CN113825150A

CN113825150A - Timer operation method and equipment for multi-TRP transmission

Info

Publication number: CN113825150A
Application number: CN202010559048.1A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 徐夏刚
Original assignee: Nokia Shanghai Bell Co Ltd
Current assignee: Nokia Shanghai Bell Co Ltd
Priority date: 2020-06-18
Filing date: 2020-06-18
Publication date: 2021-12-21
Anticipated expiration: 2040-06-18
Also published as: CN113825150B

Abstract

An object of the embodiments of the present application is to provide a timer operation method and apparatus for multiple TRP transmission. The method comprises the following steps executed by a base station, determining corresponding timer configuration information according to the type of a communication backhaul between a plurality of TRPs; performing operations related to the BWP inactivity timer according to the determined timer configuration information; sending the timer configuration information to a user equipment for the user equipment to perform operations related to a BWP inactivity timer according to the timer configuration information; and the following steps performed by the user equipment: performing operations related to the BWP inactivity timer according to the determined timer configuration information; sending the timer configuration information to a user equipment for the user equipment to perform operations related to a BWP inactivity timer according to the timer configuration information. The method and the device can guide the UE to perform the BWP inactivity timer related behavior, and reduce the delay in the PDCCH scheduling event among TRPs.

Description

Timer operation method and equipment for multi-TRP transmission

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of communications technologies, and in particular, to a method and an apparatus for operating a timer for multiple TRP transmissions.

Background

In a New Radio (NR) system of 5G, downlink data may be transmitted to a User Equipment (UE) through an antenna Panel (Panel) of a Transmitter Receiver Point (TRP). The concept of small Bandwidth (BWP) is specified in the NR Rel-15 protocol specification. At the same time, the terminal can only have one active bwp. The specification defines an inactivity timer for each active, non-default BWP to reduce possible synchronization problems, such as possible Downlink Control Information (DCI) errors between the UE and the gNB. If the UE does not explicitly use BWP scheduling after the timer expires, the UE reverts to the default BWP if the default BWP is configured for the UE, and reverts to the initial BWP if the default BWP is not configured.

In the NR Rel-16 protocol specification, for non-coherent joint transmission (NCJT), a plurality of TRPs may transmit a plurality of Physical Downlink Shared Channels (PDSCHs) through a plurality of Physical Downlink Control Channels (PDCCHs), respectively. For multiple TRP or multiple antenna panel transmission based on multiple PDCCHs, the UE may be scheduled on the same active BWP to receive multiple PDSCHs simultaneously. However, the existing related specifications do not specify how to configure an inactivity timer for rollback (fallback) for BWP.

However, based on the prior art schemes, in case of non-ideal backhaul (non-ideal backhaul), coordination of PDCCH scheduling events between TRPs cannot be generally guaranteed with small delay. Also, the behavior of the UE is disturbed due to different BWP inactivity timer period settings specified on different TRPs according to existing protocols.

Disclosure of Invention

An object of the embodiments of the present application is to provide a timer operation method and apparatus for multiple TRP transmission.

An embodiment of the present application provides a timer operation method performed by a base station for multiple TRP transmission, wherein a plurality of TRPs (base stations) transmit downlink data to a user equipment, the plurality of TRPs including a master TRP and at least one slave TRP, the method including:

determining corresponding timer configuration information according to the type of a communication backhaul between a plurality of TRPs;

performing operations related to the BWP inactivity timer according to the determined timer configuration information;

sending the timer configuration information to a user equipment for the user equipment to perform operations related to a BWP inactivity timer according to the timer configuration information;

wherein the timer configuration information includes first configuration information applicable to an ideal backhaul line such that only the master TRP is configured with one BWP inactivity timer or second configuration information applicable to a non-ideal backhaul line such that the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP are configured with respective BWP inactivity timers.

