CN113938994A

CN113938994A - Communication method and device

Info

Publication number: CN113938994A
Application number: CN202010774351.3A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 姚楚婷; 薛祎凡
Original assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Current assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Priority date: 2020-07-13
Filing date: 2020-08-04
Publication date: 2022-01-14
Anticipated expiration: 2040-08-04
Also published as: CN113938994B

Abstract

The application relates to a communication method and device. When the terminal equipment is in a first state, a first icon is displayed, and the first icon is used for indicating that the terminal equipment can provide the service corresponding to the NR communication system. And when the terminal equipment enters the second state from the first state, starting a timer, and before the timer is overtime, keeping displaying the first icon by the terminal equipment. And if the terminal equipment enters the first state from the second state before the timer is overtime, stopping running the timer. The timer is arranged in the embodiment of the application, and frequent switching of the icons can be reduced by improving the effective working time of the timer.

Description

Communication method and device

Cross Reference to Related Applications

The present application claims priority of a chinese patent application entitled "a method of displaying a 5G icon" filed by the chinese intellectual property office on 13/7/2020, application number 202010671583.6, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Technical Field

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

Background

It is presently specified that if the terminal device resides in a Long Term Evolution (LTE) base station and the terminal device is in a Radio Resource Control (RRC) idle (idle) state, then if the terminal device receives a system information block type 2 (SIB 2) from the LTE base station and the SIB2 includes a non-independent group (NSA) indication indicating NSA is supported, which indicates that the LTE base station is capable of supporting NSA, the terminal device may display the 5th generation (5G) icon (icon); alternatively, if the terminal device does not receive the SIB2 from the LTE base station, or the SIB2 from the LTE base station that the terminal device receives does not include an NSA indication, the terminal device displays the 4G icon but cannot display the 5G icon. If the terminal device is in an RRC connected (connected) state, if the terminal device is connected to two base stations, that is, the terminal device is in a dual connection state, a main base station of the two base stations is an LTE base station, and an auxiliary base station is a New Radio (NR) base station, the terminal device may display a 5G icon, otherwise, the terminal device may not display the 5G icon, and may only display a 4G icon. The icon described herein may indicate that the terminal device is capable of providing a service corresponding to a certain communication system, for example, the 4G icon may indicate that the terminal device is capable of providing a service corresponding to an LTE communication system, and the 5G icon may indicate that the terminal device is capable of providing a service corresponding to an NR communication system.

Take the terminal device as a mobile phone as an example. With the present conclusion, if the handset is initially in the RRC idle state and is camped on an LTE base station, and the handset receives SIB2 from the LTE base station, the SIB2 including an NSA indication, the handset may display a 5G icon. Once a user needs to network through the mobile phone, the mobile phone enters an RRC connected state in the LTE base station, but when the user enters the RRC connected state, the LTE base station does not configure an NR secondary base station for the mobile phone, so the mobile phone does not display a 5G icon any more, but instead displays a 4G icon. Then, the LTE base station may configure an NR auxiliary base station for the mobile phone, and the terminal device switches to display a 5G icon. Therefore, the current scheme can cause the terminal device to frequently switch the 5G icon and the 4G icon, the power consumption of the terminal device can be increased in the switching process, and the user experience is poor.

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the application provides a communication method and device, which are used for reducing the power consumption of terminal equipment and improving the user experience.

In a first aspect, a first communication method is provided, the method including: when the terminal equipment is in a first state, displaying a first icon, wherein the first icon is used for indicating that the terminal equipment can provide a service corresponding to the NR communication system; starting a timer when the terminal equipment enters a second state from a first state, wherein the terminal equipment keeps displaying the first icon before the timer is overtime; and if the terminal equipment enters the first state from the second state before the timer is overtime, stopping running the timer.

The method may be performed by a first communication device, which may be a communication apparatus or a communication device, e.g. a chip, capable of supporting the communication apparatus to implement the functionality required for the method. Illustratively, the first communication device is a terminal device, or a chip provided in the terminal device for implementing a function of the terminal device, or another component for implementing a function of the terminal device. In the following description, the first communication device is taken as an example of a terminal device.

In the embodiment of the application, if the terminal device enters the second state from the first state, the terminal device should display the 4G icon in the second state, but a timer is set in the embodiment of the application, and the timer is started at this time, so that the terminal device keeps displaying the first icon, and frequent switching of the icons is reduced. Before the timer is overtime, if the terminal equipment enters the first state from the second state, the terminal equipment originally displays the 5G icon in the first state, so that the timer stops running to continuously display the first icon, and the timer can be restarted when the terminal equipment enters the second state from the first state next time, so that the timer is reasonably utilized, and the icon switching process is reduced through the running of the timer.

With reference to the first aspect, in a first optional implementation manner of the first aspect, the placing the terminal device in the first state includes:

the terminal equipment is in an RRC (radio resource control) connection state, the terminal equipment is connected with NR (network noise) network equipment, the terminal equipment is also connected with LTE (long term evolution) network equipment, the LTE network equipment is main network equipment, and the NR network equipment is auxiliary network equipment; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal equipment is in an RRC idle state, the terminal equipment resides in a first cell, and the first cell supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal equipment is in an RRC idle state, the terminal equipment resides in a first cell, and the first cell is an NR cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal equipment is in an RRC connection state and is only connected with NR network equipment; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal equipment is in an RRC connection state, the terminal equipment is connected with NR network equipment, the terminal equipment is also connected with LTE network equipment, the NR network equipment is main network equipment, and the LTE network equipment is auxiliary network equipment.

The first state is, for example, a 5G state, and the terminal device may display the first icon in the first state. These states can be considered as the first state, and of course, other states besides the above states may also be the first state.

With reference to the first optional implementation manner of the first aspect, in a second optional implementation manner of the first aspect, the first cell supports NSA, and includes:

receiving system information at the first cell, the system information including an NSA indication indicating that the first cell supports NSA.

For example, the terminal device receives system information broadcasted by the network device in the first cell, where the system information includes an NSA indication, and if an LTE cell supports NSA, it indicates that the terminal device can be configured with an NR secondary network device when connecting to the LTE cell, that is, the LTE cell supports the configuration of the NR secondary network device, so that the terminal device may determine that the first cell supports NSA; or, if the terminal device does not receive the system information broadcast by the network device in the first cell, the terminal device cannot determine whether the first cell supports NSA, and at this time, the terminal device processes according to that the first cell does not support NSA; or, the terminal device receives the system information broadcasted by the network device in the first cell, and the system information does not include the NSA indication, so that the terminal device may determine that the first cell does not support NSA. The system information is, for example, SIB2, or may be system information other than SIB2

With reference to the first aspect or the first optional implementation manner of the first aspect or the second optional implementation manner of the first aspect, in a third optional implementation manner of the first aspect, the placing the terminal device in the second state includes:

the terminal equipment is in an RRC connection state and is only connected with LTE network equipment;

the terminal equipment is in an RRC idle state, and the terminal equipment resides in a second cell, wherein the second cell is an LTE cell and does not support NSA.

The second state is, for example, a 4G state, and the terminal device may display a second icon in the second state. These states can be considered as the second state, and of course, other states besides the above states may also be considered as the second state.

With reference to the first aspect or any one of the first to third alternative embodiments of the first aspect, in a fourth alternative embodiment of the first aspect, the method further comprises:

and when the timer is overtime, stopping displaying the first icon, and displaying a second icon, wherein the second icon is used for indicating that the terminal equipment can provide the service corresponding to the LTE communication system.

Since the terminal device stops running the timer if it enters the first state from the second state before the timer expires, if the timer runs out, it indicates that the terminal device does not enter the first state but remains in the second state. Then, upon expiration of the timer, the terminal device may display a second icon to accommodate the second state.

With reference to the first aspect or any one of the first to fourth alternative embodiments of the first aspect, in a fifth alternative embodiment of the first aspect, the method further comprises:

the timer is reset.

The terminal device may further reset the timer after stopping running the timer, and resetting the timer may include recovering a value of the timer before running. For example, if the timer counts in a positive manner from 0, resetting the timer means clearing the timer, or if the timer counts in a negative manner from a maximum value, resetting the timer means setting the value of the timer to the maximum value. The maximum value may be a timing duration of the timer, for example, 30 seconds, or may be another value. After that, if the terminal device enters the first state from the second state again, the terminal device can restart the timer, and the timer can run at the initial value to increase the effective running time of the timer.

With reference to the first aspect or any one of the first optional implementation manner to the fifth optional implementation manner of the first aspect, in a sixth optional implementation manner of the first aspect, the entering, by the terminal device, the second state from the first state includes:

the terminal equipment enters an RRC connected state from an RRC idle state, wherein the terminal equipment resides in the first cell when in the RRC idle state, and the first cell supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal equipment reselects a second cell through the cell in an RRC idle state, wherein the terminal equipment resides in a first cell in the RRC idle state, the first cell supports NSA, and the second cell is not an NR cell and does not support NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device reselects to a second cell through a cell in an RRC idle state, wherein the terminal device resides in the first cell in the RRC idle state, the first cell is an NR cell, and the second cell is not an NR cell and does not support NSA.

With reference to the first aspect or any one of the first optional implementation manner to the fifth optional implementation manner of the first aspect, in a seventh optional implementation manner of the first aspect, the entering, by the terminal device, the second state from the first state includes:

the terminal equipment is switched to a first cell in an RRC (radio resource control) connection state, wherein the terminal equipment is only connected with NR (network noise) equipment, and the first cell is an LTE (long term evolution) cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal equipment is switched to a first cell in an RRC (radio resource control) connection state, wherein the terminal equipment is connected with LTE (long term evolution) network equipment and NR (noise-and-noise) network equipment, the NR network equipment is main network equipment, the LTE network equipment is auxiliary network equipment, and the first cell is an LTE cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device is in an RRC connected state, enters an RRC idle state after a link failure occurs, and reselects or selects a first cell through a cell, wherein the terminal device is connected with an LTE network device and an NR network device when in the RRC connected state, the NR network device is a main network device, the LTE network device is an auxiliary network device, the first cell is an LTE cell, and the first cell does not support NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal equipment is in an RRC connected state, enters an RRC idle state after a link failure occurs, and reselects or selects a first cell through a cell, wherein the terminal equipment is only connected with NR network equipment when in the RRC connected state, the first cell is an LTE cell, and the first cell does not support NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal equipment is in an RRC (radio resource control) connection state, and connection between the terminal equipment and NR (network noise) network equipment is released, wherein the terminal equipment is connected with LTE (long term evolution) network equipment and the NR network equipment, the LTE network equipment is main network equipment, and the NR network equipment is auxiliary network equipment; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal equipment is switched to a first cell in an RRC (radio resource control) connection state, wherein the terminal equipment is connected with NR (network noise amplifier) network equipment when in the RRC connection state, the terminal equipment is also connected with LTE (long term evolution) network equipment, the LTE network equipment is main network equipment, the NR network equipment is auxiliary network equipment, and the first cell supports NSA (non-subsampled network noise amplifier); or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device is switched to a first cell in an RRC (radio resource control) connection state, wherein the terminal device is connected with an NR (noise reduction) network device when in the RRC connection state, the terminal device is also connected with an LTE (Long term evolution) network device, the LTE network device is a main network device, the NR network device is an auxiliary network device, and the terminal device is not configured with the NR auxiliary network device in the first cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal equipment is switched to a first cell in an RRC (radio resource control) connection state, wherein the terminal equipment is connected with NR (noise-and-noise) network equipment when in the RRC connection state, the terminal equipment is also connected with LTE (long term evolution) network equipment, the LTE network equipment is main network equipment, the NR network equipment is auxiliary network equipment, and the first cell is not an NR cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device is in an RRC connected state, enters an RRC idle state after a link failure occurs, and reselects or selects a first cell through the cell, wherein when the terminal device is in the RRC connected state, the terminal device is connected with an NR network device, the terminal device is also connected with an LTE network device, the LTE network device is a main network device, the NR network device is an auxiliary network device, and the first cell does not support NSA.

