span, and determine, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates that do not need to be monitored in a first search space of the first time span when the number of PDCCH candidates is in a first range of values, where the first time span is one or more time spans in the first time length.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, further comprising:

a transceiver unit for obtaining information indicative of the first range of values.

18. The apparatus according to claim 16 or 17, wherein the processing unit is further configured to:

19. The apparatus of claim 16 or 17,

20. The apparatus according to any one of claims 16 to 19, wherein the processing unit is further configured to:

determining, from the configured PDCCH candidates, PDCCH candidates corresponding to a first aggregation level that does not need to be monitored in a first search space within the first time span, wherein the first aggregation level comprises one or more aggregation levels.

21. The apparatus of claim 20,

the transceiver unit is further configured to obtain information indicating the first aggregation level.

22. The apparatus of any of claims 16 to 21, wherein the first search space comprises one or more search spaces other than a Common Search Space (CSS).

23. The apparatus according to any of claims 16 to 21, wherein the first search space is a lowest priority search space within the first time span, and

the processing unit is further to:

24. The apparatus according to any one of claims 16 to 19, wherein the processing unit is further configured to:

wherein the n1 and the n2 are positive integers.

25. The apparatus of claim 24,

the transceiving unit is further configured to obtain information indicating the n1 and/or information indicating the n 2.

26. The apparatus according to any one of claims 16 to 19, wherein the processing unit is further configured to:

27. The apparatus according to any one of claims 16 to 25, wherein the processing unit is further configured to:

28. An apparatus for communication, comprising:

a transceiving unit, configured to send information indicating a first numerical range to a terminal device, where the information of the first numerical range is used by the terminal device to determine a PDCCH candidate that does not need to be monitored within a first time period;

and the processing unit is used for configuring Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) candidates for the terminal equipment.

29. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the transceiver unit is further configured to:

30. The apparatus according to claim 28 or 29, wherein the transceiver unit is further configured to:

transmitting information indicating n1 and/or information indicating n2 to the terminal device, wherein the n1 and the n2 are positive integers, wherein,

31. A communication apparatus comprising a processor coupled to a memory, the memory storing a computer program, the processor being configured to execute the computer program stored in the memory to cause the apparatus to perform the method of any of claims 1 to 12.

32. A communication apparatus comprising a processor coupled to a memory, the memory storing a computer program, the processor being configured to execute the computer program stored in the memory to cause the apparatus to perform the method of any of claims 13 to 15.

33. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that it stores a computer program which, when executed, implements the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12.

34. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that it stores a computer program which, when executed, implements the method according to any one of claims 13 to 15.