An embodiment of the present application provides a timer operation method performed by a user equipment for multiple TRP transmission, wherein a plurality of TRPs (base stations) transmit downlink data to the user equipment, the plurality of TRPs including a master TRP and at least one slave TRP, the method including:

receiving timer configuration information from a base station;

performing operations related to a BWP inactivity timer according to the timer configuration information;

An embodiment of the present application provides a base station, where a plurality of TRPs (base stations) transmit downlink data to a user equipment, where the plurality of TRPs include a master TRP and at least one slave TRP, and the base station includes:

means for determining respective timer configuration information according to a type of a communication backhaul between a plurality of TRPs;

means for performing operations related to the BWP inactivity timer in accordance with the determined timer configuration information;

means for sending the timer configuration information to a user equipment for the user equipment to perform operations related to a BWP inactivity timer according to the timer configuration information;

An embodiment of the present application provides a user equipment, wherein a plurality of TRPs (base stations) transmit downlink data to the user equipment, the plurality of TRPs include a master TRP and at least one slave TRP, and the user equipment includes:

means for receiving timer configuration information from a base station;

means for performing operations related to a BWP inactivity timer according to the timer configuration information;

An embodiment of the present application provides a base station, where the base station includes a processor and a memory, where the memory stores a computer program, and when the computer program is executed by the processor, the following steps are performed:

An embodiment of the present application provides a user equipment, where the user equipment includes a processor and a memory, where the memory stores a computer program, and when the computer program is executed by the processor, the following steps are implemented:

receiving timer configuration information from a base station;

An embodiment of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, in which a computer program is stored, where the computer program is used for, when the computer program is executed by a base station, implementing the following steps:

An embodiment of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, in which a computer program is stored, where the computer program is used for, when the computer program is executed by a user equipment, implementing the following steps:

receiving timer configuration information from a base station;

Compared with the prior art, the embodiment of the application has the following advantages: by providing a configuration scheme of the BWP inactivity timer applicable to an ideal backhaul or a non-ideal backhaul respectively according to the states of the multiple TRP communication backhauls, the UE can be guided to perform actions related to the BWP inactivity timer, thereby avoiding troubles caused by different timer period settings on different TRPs specified by a protocol to the UE; in addition, the embodiment of the application can reduce the delay in the PDCCH scheduling event among TRPs under the condition that multiple TRPs transmit data to the UE, thereby improving the data transmission efficiency.

Drawings

Other features, objects and advantages of the invention will become more apparent upon reading of the detailed description of non-limiting embodiments made with reference to the following drawings:

fig. 1 illustrates a timer operation method for multiple TRP transmissions according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 2a shows a schematic diagram of an exemplary BWP timer configuration scheme according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 2b shows a schematic diagram of an exemplary BWP timer configuration scheme in accordance with an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 3 shows a schematic structural diagram of a base station and a user equipment according to an embodiment of the present application.

The same or similar reference numbers in the drawings identify the same or similar elements.

Detailed Description

Before discussing exemplary embodiments in more detail, it should be noted that some exemplary embodiments are described as processes or methods depicted as flowcharts. Although a flowchart may describe the operations as a sequential process, many of the operations can be performed in parallel, concurrently, or simultaneously. In addition, the order of the operations may be re-arranged. The process may be terminated when its operations are completed, but may have additional steps not included in the figure. The processes may correspond to methods, functions, procedures, subroutines, and the like.

The term "wireless device" or "device" as used herein may be considered synonymous with and sometimes hereinafter referred to as: a client, user equipment, mobile station, mobile user, mobile terminal, subscriber, user, remote station, access terminal, receiver, mobile unit, etc., and may describe a remote user of wireless resources in a wireless communication network.

Similarly, the term "base station" as used herein may be considered synonymous with, and sometimes referred to hereinafter as: a node B, an evolved node B, an eNodeB, a gNB, a Base Transceiver Station (BTS), an RNC, etc., and may describe a transceiver that communicates with and provides radio resources for a mobile in a wireless communication network that may span multiple technology generations. The base stations discussed herein may have all of the functionality associated with conventional well-known base stations, except for the ability to implement the methods discussed herein.

The methods discussed below, some of which are illustrated by flow diagrams, may be implemented by hardware, software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description languages, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, firmware, middleware or microcode, the program code or code segments to perform the necessary tasks may be stored in a machine or computer readable medium such as a storage medium. The processor(s) may perform the necessary tasks.

Specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are merely representative and are provided for purposes of describing example embodiments of the present invention. The present invention may, however, be embodied in many alternate forms and should not be construed as limited to only the embodiments set forth herein.