As described above, the terminal device can be considered to enter the second state from the first state. Of course, besides the above cases, there may be other cases that can also be regarded as the terminal device entering the second state from the first state.

With reference to the first aspect or any one of the first optional implementation manner of the first aspect to the seventh optional implementation manner of the first aspect, in an eighth optional implementation manner of the first aspect, the entering, by the terminal device, the first state from the second state includes:

the terminal equipment is connected with NR network equipment, and is also connected with LTE network equipment, wherein the LTE network equipment is main network equipment, and the NR network equipment is auxiliary network equipment; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal equipment enters an RRC idle state from an RRC connected state, and resides in a first cell after entering the RRC idle state, and the first cell supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal equipment is in an RRC (radio resource control) connected state, and after a link failure occurs, a first cell is reselected or selected through a cell, wherein the first cell is an LTE (long term evolution) cell, and supports NSA (non-mobile services architecture); or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal equipment is in an RRC (radio resource control) connected state, and reselects or selects a first cell through a cell after a link failure occurs, wherein the first cell is an NR (non-random) cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal equipment is in an RRC idle state in a first cell, and then the terminal equipment performs cell reselection or selects a second cell, wherein the first cell is not an NR cell and does not support NSA, the second cell is an LTE cell, and the second cell supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal equipment is in an RRC idle state in a first cell, and then cell reselection or selection is carried out on the terminal equipment to a second cell, wherein the first cell is not an NR cell and does not support NSA, and the second cell is an NR cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal equipment is in an RRC (radio resource control) connected state and only connected with LTE (long term evolution) network equipment, and then the terminal equipment is switched to a second cell through the cell, wherein the second cell is an NR (non-random) cell.

As described above, the terminal device can be considered to enter the first state from the second state. Of course, besides the above cases, there may be other cases that can also be regarded as the terminal device entering the first state from the second state.

In a second aspect, a second communication method is provided, the method comprising: when the terminal equipment is in a first state, displaying a first icon, wherein the first icon is used for indicating that the terminal equipment can provide a service corresponding to the NR communication system; starting a timer when the timer is not operated and the terminal equipment enters a second state from a first state, wherein the terminal equipment keeps displaying the first icon during the operation of the timer; or, when the timer is in a running state and the terminal device enters the second state from the first state, restarting the timer.

The method may be performed by a second communication device, which may be a communication apparatus or a communication device, e.g. a chip, capable of supporting the communication apparatus to perform the functions required by the method. Illustratively, the second communication device is a terminal device, or a chip provided in the terminal device for implementing the function of the terminal device, or another component for implementing the function of the terminal device. In the following description, the second communication device is taken as an example of a terminal device.

In the embodiment of the present application, if the terminal device enters the second state from the first state, the terminal device should display the 4G icon (the second icon) in the second state, but the timer is set in the embodiment of the present application, and the timer is started or restarted at this time, so that the terminal device keeps displaying the first icon, and frequent switching of the icons is reduced. In addition, the timer is reasonably utilized in this way, and the switching process of the icons is reduced through the operation of the timer.

With reference to the second aspect, in a first optional implementation manner of the second aspect, restarting the timer includes:

stopping running the timer;

resetting the timer;

the timer is started.

Restarting the timer may stop running the timer first, then reset the timer, and then start the timer. Resetting the timer may include recovering a value of the timer prior to running. For example, if the timer counts in a positive manner from 0, resetting the timer means clearing the timer, or if the timer counts in a negative manner from a maximum value, resetting the timer means setting the value of the timer to the maximum value. The maximum value may be a timing duration of the timer, for example, 30 seconds, or may be another value. Thus, when the terminal device starts the timer again, the timer can be operated with the initial value to increase the effective operation time of the timer.

With reference to the second aspect or the first optional implementation manner of the second aspect, in a first optional implementation manner of the second aspect, the method further includes:

and when the timer is overtime, if the terminal equipment is in the second state, displaying the second icon, or if the terminal equipment is in the first state, displaying the first icon.

When the timer is over, the terminal device may be in the first state or the second state, and then the terminal device displays the corresponding icon according to the current state, so that the displayed icon matches with the current state.

With reference to the second aspect or the first optional implementation manner of the second aspect or the second optional implementation manner of the second aspect, in a third optional implementation manner of the second aspect, the terminal device is in the first state, and includes:

With reference to the third optional implementation manner of the second aspect, in a fourth optional implementation manner of the second aspect, the first cell supports NSA, and includes:

With reference to the second aspect or any optional implementation manner of the first optional implementation manner of the second aspect to the fourth optional implementation manner of the second aspect, in a fifth optional implementation manner of the second aspect, the terminal device is in the second state, and includes:

With reference to the second aspect or any optional implementation manner of the first optional implementation manner of the second aspect to the fifth optional implementation manner of the second aspect, in a sixth optional implementation manner of the second aspect, the entering, by the terminal device, the second state from the first state includes:

With reference to the second aspect or any optional implementation manner of the first optional implementation manner of the second aspect to the fifth optional implementation manner of the second aspect, in a seventh optional implementation manner of the second aspect, the entering, by the terminal device, the second state from the first state includes:

With regard to the technical effects brought about by the partially alternative embodiments of the second aspect, reference may be made to the introduction of the technical effects of the respective embodiments of the first aspect.

In a third aspect, a communication device is provided, for example, the communication device is the first communication device as described above or the second communication device as described above. The first communication device is configured to perform the method of the first aspect or any optional implementation manner of the first aspect, and the second communication device is configured to perform the method of the second aspect or any optional implementation manner of the second aspect. In particular, the communication device may comprise means, for example comprising processing means and display means, for performing the method of the first aspect or any of the alternative embodiments of the first aspect. The display module is for example realized by a display of the communication device. The processing module is for example implemented by one or more processors of the communication device. Alternatively, the communication device may comprise means for performing the method of the second aspect or any alternative embodiment of the second aspect, for example comprising a processing means and a display means. Illustratively, the communication device is a communication device, or a chip or other component provided in a communication device. Illustratively, the communication device is a terminal device.

In a fourth aspect, a communication device is provided, for example, a first communication device or a second communication device as described above. The communication device includes a processor (or processing circuitry), a display (or display circuitry). Optionally, the communication apparatus may further include a communication interface (or interface circuit), which may be used to communicate with other apparatuses or devices. Optionally, the communication device may further comprise a memory for storing computer instructions. The processor, the display and the memory are coupled to each other for implementing the method as described in the first aspect or the various alternative embodiments of the first aspect above, or for implementing the method as described in the second aspect or the various alternative embodiments of the second aspect above. Alternatively, the communication device may not include a memory, which may be external to the communication device. The processor, the memory and the display are coupled to each other for implementing the method as described in the first aspect or the various alternative embodiments of the first aspect, or for implementing the method as described in the second aspect or the various alternative embodiments of the second aspect. For example, the processor, when executing the computer instructions stored by the memory, causes the communication device to perform the method of the first aspect or any of the alternative embodiments of the first aspect, or causes the communication device to perform the method of the second aspect or any of the alternative embodiments of the second aspect. Illustratively, the communication device is a communication device, or a chip or other component provided in a communication device. Illustratively, the communication device is a terminal device.

Wherein, if the communication apparatus is a communication device, the communication interface is implemented by, for example, a transceiver (or a transmitter and a receiver) in the communication device, for example, the transceiver is implemented by an antenna, a feeder, a codec, and the like in the communication device. Or, if the communication device is a chip disposed in the communication apparatus, the communication interface is, for example, an input/output interface, such as an input/output pin, of the chip, and the communication interface is connected to a radio frequency transceiving component in the communication apparatus to implement transceiving of information through the radio frequency transceiving component.

In a fifth aspect, a first communication system is provided, which comprises the communication apparatus of the third aspect (for implementing the method provided by the first aspect or the various optional embodiments of the first aspect) or the communication apparatus of the fourth aspect (for implementing the method provided by the first aspect or the various optional embodiments of the first aspect).

In a sixth aspect, a second communication system is provided, the first communication system comprising the communication apparatus of the third aspect (for implementing the method provided by the second aspect or the various alternative embodiments of the second aspect) or the communication apparatus of the fourth aspect (for implementing the method provided by the second aspect or the various alternative embodiments of the second aspect).

In a seventh aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, which is used for storing a computer program, and when the computer program runs on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method of the first aspect or any one of the optional implementation manners of the first aspect.

In an eighth aspect, there is provided a computer readable storage medium for storing a computer program which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method of the second aspect or any one of the alternative embodiments of the second aspect.

A ninth aspect provides a computer program product comprising instructions for storing a computer program which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method of the first aspect or any one of the alternative embodiments of the first aspect.

A tenth aspect provides a computer program product comprising instructions for storing a computer program which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method of the second aspect or any one of the alternative embodiments of the second aspect.

The timer is arranged in the embodiment of the application, and frequent switching of the icons can be reduced by improving the effective working time of the timer.

Drawings

FIG. 1A is a schematic view of the icon 5G;

fig. 1B is a schematic diagram of a terminal device residing under an LTE base station;

fig. 1C is a schematic diagram of a terminal device in a dual connection state;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the operation of the terminal 5G identification display timer;

fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of a first communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the 4G icon;

fig. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating an operation of a timer in a first communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 6 is a schematic diagram of a second communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating an operation of a timer in a second communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 8 is another schematic diagram of the operation of the timer in the second communication method according to the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 9 is a schematic block diagram of a terminal device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 10 is another schematic block diagram of a terminal device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 11 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 12 is another schematic block diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 13 is a further schematic block diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

In order to make the objects, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the embodiments of the present application will be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Hereinafter, some terms in the embodiments of the present application are explained to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

1) Terminal equipment, including equipment providing voice and/or data connectivity to a user, in particular, including equipment providing voice to a user, or including equipment providing data connectivity to a user, or including equipment providing voice and data connectivity to a user. For example, may include a handheld device having wireless connection capability, or a processing device connected to a wireless modem. The terminal device may communicate with a core network via a Radio Access Network (RAN), exchange voice or data with the RAN, or interact with the RAN. The terminal device may include a User Equipment (UE), a wireless terminal device, a mobile terminal device, a device-to-device communication (D2D) terminal device, a vehicle-to-all (V2X) terminal device, a machine-to-machine/machine-type communication (M2M/MTC) terminal device, an internet of things (IoT) terminal device, a subscription unit (subscriber unit), a subscription station (IoT), a mobile station (mobile station), a remote station (remote station), an access point (access point, AP), a remote terminal (remote), an access terminal (access terminal), a user terminal (user terminal), a user agent (user agent), or user equipment (user), etc. For example, mobile telephones (or so-called "cellular" telephones), computers with mobile terminal equipment, portable, pocket, hand-held, computer-included mobile devices, and the like may be included. For example, Personal Communication Service (PCS) phones, cordless phones, Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phones, Wireless Local Loop (WLL) stations, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), and the like. Also included are constrained devices, such as devices that consume less power, or devices that have limited storage capabilities, or devices that have limited computing capabilities, etc. Examples of information sensing devices include bar codes, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), sensors, Global Positioning Systems (GPS), laser scanners, and the like.

By way of example and not limitation, in the embodiments of the present application, the terminal device may also be a wearable device. Wearable equipment can also be called wearable smart device or intelligent wearable equipment etc. is the general term of using wearable technique to carry out intelligent design, develop 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, smart helmets, smart jewelry and the like for monitoring physical signs.

The various terminal devices described above, if located on a vehicle (e.g., placed in or installed in the vehicle), may be considered to be vehicle-mounted terminal devices, which are also referred to as on-board units (OBUs), for example.

In this embodiment, the terminal device may further include a relay (relay). Or, it is understood that any device capable of data communication with a base station may be considered a terminal device.

In the embodiment of the present application, the apparatus for implementing the function of the terminal device may be the terminal device, or may be an apparatus capable of supporting the terminal device to implement the function, for example, a chip system, and the apparatus may be installed in the terminal device. In the embodiment of the present application, the chip system may be composed of a chip, and may also include a chip and other discrete devices. In the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application, a device for implementing a function of a terminal is taken as an example of a terminal device, and the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application is described.

2) Network devices, including, for example, Access Network (AN) devices, such as base stations (e.g., access points), may refer to devices in AN access network that communicate with wireless terminal devices over one or more cells over the air, or, for example, a network device in vehicle-to-all (V2X) technology is a Road Side Unit (RSU). The base station may be configured to interconvert received air frames and IP packets as a router between the terminal device and the rest of the access network, which may include an IP network. The RSU may be a fixed infrastructure entity supporting the V2X application and may exchange messages with other entities supporting the V2X application. The network device may also coordinate attribute management for the air interface. For example, the network device may include an evolved Node B (NodeB) or eNB or e-NodeB in an LTE system or an LTE-a (long term evolution-advanced), or may also include a next generation Node B (gNB) in a 5th generation (5G) new radio, NR (NR) system (also referred to as an NR system) or may also include a Centralized Unit (CU) and a distributed unit (distributed unit, DU) in a Cloud radio access network (Cloud RAN) system, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

The network device may further include a core network device, for example, including an access and mobility management function (AMF), a Session Management Function (SMF), a User Plane Function (UPF), or the like in a 5G system, or including a Mobility Management Entity (MME) in a 4G system, or the like. The embodiments of the present application mainly relate to access network devices, and therefore, unless otherwise specified, the network devices described below all refer to access network devices.

In the embodiment of the present application, the apparatus for implementing the function of the network device may be a network device, or may be an apparatus capable of supporting the network device to implement the function, for example, a system on chip, and the apparatus may be installed in the network device. In the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application, a device for implementing a function of a network device is taken as an example of a network device, and the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application is described.

3) Radio Resource Control (RRC) states, a terminal device has 3 RRC states: RRC connected (connected) state, RRC idle (idle) state, and RRC inactive (inactive) state. For example, the RRC idle state or the RRC inactive state may be referred to as the RRC non-connected state, i.e., the RRC non-connected state may refer to the RRC idle state or the RRC inactive state.

Herein, "connected state" and "RRC connected state" are the same concept, and the two designations may be interchanged): the terminal device establishes RRC connection with the network and can perform data transmission.

Herein, "idle state" and "RRC idle state" are the same concept, and the two designations may be interchanged): the terminal device does not establish an RRC connection with the network and the base station does not store the context of the terminal device. If the terminal device needs to enter the RRC connected state from the RRC idle state, an RRC connection establishment procedure needs to be initiated.

Herein, "deactivated dynamic," "inactive state," "deactivated state," "inactive state," "RRC inactive state," or "RRC deactivated state," etc. are the same concept, and these designations may be interchanged): the terminal device has previously entered the RRC connected state at the anchor base station, which then releases the RRC connection, but the anchor base station maintains the context of the terminal device. If the terminal device needs to enter the RRC connected state again from the RRC inactive state, an RRC connection recovery procedure (alternatively referred to as an RRC connection re-establishment procedure) needs to be initiated at the currently camped base station. Because the terminal device may be in a mobile state, the base station where the terminal device currently resides and the anchor base station of the terminal device may be the same base station or different base stations. Compared with the RRC establishment process, the RRC recovery process has shorter time delay and smaller signaling overhead. However, the base station needs to store the context of the terminal device, which occupies the storage overhead of the base station.

4) With the development of 5G, in the deployment of operators, a base station operating in an LTE system and a base station operating in a 5G NR system may be configured to communicate with a terminal device together, that is, the terminal device may be connected to the LTE base station and the NR base station at the same time, so that data may be transmitted by using both the frequency of the LTE system and the frequency of the NR system, thereby improving the throughput of the terminal device. The scenario in which such a terminal device is connected to base stations of two different access technologies simultaneously may be referred to as MR-DC.

When the terminal device is connected to the LTE base station and the NR base station at the same time, if the LTE base station is used as a master base station and the NR base station is used as a slave base station, the scenario is specifically referred to as LTE-NR dual connectivity (EN-DC) in MR-DC; whereas if the NR base station is the primary base station and the LTE base station is the secondary base station, this scenario is specifically referred to as NR-LTE dual connectivity (NE-DC) in MR-DC.

5) The terms "system" and "network" in the embodiments of the present application may be used interchangeably. "at least one" means one or more, "a plurality" means two or more. "and/or" describes the association relationship of the associated objects, meaning that there may be three relationships, e.g., 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. The character "/" generally indicates that the former and latter associated objects are in an "or" relationship. For example, A/B, represents: a or B. "at least one of the following" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of the singular or plural items. For example, at least one (one) of a, b, or c, may represent: a, b, c, a-b, a-c, b-c, or a-b-c, wherein a, b, c may be single or multiple.

And, unless stated to the contrary, the embodiments of the present application refer to the ordinal numbers "first", "second", etc., for distinguishing a plurality of objects, and do not limit the size, content, sequence, timing, priority, degree of importance, etc., of the plurality of objects. For example, the first icon and the second icon may be the same icon or different icons, and such names do not indicate the difference in the amount of information, the content of indication, the priority, the degree of importance, and the like between the two icons.

The foregoing has described some of the noun concepts to which embodiments of the present application relate, and the following has described some features of the embodiments of the present application.

Currently, an operator upgrades some LTE base stations, so that the LTE base stations can support NSA. The terminal device may establish a connection with two base stations, that is, the terminal device may operate in a dual-connection architecture, for example, the LTE base station may serve as a primary base station, and the NR base station may serve as a secondary base station. At this time, the terminal device enjoys the 5G service, and the 5G icon can be displayed. For example, refer to fig. 1A, which is a schematic diagram of a display interface of a mobile phone. The "5G" displayed in the upper left corner of the display interface of the mobile phone in fig. 1A represents a 5G icon.

Whether the terminal device displays the 5G icon depends on the needs of the operator. According to the survey and discussion of global system for mobile communications association (GSMA) in operation, 4 configurations are currently agreed, specifying when a terminal device should display a 5G icon. The 4 configurations include configuration A, configuration B, configuration C and configuration D, and from configuration A to configuration D, the conditions required to be met by the terminal device to display the 5G icon are strict to loose. Referring to table 1, 6 scenarios, or 6 states of the terminal device, are shown, and in these 6 scenarios, what icons should be displayed corresponding to the 4 configurations, respectively, are shown.

TABLE 1

As described in table 1, coverage without NR means that the terminal device does not receive a signal from the NR base station. Detecting coverage of an NR means that the terminal device receives a signal from an NR base station. According to table 1, for example, the terminal device is in an RRC idle state, and the LTE cell where the terminal device resides does not support NSA, then the terminal device displays the 4G icon regardless of which configuration is adopted. For another example, if the terminal device is in the RRC connected state and the LTE cell in which the terminal device resides supports NSA and there is no coverage by NR, then the terminal device displays a 4G icon if configuration a, configuration B or configuration C is employed and displays a 5G icon if configuration D is employed.

According to the present discussion result, the scheme of combining configuration a and configuration D as above is finally adopted, specifically, if the terminal device resides in the LTE base station and the terminal device is in the RRC idle state, for example, referring to fig. 1B, if the terminal device receives SIB2 from the LTE base station and SIB2 includes an NSA indication indicating that NSA is supported, which indicates that the LTE base station can support NSA, the terminal device may display a 5G icon; alternatively, if the terminal device does not receive the SIB2 from the LTE base station, or the SIB2 from the LTE base station that the terminal device receives does not include an NSA indication, the terminal device displays the 4G icon but cannot display the 5G icon. If the terminal device is in the RRC connected state, if the terminal device is connected to two base stations, that is, the terminal device is in the dual-connection state, and a main base station of the two base stations is an LTE base station, and an auxiliary base station of the two base stations is an NR base station, for example, referring to fig. 1C, the terminal device may display a 5G icon, otherwise, the terminal device may not display the 5G icon, but only display a 4G icon.

Take the terminal device as a mobile phone as an example. With the present conclusion, if the handset is initially in the RRC idle state and is camped on an LTE base station, and the handset receives SIB2 from the LTE base station, the SIB2 including an NSA indication, the handset may display a 5G icon. Once a user needs to network through the mobile phone, the mobile phone enters an RRC connected state in the LTE base station, but when the user enters the RRC connected state, the LTE base station does not configure an NR secondary base station for the mobile phone, so the mobile phone does not display a 5G icon any more, but instead displays a 4G icon. Then, the LTE base station may configure an NR auxiliary base station for the mobile phone, and the terminal device switches to display a 5G icon. It can be seen that the current scheme may cause frequent switching between the 5G icon and the 4G icon by the terminal device, and this switching process may increase power consumption of the terminal device.

To reduce frequent switching of icons, a terminal 5G identification display timer may be introduced. And under the condition that the 5G identification display timer is not overtime, the terminal equipment displays the 5G identification. The time point for starting the terminal 5G identifier display timer is that the terminal device enters an RRC connected state from an RRC idle state, or the terminal device releases a Secondary Cell Group (SCG) connection, or the terminal device switches to a new cell that broadcasts an NSA indication, and so on. Terminal 5G identifies that the timing length of the display timer is suggested to be 30 seconds. The purpose of introducing the terminal 5G identifier display timer is to enable the terminal device to keep displaying the 5G icon by starting the terminal 5G identifier display timer when the terminal device enters the 4G state (for example, the state in which the terminal device supports displaying the 5G icon, or the state in which the 5G icon needs to be displayed, is referred to as the 5G state) from the 5G state (for example, the state in which the terminal device does not support displaying the 5G icon, or the state in which the 4G icon needs to be displayed, is referred to as the 4G state), so as to avoid switching the icons.

When the terminal device is in an RRC idle state, if an LTE base station where the terminal device resides broadcasts an NSA indication, the terminal device displays a 5G icon, and when the terminal device enters an RRC connected state, even if the base station to which the terminal device is connected supports NSA, the base station cannot immediately add an NR secondary base station to the terminal device, so that the terminal device needs to display a 4G icon, which is considered that the terminal device enters a 4G state from the 5G state; or, the terminal device is originally connected with the NR SCG, which indicates that the terminal device is in a dual-connection state, and the secondary base station is an NR base station, so that the terminal device displays a 5G icon, and after the terminal device releases the NR SCG, the terminal device is no longer in the dual-connection state, so that the terminal device needs to display a 4G icon, which is also considered that the terminal device enters the 4G state from the 5G state; or, if the terminal device is in the RRC connected state, for example, the terminal device is in the dual connected state, and the secondary base station is an NR base station, the terminal device displays a 5G icon, but the terminal device performs cell handover and switches to a new cell broadcasting the NSA indication, and the terminal device is in the RRC connected state, and the base station serving the new cell cannot immediately add an NR secondary base station to the terminal device, so the terminal device needs to display a 4G icon, which is also considered that the terminal device enters the 4G state from the 5G state.