It will be understood that, although the terms first, second, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another. For example, a first element may be termed a second element, and, similarly, a second element may be termed a first element, without departing from the scope of example embodiments. As used herein, the term "and/or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

It will be understood that when an element is referred to as being "connected" or "coupled" to another element, it can be directly connected or coupled to the other element or intervening elements may be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being "directly connected" or "directly coupled" to another element, there are no intervening elements present. Other words used to describe the relationship between elements (e.g., "between" versus "directly between", "adjacent" versus "directly adjacent to", etc.) should be interpreted in a similar manner.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of example embodiments. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms "comprises" and/or "comprising," when used herein, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

It should also be noted that, in some alternative implementations, the functions/acts noted may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, two figures shown in succession may, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the figures may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality/acts involved.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which example embodiments belong. It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.

The present invention is described in further detail below with reference to the attached drawing figures.

Fig. 1 illustrates a timer operation method for multiple TRP transmission according to an embodiment of the present application. The method includes steps S101, S102, and S103 performed by the base station, and steps S201 and S202 performed by the user equipment.

It should be noted that the base station mentioned in the present application is equivalent to TRP. The timers referred to herein are all BWP inactivity timers.

Wherein the plurality of TRPs includes one master TRP (Master TRP) and at least one slave TRP (slave TRP). The main TRP is the TRP firstly accessed by the UE, and the auxiliary TRP is the TRP added later.

According to the embodiment of the application, the base station sends TRP configuration information to the user equipment to configure each TRP for the user equipment. The TRP configuration information includes a CORESET number or a CORESET pool number (CORESET pool index) of each TRP configured for the user equipment. And, the TRP with the smaller coresetpoolndex is the master TRP and the TRP with the larger coresetpoolndex is the slave TRP.

For example, based on the relevant provisions of the Rel-16 specification, a maximum of 5 CORESETPoolIndex may be defined for one Pool (Pool) of CORESET. The master TRP may be assigned coresetpoilndex 0 to 2 and the slave TRP may be assigned coresetpoilndex 3 and 4.

Referring to fig. 1, in step S101, a base station determines corresponding timer configuration information according to a type of a communication backhaul between a plurality of TRPs.

Wherein the type of the communication backhaul comprises an ideal backhaul or a non-ideal backhaul.

For example, two TRPs are configured for a UE, denoted as TRP _1 and TRP _2, where TRP _1 is the master TRP and TRP _2 is the slave TRP. Based on the first configuration information, only TRP _1 is configured with one BWP inactivity timer, and TRP _2 is not configured with the BWP inactivity timer or is configured with a timer having an infinite period. Based on the second configuration information, respective BWP inactivity timers are configured for TRP _1 and TRP _2, respectively.

In step S102, the base station performs an operation related to the BWP inactivity timer according to the determined timer configuration information.

Specifically, the manner in which the base station performs the relevant operation of the BWP inactivity timer based on the first configuration information and the second configuration information, respectively, includes:

scheme of first configuration information (only master TRP is configured with one BWP inactivity timer):

according to one embodiment of the present application, if either TRP sends DCI, the master TRP restarts the BWP inactivity timer.

According to one embodiment of the present application, if the master TRP sends DCI, the master TRP restarts the BWP inactivity timer.

According to one embodiment of the application, if the BWP inactivity timer of the master TRP expires, the master TRP switches the activated BWP to the default BWP; the master TRP notifies the slave TRP timer to time out for the slave TRP to switch the activated BWP to the default BWP in response to the notification. A notification of BWP inactivity timer timeout from the master TRP is received from the TRP and the activated BWP is switched to the default BWP in response to the notification.

According to one embodiment of the present application, a default BWP is not configured in the slave TRP, and the master TRP notifies the slave TRP to enter a sleep state if the BWP inactivity timer of the master TRP expires. The notification is received from the TRP and the sleep state is entered in response to the notification, and if the sleep state is entered from the TRP, the UE will no longer listen to the DCI transmitted from the TRP.

Scheme of second configuration information (master TRP and at least one slave TRP are respectively configured with respective BWP inactivity timer Machine):

if any TRP transmits DCI, the TRP restarts its BWP inactivity timer. At which point the TRP needs to immediately notify other TRPs to restart the BWP inactivity timer.

Wherein the manner of informing other TRPs to restart the BWP inactivity timer includes any of:

1) the TRP sends indication information to other TRPs; wherein the indication information includes various messages or information that may be used to instruct other TRPs to restart respective BWP inactivity timers. Specifically, if the TRP receives HARQ ACK/NACK, the TRP sends indication information to other TRPs through a backhaul link between the TRPs to instruct the other TRPs to restart respective BWP inactivity timers.