As can be seen from the above description, only the start and non-timeout behavior of the terminal 5G identifier display timer are currently specified, and according to the current description, if the terminal 5G identifier display timer does not stop, a corresponding problem may occur. For example, referring to fig. 2, a schematic diagram of the operation of the display timer is identified for terminal 5G. In fig. 2, the boxes with oblique lines indicate that the terminal device is in the 4G state, the blank boxes indicate that the terminal device is in the 5G state, and the oval indicates that the terminal 5G indicates that the display timer is running. As can be seen from fig. 2, when the terminal device enters the 4G state from the 5G state, the terminal device starts the 5G identification display timer, and then continues to display the 5G icon. When the display timer of the terminal 5G identifier is overtime, the terminal equipment is in a 4G state, and the terminal equipment displays a 4G icon. And after the terminal 5G identification display timer is overtime, the terminal equipment enters the 5G state again, and then the terminal equipment changes to display the 5G icon again. Therefore, even if the terminal 5G identifier display timer is adopted, frequent switching of icon display still occurs, and power consumption of the terminal device is increased.

In view of this, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application are provided. In the embodiment of the application, if the terminal device enters the second state from the first state, the terminal device should display the 4G icon in the second state, but a timer is set in the embodiment of the application, and the timer is started at this time, so that the terminal device keeps displaying the first icon, and frequent switching of the icons is reduced. Before the timer is overtime, if the terminal equipment enters the first state from the second state, the terminal equipment originally displays the 5G icon in the first state, so that the timer stops running to continuously display the first icon, and the timer can be restarted when the terminal equipment enters the second state from the first state next time, so that the timer is reasonably utilized, and the icon switching process is reduced through the running of the timer.

The technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application may be applied to a fourth generation mobile communication technology (4G) system, such as an LTE system, or may be applied to a 5G system, such as an NR system, or may also be applied to a next generation mobile communication system or other similar communication systems, which is not limited specifically. In addition, the technical solution provided by the embodiment of the present application may be applied to a device-to-device (D2D) scenario, such as an NR-D2D scenario, or may be applied to a vehicle-to-everything (V2X) scenario, such as an NR-V2X scenario, for example, may be applied to a vehicle networking, such as a V2X scenario, a vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) scenario, or may be applied to the fields of smart driving, assisted driving, or smart internet vehicles, and the like.

For example, a handset used by a user is under the coverage of an LTE base station that supports NSA. For example, if the mobile phone is in an RRC idle state initially, a 5G icon is displayed on the mobile phone after the screen of the mobile phone is lit. When a user intends to use the mobile phone to watch videos, the user opens a video Application (APP) on the mobile phone, and at the moment, the mobile phone needs to enter an RRC connected state. If the mobile phone displays the 4G icon instead according to the currently specified scheme, the user may think that the current network is not good enough, and the user stops watching the video. If the user does not use the mobile phone, the mobile phone may enter the RRC idle state again, and the mobile phone displays the 5G icon again. Such frequent switching may bring extra power consumption to the mobile phone, and may not be suitable for the user, and the user experience is poor because the current network is not suitable for watching the video or not. However, if the technical solution provided by the embodiment of the present application is adopted, after the user opens the video Application (APP) on the mobile phone, the mobile phone will keep displaying the 5G icon due to the start of the timer provided by the embodiment of the present application, and for the user, the user can watch the video with care. When the user closes the video APP, the cell phone may still display the 5G icon. Therefore, by adopting the technical scheme provided by the embodiment of the application, icons displayed by the mobile phone do not need to be frequently switched, the power consumption of the mobile phone is reduced, and the experience of a user is better.

The method provided by the embodiment of the application is described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The embodiment of the present application provides a first communication method, please refer to fig. 3, which is a flowchart of the method.

And S31, when the terminal device is in the first state, the terminal device displays the first icon.

The first icon is used to indicate that the terminal device can provide a service corresponding to the NR communication system, for example, the first icon is the aforementioned 5G icon. For example, with continued reference to fig. 1A, "5G" displayed in the upper left corner of the display interface of the mobile phone in fig. 1A is an example of the first icon.

The first state is, for example, the 5G state described above. For example, the terminal device is in the first state, which may mean that the terminal device is in an RRC idle state, and the terminal device resides in the first cell, and the first cell supports NSA (for example, the terminal device receives system information broadcast by the network device in the first cell, and the system information includes an NSA indication, the terminal device may determine that the first cell supports NSA, or if the terminal device does not receive the system information broadcast by the network device in the first cell, the terminal device may not determine whether the first cell supports NSA, and at this time, the terminal device may not support NSA, or the terminal device receives the system information broadcast by the network device in the first cell, and the system information does not include an NSA indication, the terminal device may determine that the first cell does not support NSA. The first cell may be a cell provided by an LTE network device. As can be seen from the foregoing description, according to the present specification, if the terminal device is in this state, the terminal device will display the 5G icon.

For another example, the terminal device being in the first state may refer to that the terminal device is in an RRC connected state, and the terminal device is in a dual-connection state, and the terminal device is configured with an NR secondary cell, that is, the terminal device is connected to an NR network device and connected to an LTE network device, and the LTE network device is a primary network device of the terminal device, and the NR network device is a secondary network device of the terminal device, for example, an EN-DC scenario introduced above. As can be seen from the foregoing description, according to the present specification, if the terminal device is in this state, the terminal device will display the 5G icon.

For another example, that the terminal device is in the first state may mean that the terminal device is in an RRC idle state, and the terminal device resides in a first cell, and the first cell is an NR cell, that is, the first cell may be a cell provided by an NR network device. If the terminal device is in this state, the terminal device displays a 5G icon.

For another example, the terminal device being in the first state may refer to that the terminal device is in an RRC connected state and the terminal device is connected to only the NR network devices (for example, the terminal device is in an NR-NR DC state, that is, the terminal device is connected to two NR network devices, one of the NR network devices is a main network device of the terminal device, and the other of the NR network devices is a sub network device of the terminal device, or the terminal device is in an NR single connected state, that is, the terminal device is connected to only one NR network device). If the terminal device is in this state, the terminal device displays a 5G icon.

For another example, the terminal device being in the first state may refer to that the terminal device is in an RRC connected state, the terminal device is connected to an NR network device, and the terminal device is further connected to an LTE network device, where the NR network device is a primary network device of the terminal device, and the LTE network device is a secondary network device of the terminal device (for example, the terminal device is in an NE-DC state). If the terminal device is in this state, the terminal device displays a 5G icon.

Or, besides the several implementation manners described above, there may be other implementation manners when the terminal device is in the first state, and the embodiment of the present application is not limited.

And S32, when the terminal equipment enters the second state from the first state, the terminal equipment starts a timer.

The second state is, for example, the 4G state described above.

For example, the terminal device is in the second state, which may mean that the terminal device is in an RRC connected state and the terminal device is only connected to the LTE network device (for example, the terminal device is in an LTE-LTE DC state, that is, the terminal device is connected to two LTE network devices, one of the LTE network devices is a primary network device of the terminal device, and the other LTE network device is a secondary network device of the terminal device, or the terminal device is in an LTE single-connected state, that is, the terminal device is only connected to one LTE network device). For another example, the terminal device being in the second state may refer to the terminal device being in an RRC idle state, the terminal device residing in a second cell, and the second cell not supporting NSA, where the second cell is a cell provided by the LTE network device. Or, in addition to the several implementation manners described above, there may be other implementation manners when the terminal device is in the second state, and the embodiment of the present application is not limited.

For example, table 2 may be referenced as examples of several states of the terminal device. Table 2 includes a first state including state 1 and state 2 and a second state including state 5 and state 6, i.e., state 1 or state 2 are both considered the first state and state 5 or state 6 are both considered the second state. The terminal device may be switched from the first state to the second state, or may be switched from the second state to the first state, or the terminal device may also be switched among several states included in the second state.

TABLE 2

Several implementations of the terminal device entering the second state from the first state are described below with reference to table 2.

In the first mode, the terminal device is in an RRC idle state and resides in a first cell, and the first cell is an LTE cell supporting NSA, that is, the terminal device is in the first state when in the RRC idle state. Then, the terminal device enters the RRC connected state from the RRC idle state, for example, the terminal device enters the RRC connected state in the first cell, and when the terminal device initially enters the RRC connected state in the first cell provided by the LTE network device, even if the first cell can support NSA, the first cell is not ready to configure the NR secondary network device for the terminal device, so the terminal device is in the second state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the second state from the first state. This situation can be seen as the terminal device entering state 5 described in table 3 from state 2 described in table 3.

In the second mode, the terminal device is in an RRC idle state and resides in the first cell, and the first cell supports NSA, at this time, the terminal device is in the first state. Then, the terminal device reselects to the second cell through the cell, where the second cell is not an NR cell, and the second cell does not support NSA, for example, the second cell is an LTE cell that does not support NSA, and thus, the terminal device may be in the second state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the second state from the first state. This situation can be seen as the terminal device entering state 6 described in table 3 from state 2 described in table 3.

And in a third mode, the terminal device is in an RRC (radio resource control) connection state, wherein the terminal device is connected with the LTE network device and the NR network device, the LTE network device is a main network device of the terminal device, the NR network device is an auxiliary network device of the terminal device, and the terminal device is in the first state at the moment. Then, the terminal device releases the connection between the terminal device and the NR network device (or, the terminal device releases the NR SCG connection). According to the above-mentioned regulations, when the terminal device is in the RRC connected state, the 5G icon can be displayed only in the EN-DC scenario, otherwise, only the 4G icon can be displayed. After the connection of the NR network device is released, the terminal device is no longer in the EN-DC scenario, but only in the scenario of single connection with the LTE network device, so if the above specification is met, the terminal device should display the 4G icon, that is, the terminal device is in the second state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the second state from the first state. This situation can be considered as the terminal device entering state 5 described in table 3 from state 1 described in table 3.

And in the fourth mode, the terminal device is in an RRC (radio resource control) connection state, wherein the terminal device is connected with the NR network device, the terminal device is also connected with the LTE network device, the LTE network device is a main network device of the terminal device, the NR network device is an auxiliary network device of the terminal device, and the terminal device is in the first state at the moment. Then, the terminal device is handed over to the first cell, and the first cell supports NSA, for example, the first cell is an LTE cell supporting NSA, but the terminal device is in an RRC connected state rather than in an RRC idle state in the first cell, and thus the terminal device is in the second state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the second state from the first state. This situation can be considered as the terminal device entering state 5 described in table 3 from state 1 described in table 3.

And in the fifth mode, the terminal device is in an RRC (radio resource control) connection state, wherein the terminal device is connected with the NR network device, the terminal device is also connected with the LTE network device, the LTE network device is a main network device of the terminal device, the NR network device is an auxiliary network device of the terminal device, and the terminal device is in the first state at the moment. After that, the terminal device is switched to the first cell, and the terminal device is not configured with the NR secondary network device in the first cell, so that the terminal device is in the second state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the second state from the first state. This situation can be considered as the terminal device entering state 5 described in table 3 from state 1 described in table 3.

And in a sixth mode, the terminal device is in an RRC connected state, wherein the terminal device is connected with the NR network device, the terminal device is further connected with the LTE network device, the LTE network device is a primary network device of the terminal device, the NR network device is a secondary network device of the terminal device, and the terminal device is in the first state at this time. Thereafter, the terminal device is handed over to the first cell, and the first cell is not an NR cell, and thus, the terminal device is in the second state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the second state from the first state. This situation can be considered as the terminal device entering state 5 described in table 3 from state 1 described in table 3.

And in a seventh mode, the terminal device is in an RRC connected state, wherein the terminal device is connected to the NR network device, the terminal device is further connected to the LTE network device, the LTE network device is a primary network device of the terminal device, the NR network device is a secondary network device of the terminal device, and at this time, the terminal device is in the first state. Then, if a link failure occurs in the terminal device (for example, an RLF event occurs), after the link failure occurs, the terminal device enters an RRC idle state, and reselects or selects a first cell through the cell, where the first cell does not support NSA, for example, the first cell is an LTE cell that does not support NSA, and thus the terminal device is in a second state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the second state from the first state. This situation can be seen as the terminal device entering state 6 described in table 3 from state 1 described in table 3.

Alternatively, table 3 may also be referenced, as an example of several states of the terminal device. Table 3 includes a first state and a second state, the first state including state 1, state 2, state 3 and state 4, and the second state including state 5 and state 6, i.e., state 1, state 2, state 3 or state 4 are all considered the first state and state 5 or state 6 are all considered the second state. The terminal device may be switched from the first state to the second state, or may be switched from the second state to the first state, or the terminal device may also be switched among several states included in the second state. If table 2 is applied, if the terminal device enters the second state shown in table 3 from state 3 or state 4 shown in table 3, the terminal device does not start the timer, i.e., these cases are not considered as entering the second state from the first state in the embodiment of the present application; if table 3 is applied, the terminal device starts the timer if the terminal device enters the second state shown in table 3 from state 3 or state 4 shown in table 3, that is, the terminal device enters the second state from the first state in the embodiment of the present application.

TABLE 3

Several implementations of the terminal device entering the second state from the first state are described below with reference to table 3. The difference between table 3 and table 2 is that table 3 adds states 3 and 4 in the first state, so that the state transition process corresponding to table 3 intersects with the state transition process corresponding to table 2. For example, table 3 may also correspond to the above-mentioned modes one to seven, and thus is not described herein again. Several implementations are described below as state transitions not included in table 2.

In the eighth mode, the terminal device is in an RRC idle state and resides in the first cell, and the first cell is an NR cell, and at this time, the terminal device is in the first state. Then, the terminal device reselects to the second cell through the cell, where the second cell is not an NR cell, and the second cell does not support NSA, for example, the second cell is an LTE cell that does not support NSA, and thus, the terminal device may be in the second state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the second state from the first state. This situation can be seen as the terminal device entering state 6 described in table 3 from state 3 described in table 3.

In the ninth mode, the terminal device is in an RRC connected state, where the terminal device is connected only to the NR network device, and at this time, the terminal device is in the first state. And then, the terminal equipment is switched to a first cell, wherein the first cell is an LTE cell. When the terminal device initially enters the RRC connected state, even if the first cell can support NSA, the first cell may not configure the NR secondary network device for the terminal device immediately, and thus the terminal device may be in the second state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the second state from the first state. This situation can be seen as the terminal device entering state 5 described in table 3 from state 4 described in table 3.

In the tenth mode, the terminal device is in an RRC connected state, where the terminal device is connected to the LTE network device and the NR network device, the NR network device is a primary network device of the terminal device, the LTE network device is a secondary network device of the terminal device, and the terminal device is in the first state at this time. And then, the terminal equipment is switched to a first cell, wherein the first cell is an LTE cell. When the terminal device initially enters the RRC connected state, even if the first cell can support NSA, the first cell may not configure the NR secondary network device for the terminal device immediately, and thus the terminal device may be in the second state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the second state from the first state. This situation can be seen as the terminal device entering state 5 described in table 3 from state 4 described in table 3.

In the eleventh mode, the terminal device is in an RRC connected state, where the terminal device is connected to the LTE network device and the NR network device, the NR network device is a primary network device of the terminal device, the LTE network device is a secondary network device of the terminal device, and the terminal device is in the first state at this time. After that, the terminal device has a link failure (for example, a Radio Link Failure (RLF) event occurs), and after the link failure occurs, the terminal device enters an RRC idle state and reselects or selects a first cell through the cell, where the first cell is an LTE cell and does not support NSA, and thus the terminal device is in the second state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the second state from the first state. This situation can be seen as the terminal device entering state 6 described in table 3 from state 4 described in table 3.

In a twelfth mode, the terminal device is in an RRC connected state, where the terminal device is only connected to the NR network device, and at this time, the terminal device is in the first state. After that, the terminal device has a link failure (for example, a Radio Link Failure (RLF) event occurs), and after the link failure occurs, the terminal device enters an RRC idle state and reselects or selects a first cell through the cell, where the first cell is an LTE cell and does not support NSA, and thus the terminal device is in the second state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the second state from the first state. This situation can be seen as the terminal device entering state 6 described in table 3 from state 4 described in table 3.

Or, in addition to the several implementation manners described above, the terminal device may also have other implementation manners when entering the second state from the first state, and this embodiment of the application is not limited.

Under the condition that the terminal device enters the second state from the first state, the embodiment of the application can enable the terminal device to start a timer, and during the running period of the timer, the terminal device can keep displaying the first icon. That is, the terminal device can keep continuing to display the first icon by starting the timer without switching to the 4G icon (a second icon described later). Therefore, the process of switching the displayed icons by the terminal equipment is reduced, the power consumption of the terminal equipment is reduced, and the experience is better for the user.

S33, if the terminal device enters the first state from the second state before the timer expires, the terminal device stops running the timer.

For example, table 2 may be applied, and several implementations of entering the first state from the second state by the terminal device are described below with reference to table 2.

In the mode a, the terminal device is connected with the NR network device, the terminal device is also connected with the LTE network device, the LTE network device is a main network device, and the NR network device is an auxiliary network device. For example, initially, the terminal device does not establish a connection with the NR network device, for example, the terminal device is in state 5 of table 3, and only the LTE network device is connected, and at this time, the terminal device is in the second state. And then, the terminal equipment establishes connection with the NR network equipment, namely the terminal equipment is in the first state when the NR auxiliary network equipment is connected. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the first state from the second state. This situation can be considered as the terminal device entering state 1 described in table 3 from state 5 described in table 2.

And b, the terminal equipment enters an RRC idle state from the RRC connected state, and resides in the first cell after entering the RRC idle state, and the first cell supports NSA. For example, the terminal device may initially connect to only the LTE network device, or the terminal device may connect to two LTE network devices, and the terminal device is in the second state. Thereafter, the terminal device enters an RRC idle state, and the first cell supports NSA, so the terminal device is in the first state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the first state from the second state. This situation can be seen as the terminal device entering state 2 described in table 2 from state 5 described in table 2.

And in the mode c, the terminal equipment is in an RRC (radio resource control) connected state, after a link failure occurs, the terminal equipment enters an RRC idle state and is reselected or selected to a first cell through the cell, the first cell is an LTE (long term evolution) cell, and the first cell supports NSA (non-NSA). For example, the terminal device may initially connect to only the LTE network device, or the terminal device may connect to two LTE network devices, and the terminal device is in the second state. After that, the terminal device has a link failure (for example, an RLF event occurs), and after the link failure occurs, the terminal device enters an RRC idle state and selects a first cell through cell reselection or cell selection, where the first cell supports NSA, so that the terminal device is in the first state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the first state from the second state. If the second cell is an LTE cell, this situation may be considered that the terminal device enters state 2 described in table 2 from state 5 described in table 2.

In the mode d, the terminal device is in an RRC idle state in the first cell, and the first cell is not an NR cell and does not support NSA, and at this time, the terminal device is in the second state. And then, the terminal equipment reselects or selects a second cell through the cell, the second cell is an LTE cell, and the second cell supports NSA, so that the terminal equipment is in the first state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the first state from the second state. This situation can be seen as the terminal device entering state 2 described in table 2 from state 6 described in table 2.

Alternatively, table 3 may also be applied, and several implementation manners of entering the first state from the second state by the terminal device are described below with reference to table 3. The difference between table 3 and table 2 is that table 3 adds states 3 and 4 in the first state, so that the state transition process corresponding to table 3 intersects with the state transition process corresponding to table 2. For example, table 3 may also correspond to the aforementioned manner a, manner b, and manner d, and thus is not described herein again. Several implementations are described below as state transitions not included in table 2. In addition, if table 2 is applied, if the terminal device enters state 3 or state 4 shown in table 3 from the second state shown in table 3, the terminal device does not stop running the timer, i.e., these cases are not considered as entering the first state from the second state in the embodiment of the present application; if table 3 is applied, the terminal device may stop running the timer if the terminal device enters state 3 or state 4 shown in table 3 from the second state shown in table 3, that is, these cases are considered as the case where the terminal device enters the first state from the second state in the embodiment of the present application.

And e, the terminal equipment is in an RRC connected state, and after a link failure occurs, the terminal equipment enters an RRC idle state and is reselected or selected to a first cell through the cell, wherein the first cell is an NR cell. For example, the terminal device may initially connect to only the LTE network device, or the terminal device may connect to two LTE network devices, and the terminal device is in the second state. After that, the terminal device has a link failure (for example, an RLF event occurs), and after the link failure occurs, the terminal device enters an RRC idle state and reselects or selects a first cell through a cell, where the first cell is an NR cell, and thus the terminal device is in the first state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the first state from the second state. This situation can be seen as the terminal device entering state 3 described in table 3 from state 5 described in table 3.

In the mode f, the terminal device is in an RRC idle state in the first cell, and the first cell is not an NR cell, and at this time, the terminal device is in the second state. And then, the terminal equipment reselects or selects a second cell through the cell, and the second cell is an NR cell, so that the terminal equipment is in the first state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the first state from the second state. This situation can be seen as the terminal device entering state 3 described in table 3 from state 6 described in table 3.

And in the mode g, the terminal equipment is in an RRC (radio resource control) connection state in the first cell and only connected with the LTE (long term evolution) network equipment, and at the moment, the terminal equipment is in a second state. And then, the terminal equipment is switched to a second cell, and the second cell is an NR cell, so that the terminal equipment is in the first state. This situation can therefore be regarded as the terminal device entering the first state from the second state. This situation can be seen as the terminal device entering state 4 described in table 3 from state 5 described in table 3.

Or, in addition to the several implementation manners described above, the terminal device may also have other implementation manners when entering the first state from the second state, and this embodiment of the application is not limited.

When the terminal device is in the first state, the first icon should be displayed. If the timer continues to run at this time, the running time of the timer is consumed equivalently. Therefore, in this embodiment of the application, if the terminal device enters the first state from the second state, the terminal device stops running the timer, and because the terminal device is in the first state, the terminal device will still display the first icon, that is, the stop of the timer does not affect the terminal device to display the first icon. In addition, after the terminal device stops running the timer, the timer may be reset, and resetting the timer may include recovering a value of the timer before running. For example, if the timer counts in a positive manner from 0, resetting the timer means clearing the timer, or if the timer counts in a negative manner from a maximum value, resetting the timer means setting the value of the timer to the maximum value. The maximum value may be a timing duration of the timer, for example, 30 seconds, or may be another value. After that, if the terminal device enters the first state from the second state again, the terminal device may restart the timer to continue displaying the first icon.

And S34, when the timer is over, the terminal equipment displays a second icon. For example, when the timer times out, the terminal device stops displaying the first icon and displays the second icon; or, when the timer times out, the terminal device displays the second icon, and at this time, the first icon may also be continuously displayed.

Where S34 and S33 are two parallel steps, it can be understood that when the timer is in the running state, if the terminal device enters the first state from the second state, S33 is performed, and before the timer expires, if the terminal device remains in the second state, then when the timer expires, S34 is performed. Thus, both S33 and S34 may be considered optional steps, or S34 may be considered optional steps. S34 is indicated by a dashed line in fig. 3.

The second icon is used for indicating that the terminal equipment can provide the service corresponding to the LTE communication system. For example, the second icon is the 4G icon described above. For example, referring to fig. 4, "4G" displayed in the upper left corner of the display interface of the mobile phone in fig. 4 is an example of the second icon.

For example, referring to fig. 5, a schematic diagram of the operation of the timer is shown. In the scenario shown in fig. 5, the terminal device is first in the first state (i.e. 5G state shown in fig. 5), and the terminal device displays the first icon. Then, the terminal device enters the second state (the 4G state shown in fig. 5) from the first state, and when the terminal device enters the second state from the first state, the terminal device starts the timer, and the terminal device continues to display the first icon. And in the running time of the timer, the terminal equipment enters the first state from the second state again, and then when the terminal equipment enters the first state from the second state, the terminal equipment stops running the timer, and in addition, the terminal equipment can also reset the timer, and at the moment, the terminal equipment continues to display the first icon. Before the timer is overtime, the terminal equipment keeps the second state, the first state is not entered from the second state, and then when the timer is overtime, the terminal equipment displays the second icon.