2) Transmitting, by the user equipment, indication information to the other TRPs; specifically, the user equipment may transmit the indication information to other TRPs through a dedicated UL channel. Alternatively, the user equipment transmits the indication information to other TRPs by multiplexing pucch (pusch).

Preferably, for an ideal communication backhaul, the TRP is used to transmit the indication information to other TRPs, and for a non-ideal communication backhaul, the user equipment is used to transmit the indication information to other TRPs.

According to one embodiment of the present application, the master TRP and the at least one TRP will be configured with the same BWP inactivity timer period, that is, the respective BWP inactivity timers of the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP will expire simultaneously.

The master TRP and the at least one slave TRP switch the activated BWP to the default BWP, respectively, if the BWP inactivity timers of the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP, respectively, expire.

Similar to the embodiment corresponding to the first configuration information described above, if the default BWP is not configured in the slave TRP, the master TRP notifies the slave TRP to enter a sleep state so that the UE no longer listens to DCI transmitted from the TRP.

It should be noted that, in a scenario where multiple TRPs transmit data to a user equipment, each user equipment generally communicates with two TRPs. Those skilled in the art will be familiar with the fact that the method of the embodiments of the present application is equally applicable if each user equipment can communicate with more than two TRPs, i.e. one master TRP and multiple slave TRPs.

Continuing with the description of fig. 1, in step S103, the base station sends the timer configuration information to the user equipment, so that the user equipment performs the operation related to the BWP inactivity timer according to the timer configuration information.

In step S201, the ue receives timer configuration information from the base station;

in step S202, the user equipment performs an operation related to the BWP inactivity timer according to the timer configuration information.

Specifically, the manner in which the user equipment performs the operation related to the BWP inactivity timer according to the first configuration information and the second configuration information, respectively, includes:

scheme of the first configuration information:

according to one embodiment of the present application, the user equipment restarts the BWP inactivity timer of the user equipment if DCI from any TRP is successfully decoded.

According to one embodiment of the present application, the user equipment restarts a BWP inactivity timer of the user equipment if DCI from the master TRP is successfully decoded.

According to one embodiment of the present application, if a BWP inactivity timer of the user device expires, the user device switches the activated BWP to a default BWP.

Scheme of the second configuration information:

Preferably, after successfully decoding DCI from any TRP, the user equipment sends indication information to other TRPs for the other TRPs to restart respective BWP inactivity timers based on the indication information.

If the BWP inactivity timer of the user device expires, the user device switches the activated BWP to the default BWP.

Fig. 2a and 2b respectively show schematic diagrams of exemplary BWP timer configuration schemes according to embodiments of the present application.

As shown in fig. 2a and 2b, the communication system according to the present embodiment includes two TRPs (base stations) and one User Equipment (UE). Wherein the TRP on the left is a master TRP (indicated by P-TRP), and the TRP on the right is a slave TRP (indicated by S-TRP). The DCI transmitted by the P-TRP to the UE comprises PDCCH1 and PDSCH-1, and the DCI transmitted by the S-TRP to the UE comprises PDCCH2 and PDSCH-2.

In the system, configuration information of the TRP is set based on a specification. Specifically, 5 core sets (CORESET) are configured for the TRP, and their pool numbers (CORESET poollindex) are denoted CORESET #0, CORESET #1, CORESET #2, CORESET #3, and CORESET #4, respectively. Wherein, TRP corresponding to CORESET #0 is master TRP, and TRP corresponding to CORESET #3 is slave TRP. And, the master TRP and the slave TRP configured for each BWP are the same.

As shown in fig. 2a and 2b, there are two configurations of BWP inactivity timers, including:

the first scheme is as follows: as shown in fig. 2a, this scheme configures only one BWP inactivity Timer for the master TRP, the slave TRPs are not configured with the BWP inactivity Timer or with a Timer of a local infinite period, and the Timer corresponding to the master TRP is represented as Common Timer.

Scheme II: as shown in fig. 2b, the scheme configures BWP inactivity timers for a master TRP and a slave TRP respectively, the Timer corresponding to the master TRP is represented as Timer1, the Timer corresponding to the slave TRP is represented as Timer2, and the periods of both Timer1 and Timer2 are 20 ms.

And if the communication backhaul is an ideal backhaul, the base station sends configuration information corresponding to the scheme one to the user equipment. And if the communication backhaul is a non-ideal backhaul, the base station sends configuration information corresponding to the second scheme to the user equipment.