As can be seen from comparison with fig. 2, if the scenario shown in fig. 2 is adopted, when the terminal device enters the 5G state from the 4G state, the terminal 5G identifier display timer continues to operate, and when the terminal device is in the 5G state, the operation of the terminal 5G identifier display timer consumes the operation time. When the timer times out, if the terminal device is in the 4G state, the 4G icon needs to be displayed, and after that, the terminal device may enter the 5G state again, and the terminal device switches to display the 5G icon again, thereby still resulting in frequent switching of icons. However, if the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application is adopted, as shown in fig. 5, the terminal device stops running the timer as long as it enters the first state from the second state, so that the running of the timer is more effective. And if the terminal equipment enters the second state from the first state, the timer is started again, so that the timer can cover more time of the terminal equipment in the second state, the terminal equipment is likely to enter the first state after being in the second state for a period of time, and the time of the terminal equipment in the second state can be covered by the running time of the timer, so that the terminal equipment does not need to switch the icon in the period, the switching process of the icon is reduced, and the power consumption of the terminal equipment is saved. If the terminal equipment does not enter the first state from the second state before the timer is overtime, the terminal equipment may be indicated to stay in the second state for a long time.

In order to solve the same technical problem, the present embodiment provides a second communication method, please refer to fig. 6, which is a flowchart of the method.

And S61, when the terminal device is in the first state, the terminal device displays the first icon.

For more about S61, refer to the description of S31 in the embodiment shown in fig. 3.

And S62, when the timer is not operated and the terminal equipment enters the second state from the first state, the terminal equipment starts the timer.

For more about S62, refer to the description of S32 in the embodiment shown in fig. 3.

And S63, when the timer is in the running state and the terminal equipment enters the second state from the first state, the terminal equipment restarts the timer to continue displaying the first icon. Wherein, S62 and S63 may be two parallel manners, and not both may be executed, but one of the steps is selectively executed under the corresponding condition. Restarting the timer may include stopping running the timer, resetting the timer, and starting the timer. With respect to the procedure for resetting the timer, reference may be made to the related description of the embodiment shown in fig. 3.

The terminal device starts a timer when entering the second state from the first state, and before the timer expires, the terminal device may enter the first state from the second state again. With regard to the situation in which the terminal device is considered to enter the first state from the second state, reference may be made to the description of the embodiment shown in fig. 3 with respect to S33.

After entering the first state, the terminal device is likely to enter the second state again from the first state before the timer expires. Then, if the terminal device enters the second state again from the first state, the terminal device restarts the timer, so that the running time of the timer can cover the state of the terminal device for a longer time as much as possible. Because the terminal device has restarted the timer, the terminal device will continue to display the first icon.

It can be understood that, each time the terminal device enters the second state from the first state, if the timer is not running, the timer is started, and if the timer is in the running state, the timer is restarted, so that the running of the timer is more effective, and more time of the terminal device being in the second state can be covered.

And S64, when the timer is overtime, the terminal equipment displays an icon according to the state of the terminal equipment. Where S64 is an optional step, indicated by the dashed line in fig. 6.

For example, when the timer times out, if the terminal device is in the second state, the second icon is displayed, or if the terminal device is in the first state, the first icon is displayed.

For example, referring to fig. 7, a schematic diagram of the operation of the timer is shown. In the scenario shown in fig. 7, the terminal device is first in the first state (i.e., the 5G state shown in fig. 7), and the terminal device displays the first icon. Then, the terminal device enters the second state (the 4G state shown in fig. 7) from the first state, for example, when the timer is not running, the terminal device starts the timer and continues to display the first icon when the terminal device enters the second state from the first state. During the running time of the timer, the terminal device enters the first state from the second state again. During the running time of the timer, for example, the terminal device enters the second state from the first state again, when the terminal device enters the second state from the first state, the terminal device restarts the timer, and at this time, the terminal device continues to display the first icon. When the timer times out, the terminal device displays the first icon because the terminal device is in the first state.

For another example, refer to fig. 8, which is another schematic diagram of the operation of the timer. In the scenario shown in fig. 8, the terminal device is first in the first state (i.e. the 5G state shown in fig. 8), and the terminal device displays the first icon. Then, the terminal device enters the second state (the 4G state shown in fig. 8) from the first state, for example, when the timer is not running, the terminal device starts the timer and continues to display the first icon when the terminal device enters the second state from the first state. During the running time of the timer, the terminal device enters the first state from the second state again. During the running time of the timer, for example, the terminal device enters the second state from the first state again, when the terminal device enters the second state from the first state, the terminal device restarts the timer, and at this time, the terminal device continues to display the first icon. When the timer times out, the terminal device displays the second icon because the terminal device is in the second state.

As can be seen from comparison with fig. 2, if the scenario shown in fig. 2 is adopted, when the terminal device enters the 5G state from the 4G state, the terminal 5G identifier display timer continues to operate, and when the terminal device is in the 5G state, the operation of the terminal 5G identifier display timer consumes the operation time. When the timer times out, if the terminal device is in the 4G state, the 4G icon needs to be displayed, and after that, the terminal device may enter the 5G state again, and the terminal device switches to display the 5G icon again, thereby still resulting in frequent switching of icons. However, if the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application is adopted, as shown in fig. 7 or fig. 8, as long as the terminal device enters the second state from the first state, the timer is started or restarted, so that the timer can cover more time of the terminal device in the second state, and it is likely that the terminal device enters the first state after being in the second state for a period of time, and the time of the terminal device in the second state can be covered by the running time of the timer, the terminal device does not need to switch the icon during the period, thereby reducing the switching process of the icon and saving the power consumption of the terminal device.

In the embodiment of the application, if the terminal device enters the second state from the first state, the terminal device should display the 4G icon in the second state, but a timer is set in the embodiment of the application, and the timer is started or restarted at this time, so that the terminal device keeps displaying the first icon, and frequent switching of the icons is reduced. In addition, the timer is reasonably utilized in this way, and the switching process of the icons is reduced through the operation of the timer.

The following describes an apparatus for implementing the above method in the embodiment of the present application with reference to the drawings. Therefore, the above contents can be used in the subsequent embodiments, and the repeated contents are not repeated.

Fig. 9 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 900 according to an embodiment of the present application. Exemplarily, the communication apparatus 900 is, for example, a terminal device 900. Illustratively, the terminal device 900 is, for example, the terminal device described in the embodiment shown in fig. 3.

The terminal device 900 includes a display module 920 and a processing module 910, and optionally, the terminal device 900 may further include a transceiver module 930. Illustratively, the terminal device 900 may be a terminal device, and may also be a chip applied in the terminal device or other combined devices, components, etc. having the above terminal device functions. When the terminal device 900 is a terminal device, the display module 920 may be a display, the display may include a display screen and display circuits, etc., the processing module 910 may be one or more processors (or processing circuits), such as a baseband processor, which may include one or more Central Processing Units (CPUs), the transceiving module 930 may include a transmitting module and a receiving module, the transmitting module may be a transmitter, the transmitter may include an antenna and radio frequency circuits, etc., the receiving module may be a receiver, the receiver may include an antenna and radio frequency circuits, etc., wherein the transmitter and the receiver may be different modules, respectively, or the transmitter and the receiver may be disposed in the same functional module, which may be called a transceiver, or the transmitting module and the receiving module may be different modules, alternatively, the transmitting module and the receiving module may be disposed in the same functional module, which may be referred to as a transceiver module. When the terminal device 900 is a component having the above terminal device functions, the display module 920 may be a display, the display may include a display screen and a display circuit, etc., the processing module 910 may be a processor (or a processing circuit), such as a baseband processor, and the transceiver module 930 may be a radio frequency unit, where the transmitter and the receiver may be different modules respectively, or the transmitter and the receiver may be disposed in the same functional module, which may be a radio frequency unit. When the terminal device 900 is a chip system, the display module 920 may be a display circuit of a chip (e.g., a baseband chip), the transmitting module may be an output interface of the chip (e.g., a baseband chip), the receiving module may be an input interface of the chip, both the output interface and the input interface of the chip can implement the function of the transceiver module 930 (or, if the input interface and the output interface may be the same interface, the transmitting module and the receiving module are considered to be the same functional module, which is the transceiver module 930, i.e., the input-output interface of the chip), the processing module 910 may be a processor (or, a processing circuit) of the chip system, and the processor may include one or more CPUs. It is to be understood that the processing module 910 in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented by a processor or a processor-related circuit component (or, a processing circuit), and the transceiver module 930 may be implemented by a transceiver (e.g., including a receiver and a transmitter) or a transceiver-related circuit component.

For example, the processing module 910 may be used to perform all operations performed by the terminal device in the embodiment shown in fig. 3 except for display operations and transceiving operations, e.g., S32 and S33, and/or other processes for supporting the techniques described herein. Display module 920 may be used to perform all display operations performed by the terminal device in the embodiment shown in fig. 3, e.g., S31 and S34, and/or other processes for supporting the techniques described herein. Transceiving module 930 may be configured to perform all transceiving operations performed by a terminal device in the embodiment illustrated in fig. 3, such as operations to receive system information, and/or other processes to support the techniques described herein.

The display module 920 is configured to display a first icon when the terminal device 900 is in the first state, where the first icon is used to indicate that the terminal device 900 can provide a service corresponding to the NR communication system;

a processing module 910, configured to start a timer when the terminal device 900 enters a second state from a first state, where before the timer expires, the terminal device 900 keeps displaying the first icon;

the processing module 910 is further configured to stop running the timer if the terminal device 900 enters the first state from the second state before the timer expires.

As an optional implementation manner, the terminal device 900 is in the first state, and includes:

the terminal device 900 is in an RRC connected state, the terminal device 900 is connected to an NR network device, and the terminal device 900 is further connected to an LTE network device, where the LTE network device is a primary network device and the NR network device is a secondary network device; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 is in an RRC idle state, the terminal device 900 resides in a first cell, and the first cell supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 is in an RRC idle state, and the terminal device 900 resides in a first cell, where the first cell is an NR cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 is in an RRC connected state, and the terminal device 900 is connected only with the NR network device; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 is in an RRC connected state, the terminal device 900 is connected to an NR network device, and the terminal device 900 is further connected to an LTE network device, where the NR network device is a primary network device and the LTE network device is a secondary network device.

As an optional implementation, the first cell supports NSA, including:

a transceiving module 930 configured to receive system information in the first cell, where the system information includes an NSA indication, and the NSA indication indicates that the first cell supports NSA.

As an optional implementation manner, the terminal device 900 is in the second state, and includes:

the terminal device 900 is in an RRC connected state, and the terminal device 900 is connected only to the LTE network device;

the terminal device 900 is in an RRC idle state, and the terminal device 900 resides in a second cell, where the second cell is an LTE cell and does not support NSA.

As an optional implementation manner, the processing module 910 is further configured to stop displaying the first icon when the timer expires, and display a second icon, where the second icon is used to indicate that the terminal device 900 can provide a service corresponding to the LTE communication system.

As an optional implementation, the processing module 910 is further configured to reset the timer.

As an alternative implementation, the terminal device 900 enters the second state from the first state, including:

the terminal device 900 enters an RRC connected state from an RRC idle state, wherein the terminal device 900 resides in the first cell when in the RRC idle state, and the first cell supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 reselects to a second cell through the cell in an RRC idle state, where the terminal device 900 resides in a first cell in the RRC idle state, the first cell supports NSA, and the second cell is not an NR cell and does not support NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 reselects to a second cell through a cell in an RRC idle state, where the terminal device 900 resides in the first cell in the RRC idle state, the first cell is an NR cell, and the second cell is not an NR cell and does not support NSA.

the terminal device 900 is switched to a first cell in an RRC connected state, where the terminal device 900 is only connected to an NR network device, and the first cell is an LTE cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 is switched to a first cell in an RRC connected state, where the terminal device 900 is connected to an LTE network device and an NR network device, the NR network device is a primary network device, the LTE network device is a secondary network device, and the first cell is an LTE cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 is in an RRC connected state, enters an RRC idle state after a link failure occurs, and reselects or selects a first cell through a cell, where the terminal device 900 connects an LTE network device and an NR network device when in the RRC connected state, the NR network device is a primary network device, the LTE network device is a secondary network device, the first cell is an LTE cell, and the first cell does not support NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 is in an RRC connected state, enters an RRC idle state after a link failure occurs, and reselects or selects a first cell through a cell, where the terminal device 900 is in the RRC connected state and only connected to an NR network device, the first cell is an LTE cell, and the first cell does not support NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 is in an RRC connected state, and releases the connection between the terminal device 900 and the NR network device, where the terminal device 900 connects an LTE network device and the NR network device, the LTE network device is a primary network device, and the NR network device is a secondary network device; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 is switched to a first cell in an RRC connected state, where the terminal device 900 is connected to an NR network device in the RRC connected state, the terminal device 900 is further connected to an LTE network device, the LTE network device is a primary network device, the NR network device is a secondary network device, and the first cell supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 is switched to a first cell in an RRC connected state, where the terminal device 900 is connected to an NR network device when in the RRC connected state, the terminal device 900 is further connected to an LTE network device, the LTE network device is a primary network device, the NR network device is a secondary network device, and the terminal device 900 is not configured with an NR secondary network device in the first cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 is switched to a first cell in an RRC connected state, where the terminal device 900 is connected to an NR network device in the RRC connected state, the terminal device 900 is further connected to an LTE network device, the LTE network device is a primary network device, the NR network device is a secondary network device, and the first cell is not an NR cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 is in an RRC connected state, enters an RRC idle state after a link failure occurs, and reselects or selects a first cell through a cell, where when the terminal device 900 is in the RRC connected state, the terminal device 900 is connected to an NR network device, the terminal device 900 is further connected to an LTE network device, the LTE network device is a primary network device, the NR network device is a secondary network device, and the first cell does not support NSA.

As an optional implementation, the entering of the terminal device 900 from the second state to the first state includes:

the terminal device 900 is connected with the NR network device, and the terminal device 900 is further connected with an LTE network device, where the LTE network device is a primary network device and the NR network device is a secondary network device; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 enters an RRC idle state from an RRC connected state, and the terminal device 900 resides in a first cell after entering the RRC idle state, and the first cell supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 is in an RRC connected state, and reselects or selects a first cell through a cell after a link failure occurs, where the first cell is an LTE cell and supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 is in an RRC connected state, and reselects or selects a first cell through a cell after a link failure occurs, where the first cell is an NR cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

after the terminal device 900 is in an RRC idle state in a first cell, the terminal device 900 performs cell reselection or selects a second cell, where the first cell is not an NR cell and does not support NSA, the second cell is an LTE cell, and the second cell supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

after the terminal device 900 is in an RRC idle state in a first cell, the terminal device 900 performs cell reselection or selects a second cell, where the first cell is not an NR cell and does not support NSA, and the second cell is an NR cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 900 is in an RRC connected state, and only connects to the LTE network device, and then the terminal device 900 is switched to a second cell through the cell, where the second cell is an NR cell.

For other functions that can be implemented by the terminal device 900, reference may be made to the related description of the embodiment shown in fig. 3, and details are not repeated.

Fig. 10 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 1000 according to an embodiment of the present application. Exemplarily, the communication apparatus 1000 is, for example, a terminal device 1000. Illustratively, the terminal device 1000 is, for example, the terminal device described in the embodiment shown in fig. 6.

The terminal device 1000 includes a display module 1020 and a processing module 1010, and optionally, the terminal device 1000 may further include a transceiver module 1030. Illustratively, the terminal device 1000 may be a terminal device, and may also be a chip applied in the terminal device or other combined devices, components, and the like having the functions of the terminal device. Regarding the implementation of the display module 1020, reference may be made to the description of the display module 920, regarding the implementation of the processing module 1010, regarding the processing module 910, regarding the implementation of the transceiver module 1030, and regarding the transceiver module 930.

For example, the processing module 1010 may be used to perform all operations performed by the terminal device in the embodiment shown in fig. 6, except for display operations, such as S62 and S63, and/or other processes for supporting the techniques described herein. Display module 1020 may be used to perform all display operations performed by the terminal device in the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, such as S61 and S64, and/or other processes for supporting the techniques described herein. Transceiver module 1030 may be used to perform all transceiving operations performed by a terminal device in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 6, such as operations to receive system information, and/or other processes to support the techniques described herein.

The display module 1020 is configured to display a first icon when the terminal device 1000 is in the first state, where the first icon is used to indicate that the terminal device 1000 can provide a service corresponding to the NR communication system;

a processing module 1010, configured to start a timer when the timer is not running and the terminal device 1000 enters a second state from a first state, where during the running of the timer, the terminal device 1000 keeps displaying the first icon;

or, the processing module 1010 is configured to restart the timer when the timer is in the running state and the terminal device 1000 enters the second state from the first state.

As an alternative embodiment, the processing module 1010 is configured to restart the timer by:

stopping running the timer;

resetting the timer;

the timer is started.

As an alternative embodiment, the display module 1020 is further configured to:

and when the timer is overtime, if the terminal device 1000 is in the second state, displaying the second icon, or if the terminal device 1000 is in the first state, displaying the first icon.

As an optional implementation manner, the terminal device 1000 in the first state includes:

the terminal device 1000 is in an RRC connected state, the terminal device 1000 is connected to an NR network device, and the terminal device 1000 is further connected to an LTE network device, where the LTE network device is a primary network device and the NR network device is a secondary network device; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 1000 is in an RRC idle state, the terminal device 1000 resides in a first cell, and the first cell supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 1000 is in an RRC idle state, and the terminal device 1000 resides in a first cell, and the first cell is an NR cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 1000 is in an RRC connected state, and the terminal device 1000 is connected only to the NR network device; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 1000 is in an RRC connected state, the terminal device 1000 is connected to an NR network device, and the terminal device 1000 is further connected to an LTE network device, where the NR network device is a primary network device and the LTE network device is a secondary network device.

As an optional implementation, the first cell supports NSA, including:

a transceiver module 1030, configured to receive system information in the first cell, where the system information includes an NSA indication, and the NSA indication is used to indicate that the first cell supports NSA.

As an optional implementation manner, the terminal device 1000 is in the second state, and includes:

the terminal device 1000 is in an RRC connected state, and the terminal device 1000 is connected only to the LTE network device;

the terminal device 1000 is in an RRC idle state, and the terminal device 1000 resides in a second cell, where the second cell is an LTE cell and does not support NSA.

As an optional implementation, the terminal device 1000 enters the second state from the first state, and includes:

the terminal device 1000 enters an RRC connected state from an RRC idle state, wherein the terminal device 1000 resides in the first cell when in the RRC idle state, and the first cell supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 1000 reselects a second cell through the cell in an RRC idle state, where the terminal device 1000 resides in a first cell in the RRC idle state, the first cell supports NSA, and the second cell is not an NR cell and does not support NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 1000 reselects to a second cell through a cell in an RRC idle state, where the terminal device 1000 resides in the first cell in the RRC idle state, the first cell is an NR cell, and the second cell is not an NR cell and does not support NSA.

the terminal device 1000 is switched to a first cell in an RRC connected state, where the terminal device 1000 is only connected to an NR network device, and the first cell is an LTE cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 1000 is switched to a first cell in an RRC connected state, where the terminal device 1000 is connected to an LTE network device and an NR network device, the NR network device is a primary network device, the LTE network device is a secondary network device, and the first cell is an LTE cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 1000 is in an RRC connected state, enters an RRC idle state after a link failure occurs, and reselects or selects a first cell through a cell, where the terminal device 1000 connects an LTE network device and an NR network device when in the RRC connected state, the NR network device is a primary network device, the LTE network device is a secondary network device, the first cell is an LTE cell, and the first cell does not support NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 1000 is in an RRC connected state, enters an RRC idle state after a link failure occurs, and reselects or selects a first cell through a cell, where the terminal device 1000 is only connected to an NR network device when in the RRC connected state, the first cell is an LTE cell, and the first cell does not support NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 1000 is in an RRC connected state, and releases a connection between the terminal device 1000 and an NR network device, where the terminal device 1000 connects an LTE network device and the NR network device, the LTE network device is a primary network device, and the NR network device is a secondary network device; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 1000 is switched to a first cell in an RRC connected state, where the terminal device 1000 is connected to an NR network device when in the RRC connected state, the terminal device 1000 is further connected to an LTE network device, the LTE network device is a primary network device, the NR network device is a secondary network device, and the first cell supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 1000 is switched to a first cell in an RRC connected state, where the terminal device 1000 is connected to an NR network device when in the RRC connected state, the terminal device 1000 is further connected to an LTE network device, the LTE network device is a primary network device, the NR network device is a secondary network device, and the terminal device 1000 is not configured with the NR secondary network device in the first cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 1000 is switched to a first cell in an RRC connected state, where the terminal device 1000 is connected to an NR network device when in the RRC connected state, the terminal device 1000 is further connected to an LTE network device, the LTE network device is a primary network device, the NR network device is a secondary network device, and the first cell is not an NR cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the terminal device 1000 is in an RRC connected state, enters an RRC idle state after a link failure occurs, and reselects or selects a first cell through a cell, where when the terminal device 1000 is in the RRC connected state, there is a connection with an NR network device, and the terminal device 1000 is further connected with an LTE network device, the LTE network device is a primary network device, the NR network device is a secondary network device, and the first cell does not support NSA.

For other functions that can be implemented by the terminal device 1000, reference may be made to the related description of the embodiment shown in fig. 6, and details are not repeated.

The embodiment of the application also provides a communication device, and the communication device can be terminal equipment or a circuit. The communication device may be configured to perform the actions performed by the terminal device in the above-described method embodiments.

When the communication apparatus is a terminal device, fig. 11 shows a simplified structural diagram of the terminal device. For easy understanding and illustration, in fig. 11, the terminal device is exemplified by a mobile phone. As shown in fig. 11, the terminal device includes a processor, a memory, a radio frequency circuit, an antenna, and an input-output device. The processor is mainly used for processing communication protocols and communication data, controlling the terminal equipment, executing software programs, processing data of the software programs and the like. The memory is used primarily for storing software programs and data. The radio frequency circuit is mainly used for converting baseband signals and radio frequency signals and processing the radio frequency signals. The antenna is mainly used for receiving and transmitting radio frequency signals in the form of electromagnetic waves. Input and output devices, such as touch screens, display screens, keyboards, etc., are used primarily for receiving data input by a user and for outputting data to the user. It should be noted that some kinds of terminal devices may not have input/output devices.

When data needs to be sent, the processor performs baseband processing on the data to be sent and outputs baseband signals to the radio frequency circuit, and the radio frequency circuit performs radio frequency processing on the baseband signals and sends the radio frequency signals to the outside in the form of electromagnetic waves through the antenna. When data is sent to the terminal equipment, the radio frequency circuit receives radio frequency signals through the antenna, converts the radio frequency signals into baseband signals and outputs the baseband signals to the processor, and the processor converts the baseband signals into the data and processes the data. For ease of illustration, only one memory and processor are shown in FIG. 11. In an actual end device product, there may be one or more processors and one or more memories. The memory may also be referred to as a storage medium or a storage device, etc. The memory may be provided independently of the processor, or may be integrated with the processor, which is not limited in this embodiment.