The flow of the relevant operation of the master TRP, the slave TRP and the UE to perform the BWP inactivity timer according to the timer configuration information is as follows:

the first scheme is as follows:

referring to fig. 2a, on the base station side, the way in which the master TRP restarts the BWP inactivity Timer (Common Timer) includes any one of the following:

-restarting the BWP inactivity timer if DCI from any TRP is successfully decoded; or

-restarting the BWP inactivity timer if the master TRP sends DCI.

Accordingly, on the user equipment side, the way in which the UE restarts the BWP inactivity Timer (UE's Timer) includes any one of the following:

-restarting the BWP inactivity timer if the DCI from any TRP is successfully decoded, i.e. PDCCH1 or PDCCH2 are successfully decoded; or

-restart BWP inactivity timer if DCI from the master TRP is successfully decoded, i.e. PDCCH1 is successfully decoded.

Assuming that the activated BWP in the TRP and the UE is denoted as BWP #1, on the base station side, if the BWP inactivity Timer (Common Timer) of the master TRP expires, the master TRP switches the activated BWP #1 to the default BWP (default BWP). And, the master TRP informs the slave TRP timer to time out. The notification is received from the TRP and the activated BWP is switched to a default BWP in response to the notification.

On the user equipment side, if the BWP inactivity timer of the UE expires, the user equipment switches the activated BWP #1 to the default BWP.

Scheme II:

referring to FIG. 2b, at the base station side, if any TRP (P-TRP or S-TRP) transmits DCI, the TRP restarts its BWP inactivity timer. On the user equipment side, if the DCI from any TRP (i.e., PDCCH1 or PDCCH2) is successfully decoded, the BWP inactivity timer (UE's timer) of the user equipment is restarted.

Assuming that the master TRP transmits DCI and restarts Timer1, the slave TRP needs to be immediately notified to restart Timer 2. The means of notifying the slave TRP includes any one of the following:

1) the master TRP sends indication information to the slave TRP, so that the slave TRP restarts the Timer2 based on the indication information;

2) the UE successfully decodes the PDCCH1 from the master TRP, and indication information is transmitted by the UE to the slave TRP for the slave TRP to restart the Timer2 based on the indication information.

The master TRP and the slave TRP are configured with the same BWP inactivity Timer period, that is, Timer1 and Timer2 will timeout at the same time.

Assuming that the activated BWP in the TRP and the UE is denoted as BWP #1, on the base station side, if Timer1 and Timer2 time out, the master TRP and the slave TRP respectively switch the activated BWP #1 to the default BWP.

On the user side, if the BWP inactivity timer of the UE expires, the UE switches the activated BWP #1 to the default BWP.

According to the method of the embodiment of the application, by providing a configuration scheme of the BWP inactivity timer respectively applicable to an ideal backhaul or a non-ideal backhaul according to the state of the multi-TRP communication backhaul, the UE can be guided to perform BWP inactivity timer related behaviors, thereby avoiding confusion caused by different timer period settings on different TRPs specified by a protocol; in addition, the embodiment of the application can reduce the delay in the PDCCH scheduling event among TRPs under the condition that multiple TRPs transmit data to the UE, thereby improving the data transmission efficiency.

Fig. 3 shows a schematic structural diagram of a base station and a user equipment according to an embodiment of the present application. The base station according to the present embodiment includes: means for determining corresponding timer configuration information according to a type of a communication backhaul between a plurality of TRPs (hereinafter referred to as "configuration determining means 101"); means (hereinafter referred to as "first operating means 102") for performing operations related to the BWP inactivity timer according to the determined timer configuration information; means (hereinafter referred to as "configuration transmitting means 103") for transmitting the timer configuration information to the user equipment, so that the user equipment performs operations related to the BWP inactivity timer according to the timer configuration information;

the user equipment according to the present embodiment includes: means for receiving timer configuration information from a base station (hereinafter referred to as "configuration receiving means 201"); and a device (hereinafter, referred to as "second operating device 202") for performing an operation related to the BWP inactivity timer according to the timer configuration information.

Referring to fig. 3, the configuration determining means 101 determines corresponding timer configuration information according to the type of communication backhaul between a plurality of TRPs.

In step S102, the first operating device 102 performs operations related to the BWP inactivity timer according to the determined timer configuration information.

according to one embodiment of the present application, if any TRP sends DCI, the first operating device 102 of the master TRP restarts the BWP inactivity timer.

According to one embodiment of the present application, the first operating device 102 of the master TRP restarts the BWP inactivity timer if the master TRP sends DCI.

According to one embodiment of the present application, the base station includes: means (not shown, hereinafter referred to as "first switching means") for switching the activated BWP to a default BWP if the BWP inactivity timer of the master TRP expires; means (not shown, hereinafter referred to as "first notifying means") for notifying the slave TRP timer to time out for the slave TRP to switch the activated BWP to the default BWP in response to the notification.

If the BWP inactivity timer of the master TRP expires, the first switching device of the master TRP switches the activated BWP to the default BWP; the notification means of the master TRP notifies the slave TRP timer to time out for the slave TRP to switch the activated BWP to the default BWP in response to the notification. A notification of BWP inactivity timer timeout from the master TRP is received from the TRP and the activated BWP is switched to the default BWP in response to the notification.

According to an embodiment of the present application, the slave TRP is not configured with a default BWP, and the base station includes means for switching the active BWP to the default BWP if the BWP inactivity timer of the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP expires (not shown, hereinafter referred to as "second notification means")

The second means for informing the master TRP that the slave TRP enters the sleep state if the BWP inactivity timer of the master TRP expires. The notification is received from the TRP and the sleep state is entered in response to the notification, and if the sleep state is entered from the TRP, the UE will no longer listen to the DCI transmitted from the TRP.

according to one embodiment of the present application, if any TRP transmits DCI, that TRP restarts its BWP inactivity timer. At which point the TRP needs to immediately notify other TRPs to restart the BWP inactivity timer.

According to one embodiment, the master TRP and the at least one TRP will be configured with the same BWP inactivity timer period, that is, the respective BWP inactivity timers of the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP will expire simultaneously. The base station includes: means (not shown, hereinafter referred to as "second switching means") for switching the activated BWP to a default BWP if the respective BWP inactivity timers of the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP are expired

The second switching means of the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP respectively switches the activated BWP to the default BWP if the BWP inactivity timer of the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP respectively times out.

Continuing with the description of fig. 3, the configuration sending means 103 sends the timer configuration information to the user equipment, so that the user equipment performs the operation related to the BWP inactivity timer according to the timer configuration information.

The configuration receiving means 201 receives timer configuration information from the base station;

the second operating device 202 performs the operations related to the BWP inactivity timer according to the timer configuration information.

Specifically, the manner in which the second operating device 202 performs the relevant operation of the BWP inactivity timer according to the first configuration information and the second configuration information, respectively, includes:

scheme of the first configuration information:

according to one embodiment of the present application, the second operating device 202 restarts the BWP inactivity timer of the user equipment if DCI from any TRP is successfully decoded.

According to one embodiment of the present application, the second operating device 202 restarts the BWP inactivity timer of the user equipment if the DCI from the primary TRP is successfully decoded.

The second operating means 202 switches the activated BWP to the default BWP if the BWP inactivity timer of the user device expires.

Scheme of the second configuration information:

if the DCI from any TRP is successfully decoded, the second operating device 202 restarts the BWP inactivity timer of the user equipment.

Preferably, the user equipment includes a device (not shown, hereinafter referred to as "feedback notification device") for sending indication information to other TRPs after successfully decoding DCI from any TRP, so that the other TRPs restart respective BWP inactivity timers based on the indication information.

After successful decoding of DCI from any TRP, the feedback notification apparatus sends indication information to other TRPs for the other TRPs to restart their respective BWP inactivity timers based on the indication information.

According to the scheme of the embodiment of the application, by providing a configuration scheme of the BWP inactivity timer respectively suitable for an ideal backhaul or a non-ideal backhaul according to the state of the multi-TRP communication backhaul, the UE can be guided to perform actions related to the BWP inactivity timer, so that troubles caused by different timer period settings on different TRPs specified by a protocol to the UE are avoided; in addition, the embodiment of the application can reduce the delay in the PDCCH scheduling event among TRPs under the condition that multiple TRPs transmit data to the UE, thereby improving the data transmission efficiency.

The software program of the present invention can be executed by a processor to implement the steps or functions described above. Also, the software programs (including associated data structures) of the present invention can be stored in a computer readable recording medium, such as RAM memory, magnetic or optical drive or diskette and the like. Additionally, some of the steps or functionality of the present invention may be implemented in hardware, for example, as circuitry that cooperates with the processor to perform various functions or steps.

In addition, some of the present invention can be applied as a computer program product, such as computer program instructions, which when executed by a computer, can invoke or provide the method and/or technical solution according to the present invention through the operation of the computer. Program instructions which invoke the methods of the present invention may be stored on a fixed or removable recording medium and/or transmitted via a data stream on a broadcast or other signal-bearing medium and/or stored within a working memory of a computer device operating in accordance with the program instructions. An embodiment according to the invention herein comprises an apparatus comprising a memory for storing computer program instructions and a processor for executing the program instructions, wherein the computer program instructions, when executed by the processor, trigger the apparatus to perform a method and/or solution according to embodiments of the invention as described above.

It will be evident to those skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to the details of the foregoing illustrative embodiments, and that the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof. The present embodiments are therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein. Any reference sign in a claim should not be construed as limiting the claim concerned. Furthermore, it is obvious that the word "comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps, and the singular does not exclude the plural. A plurality of units or means recited in the system claims may also be implemented by one unit or means in software or hardware. The terms first, second, etc. are used to denote names, but not any particular order.

While exemplary embodiments have been particularly shown and described, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the claims. The protection sought herein is as set forth in the claims below. These and other aspects of the various embodiments are specified in the following numbered clauses:

1. a timer operation method for multiple TRP transmission performed by a base station, wherein a plurality of TRPs (base stations) transmit downlink data to a user equipment, the plurality of TRPs comprising one master TRP and at least one slave TRP, the method comprising:

2. The method according to clause 1, wherein, if only the master TRP is configured with one BWP inactivity timer, the step of performing operations related to the BWP inactivity timer comprises:

if any TRP sends DCI, the master TRP restarts the BWP inactivity timer; alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

if the master TRP sends DCI, the master TRP restarts the BWP inactivity timer.

3. The method according to clause 1, wherein, if the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP are configured with respective BWP inactivity timers, the step of performing the operations related to the BWP inactivity timers comprises:

if any TRP transmits DCI, the TRP restarts its BWP inactivity timer;

the TRP sends indication information to other TRPs for the other TRPs to restart respective BWP inactivity timers based on the indication information.

4. The method according to any of clauses 1 to 3, wherein if only the master TRP is configured with one BWP inactivity timer, the method comprises:

if the BWP inactivity timer of the master TRP expires, the master TRP switches the activated BWP to the default BWP; the master TRP notifies the slave TRP timer to time out for the slave TRP to switch the activated BWP to the default BWP in response to the notification;

wherein if the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP are configured with respective BWP inactivity timers, the respective BWP inactivity timers of the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP will expire simultaneously, the method comprising:

5. The method of clause 4, wherein the method comprises:

if the default BWP is not configured in the slave TRP, the master TRP informs the slave TRP to enter a sleep state so that the UE no longer listens to DCI transmitted from the TRP.

6. A timer operation method for multiple TRP transmission performed by a user equipment, wherein a plurality of TRPs (base stations) transmit downlink data to the user equipment, the plurality of TRPs comprising one master TRP and at least one slave TRP, the method comprising:

receiving timer configuration information from a base station;

7. The method according to clause 6, wherein if only the master TRP is configured with one BWP inactivity timer, the step of performing operations related to the BWP inactivity timer comprises:

restarting a BWP inactivity timer of the user equipment if the DCI from any of the TRPs is successfully decoded; alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

if the DCI from the primary TRP is successfully decoded, the BWP inactivity timer of the user equipment is restarted.

8. The method according to clause 6, wherein if the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP are configured with respective BWP inactivity timers, the step of performing the operations related to the BWP inactivity timers comprises:

if the DCI from any TRP is successfully decoded, the BWP inactivity timer of the user equipment is restarted.

9. The method of clause 8, wherein the method comprises:

after successful decoding of DCI from any TRP, indication information is sent to other TRPs for the other TRPs to restart their respective BWP inactivity timers based on the indication information.

10. A base station, wherein a plurality of TRPs (base stations) transmit downlink data to a user equipment, the plurality of TRPs comprising one master TRP and at least one slave TRP, the base station comprising:

11. The base station according to clause 10, wherein, if only the master TRP is configured with one BWP inactivity timer, the means for performing BWP inactivity timer related operations is configured to:

restarting a BWP inactivity timer if any TRP sends DCI; alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

if the master TRP sends DCI, the BWP inactivity timer is restarted.

12. The base station according to clause 10, wherein, if the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP are configured with respective BWP inactivity timers, the means for performing the operations related to the BWP inactivity timers according to the determined timer configuration information is configured to:

restarting a BWP inactivity timer of itself if any TRP transmits DCI;

sending indication information to the other TRPs for the other TRPs to restart respective BWP inactivity timers based on the indication information.

13. The base station according to any of clauses 10 to 12, wherein, if only the master TRP is configured with one BWP inactivity timer, the base station comprises:

means for switching the activated BWP to a default BWP if a BWP inactivity timer of the master TRP expires; means for notifying the slave TRP timer to time out for the slave TRP to switch the activated BWP to a default BWP in response to the notification;

wherein if the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP are configured with respective BWP inactivity timers, the respective BWP inactivity timers of the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP will expire simultaneously, the base station comprising:

means for switching the activated BWP to a default BWP if the respective BWP inactivity timers of the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP time out.

14. The base station of clause 13, wherein the base station comprises:

and notifying the slave TRP to enter a sleep state if the default BWP is not configured in the slave TRP, so that the UE does not listen to the DCI transmitted from the TRP any more.

15. A user equipment, wherein a plurality of TRPs (base stations) transmit downlink data to the user equipment, the plurality of TRPs comprising one master TRP and at least one slave TRP, the user equipment comprising:

means for receiving timer configuration information from a base station;

16. The user equipment according to clause 15, wherein, if only the master TRP is configured with one BWP inactivity timer, the means for performing operations related to the BWP inactivity timer according to the timer configuration information is configured to:

17. The user equipment according to clause 16, wherein if the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP are configured with respective BWP inactivity timers, the means for performing the operations related to the BWP inactivity timer according to the timer configuration information is configured to:

18. The user equipment of clause 17, wherein the user equipment comprises:

means for sending indication information to other TRPs after successful decoding of DCI from any TRP for the other TRPs to restart respective BWP inactivity timers based on the indication information.

19. A base station comprising a processor and a memory, said memory storing a computer program which, when executed by said processor, performs the steps of:

20. A user equipment comprising a processor and a memory, said memory storing a computer program which, when executed by said processor, performs the steps of:

receiving timer configuration information from a base station;

21. A computer-readable storage medium having stored therein a computer program for, when executed by a base station, performing the steps of:

performing operations related to the BWP activity timer according to the determined timer configuration information;

22. A computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon a computer program for performing, when the computer program is executed by a user equipment, the steps of:

receiving timer configuration information from a base station;

Claims

2. The method of claim 1, wherein if only a master TRP is configured with one BWP inactivity timer, the step of performing operations related to the BWP inactivity timer comprises:

if the master TRP sends DCI, the master TRP restarts the BWP inactivity timer.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein if the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP are each configured with a respective BWP inactivity timer, the step of performing the operations associated with the BWP inactivity timer comprises:

if any TRP transmits DCI, the TRP restarts its BWP inactivity timer;

4. The method according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein, if only the master TRP is configured with one BWP inactivity timer, the method comprises:

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the method comprises:

receiving timer configuration information from a base station;

7. The method of claim 6, wherein if only the master TRP is configured with one BWP inactivity timer, the step of performing operations related to the BWP inactivity timer comprises:

8. The method of claim 6, wherein if the master TRP and the at least one slave TRP are each configured with a respective BWP inactivity timer, the step of performing the operations associated with the BWP inactivity timer comprises:

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the method comprises:

11. A user equipment, wherein a plurality of TRPs (base stations) transmit downlink data to the user equipment, the plurality of TRPs comprising one master TRP and at least one slave TRP, the user equipment comprising:

means for receiving timer configuration information from a base station;

12. A base station comprising a processor and a memory, said memory storing a computer program which, when executed by said processor, performs the steps of:

13. A user equipment comprising a processor and a memory, said memory storing a computer program which, when executed by said processor, performs the steps of:

receiving timer configuration information from a base station;

14. A computer-readable storage medium having stored therein a computer program for, when executed by a base station, performing the steps of:

15. A computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon a computer program for performing, when the computer program is executed by a user equipment, the steps of:

receiving timer configuration information from a base station;