In the embodiment of the present application, an antenna and a radio frequency circuit having a transceiving function may be regarded as a transceiving unit of a terminal device (the transceiving unit may be a functional unit, and the functional unit is capable of implementing a transmitting function and a receiving function, or the transceiving unit may also include two functional units, which are respectively a receiving unit capable of implementing a receiving function and a transmitting unit capable of implementing a transmitting function), and a processor having a processing function may be regarded as a processing unit of the terminal device. As shown in fig. 13, the terminal device includes a display unit 1130, a transceiving unit 1110, and a processing unit 1120. A transceiver unit may also be referred to as a transceiver, a transceiving device, etc. A processing unit may also be referred to as a processor, a processing board, a processing module, a processing device, or the like. The display unit may also be referred to as a display or a display device. Optionally, a device in the transceiver 1110 for implementing a receiving function may be regarded as a receiving unit, and a device in the transceiver 1110 for implementing a transmitting function may be regarded as a transmitting unit, that is, the transceiver 1110 includes a receiving unit and a transmitting unit. A transceiver unit may also sometimes be referred to as a transceiver, transceiving circuitry, or the like. A receiving unit may also be referred to as a receiver, a receiving circuit, or the like. A transmitting unit may also sometimes be referred to as a transmitter, or a transmitting circuit, etc.

It should be understood that the transceiving unit 1110 may be configured to perform the transmitting operation and the receiving operation on the terminal device side in the embodiment shown in fig. 3, the processing unit 1120 may be configured to perform other operations on the terminal device side in the embodiment shown in fig. 3, and the display unit 1130 may be configured to perform the display operation on the terminal device side in the embodiment shown in fig. 3.

Alternatively, the transceiving unit 1110 may be configured to perform the transmitting operation and the receiving operation on the terminal device side in the embodiment shown in fig. 6, the processing unit 1120 is configured to perform other operations except the transceiving operation and the displaying operation on the terminal device in the embodiment shown in fig. 6, and the display unit 1130 is configured to perform the displaying operation on the terminal device side in the embodiment shown in fig. 6.

When the communication device is a chip-like device or circuit, the device may comprise a transceiver unit and a processing unit. The transceiver unit may be an input/output circuit and/or a communication interface; the processing unit is an integrated processor or microprocessor or integrated circuit.

When the communication device in this embodiment is a terminal device, reference may be made to the device shown in fig. 12. As an example, the device may perform functions similar to the processing module 910 of FIG. 9. For example, the processing module 910 in the above embodiments may be the processor 1210 in fig. 12, and performs the corresponding functions; the transceiver module 930 in the above embodiments may be the sending data processor 1220 and/or the receiving data processor 1230 in fig. 12, and performs corresponding functions. For another example, the processing module 1010 in the above embodiments may be the processor 1210 in fig. 12, and perform corresponding functions; the transceiver module 1030 in the above embodiments may be the transmit data processor 1220 and/or the receive data processor 1230 in fig. 12, and performs corresponding functions. Although fig. 12 shows a channel encoder and a channel decoder, it is understood that these blocks are not limitative and only illustrative to the present embodiment.

Fig. 13 shows another form of the present embodiment. The processing device 1300 includes modules such as a modulation subsystem, a central processing subsystem, and peripheral subsystems. The communication device in this embodiment may serve as a modulation subsystem therein. In particular, the modulation subsystem may include a processor 1303 and an interface 1304. The processor 1303 completes the functions of the processing module 910, and the interface 1304 completes the functions of the transceiver module 930. Alternatively, the processor 1303 completes the functions of the processing module 1010, and the interface 1304 completes the functions of the transceiver module 1030. As another variation, the modulation subsystem includes a memory 1306, a processor 1303 and a program stored in the memory 1306 and executable on the processor, and the processor 1303, when executing the program, implements the method on the terminal device side in the foregoing method embodiments. It should be noted that the memory 1306 may be non-volatile or volatile, and may be located inside the modulation subsystem or in the processing device 1300 as long as the memory 1306 can be connected to the processor 1303.

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

The various illustrative logical units and circuits described in this application may be implemented or operated upon by design of a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a digital signal processor and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a digital signal processor core, or any other similar configuration.

The steps of a method or algorithm described in the embodiments herein may be embodied directly in hardware, in a software element executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. The software cells may be stored in Random Access Memory (RAM), flash memory, read-only memory (ROM), EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, a hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. For example, a storage medium may be coupled to the processor such the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. In the alternative, the storage medium may be integral to the processor. The processor and the storage medium may reside in an ASIC.

These computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer implemented process such that the instructions which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide steps for implementing the functions specified in the flowchart flow or flows and/or block diagram block or blocks.

In one or more exemplary designs, the functions described in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination of the three. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored on or transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes both computer storage media and communication media that facilitate transfer of a computer program from one place to another. Storage media may be any available media that can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer. For example, such computer-readable media can include, but is not limited to, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium which can be used to carry or store program code in the form of instructions or data structures and which can be read by a general-purpose or special-purpose computer, or a general-purpose or special-purpose processor. Additionally, any connection is properly termed a computer-readable medium, and, thus, is included if the software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source over a coaxial cable, fiber optic computer, twisted pair, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), or wirelessly, e.g., infrared, radio, and microwave. Such discs (disks) and disks (discs) include compact disks, laser disks, optical disks, Digital Versatile Disks (DVDs), floppy disks and blu-ray disks, where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while disks usually reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above may also be included in the computer-readable medium.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that, in one or more of the examples described above, the functions described in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, the functions may be stored on or transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes both computer storage media and communication media including any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. A storage media may be any available media that can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer.

The above-mentioned embodiments are intended to illustrate the objects, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present application in further detail, and it should be understood that the above-mentioned embodiments are only specific embodiments of the present application, and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of the present application, and any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements and the like made on the basis of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application should be included in the scope of the embodiments of the present application. The foregoing description of the embodiments of the present application is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the teachings of the embodiments of the present application, and any modifications based on the disclosed teachings should be considered obvious to those skilled in the art, and the general principles described in the embodiments of the present application may be applied to other variations without departing from the inventive concept and scope of the present application. Thus, the disclosure of the embodiments of the present application is not intended to be limited to the embodiments and designs described, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles of the application and novel features disclosed.

Although the present application has been described in conjunction with specific features and embodiments thereof, it will be apparent that various modifications and combinations can be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the embodiments of the application. Accordingly, the specification and figures are merely exemplary of the present application as defined in the appended claims and are intended to cover any and all modifications, variations, combinations, or equivalents within the scope of the present application. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made in the present application without departing from the scope of the application. Thus, if such modifications and variations of the embodiments of the present application fall within the scope of the claims of the present application and their equivalents, the embodiments of the present application are intended to include such modifications and variations as well.

In combination with the above, the present application also provides the following embodiments:

embodiment 1, a communication method, comprising:

when the terminal equipment is in a first state, displaying a first icon, wherein the first icon is used for indicating that the terminal equipment can provide a service corresponding to the NR communication system;

starting a timer when the terminal equipment enters a second state from a first state, wherein the terminal equipment keeps displaying the first icon before the timer is overtime;

and if the terminal equipment enters the first state from the second state before the timer is overtime, stopping running the timer.

Embodiment 2, according to the method of embodiment 1, the terminal device being in the first state includes:

Embodiment 3, the method of embodiment 1, wherein the first cell supports NSA, comprising:

Embodiment 4, the method according to any of embodiments 1 to 3, wherein the terminal device is in the second state, and the method includes:

Embodiment 5, the method of any of embodiments 1-4, further comprising:

Embodiment 6, the method of any of embodiments 1-5, further comprising:

the timer is reset.

Embodiment 7 and the method according to any of embodiments 1 to 6, wherein the entering, by the terminal device, from the first state to the second state includes:

Embodiment 8 and the method according to any of embodiments 1 to 6, wherein the entering, by the terminal device, the second state from the first state includes:

Embodiment 9, and the method according to any of embodiments 1 to 8, wherein the entering, by the terminal device, the first state from the second state includes:

Embodiment 10, a communication method, comprising:

starting a timer when the timer is not operated and the terminal equipment enters a second state from a first state, wherein the terminal equipment keeps displaying the first icon during the operation of the timer;

or, when the timer is in a running state and the terminal device enters the second state from the first state, restarting the timer.

Embodiment 11, the method of embodiment 10, restarting the timer, comprising:

stopping running the timer;

resetting the timer;

the timer is started.

Embodiment 12, the method of embodiment 10 or embodiment 11, further comprising:

Embodiment 13, the method according to any of embodiments 10 to 12, wherein the terminal device is in the first state, and the method includes:

Embodiment 14, the method of embodiment 13, wherein the first cell supports NSA, comprising:

Embodiment 15 and the method according to any of embodiments 10 to 14, wherein the terminal device is in the second state, and the method includes:

Embodiment 16, and the method according to any of embodiments 10 to 15, wherein the entering, by the terminal device, from the first state to the second state includes:

Embodiment 17, and according to the method of any one of embodiments 10 to 15, the entering, by the terminal device, the second state from the first state includes:

Embodiment 18, a communication device, comprising:

a display module, configured to display a first icon when the communication apparatus is in a first state, where the first icon is used to indicate that the communication apparatus is capable of providing a service corresponding to the NR communication system;

the processing module is used for starting a timer when the communication device enters a second state from a first state, wherein the communication device keeps displaying the first icon before the timer is overtime;

the processing module is further configured to stop running the timer if the communication device enters the first state from the second state before the timer expires.

Embodiment 19 the communication device of embodiment 18, wherein the communication device in the first state comprises:

the communication device is in an RRC (radio resource control) connection state, the communication device is connected with NR (network noise) network equipment, the communication device is also connected with LTE (long term evolution) network equipment, the LTE network equipment is main network equipment, and the NR network equipment is auxiliary network equipment; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device is in an RRC idle state, the communication device resides in a first cell, and the first cell supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device is in an RRC idle state, the communication device resides in a first cell, and the first cell is an NR cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication apparatus is in an RRC connected state, the communication apparatus is connected only with the NR network device; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device is in an RRC (radio resource control) connected state, the communication device is connected with NR (network noise) network equipment, the communication device is also connected with LTE (long term evolution) network equipment, the NR network equipment is main network equipment, and the LTE network equipment is auxiliary network equipment.

Embodiment 20, the communication device of embodiment 19, further comprising a transceiver module; the first cell supports NSA, including:

the transceiver module is configured to receive system information in the first cell, where the system information includes an NSA indication, and the NSA indication is used to indicate that the first cell supports NSA.

Embodiment 21, the communication device according to any of embodiments 18 to 20, wherein the communication device in the second state comprises:

the communication device is in an RRC connection state, and the communication device is only connected with LTE network equipment;

the communication device is in an RRC idle state, and the communication device resides in a second cell, wherein the second cell is an LTE cell and does not support NSA.

Embodiment 22 and the communication device according to any one of embodiments 18 to 21, wherein the display module is further configured to stop displaying the first icon and display a second icon when the timer expires, where the second icon is used to indicate that the communication device can provide the service corresponding to the LTE communication system.

Embodiment 23 and the communication apparatus according to any of embodiments 18 to 22, wherein the processing module is further configured to reset the timer.

Embodiment 24 and the communication device of any of embodiments 18 to 23, wherein the entering of the communication device from the first state to the second state comprises:

the communication device enters an RRC connected state from an RRC idle state, wherein the communication device resides in the first cell when the communication device is in the RRC idle state, and the first cell supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device reselects to a second cell through the cell in an RRC idle state, wherein the communication device resides in a first cell in the RRC idle state, the first cell supports NSA, and the second cell is not an NR cell and does not support NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device reselects to a second cell through a cell in an RRC idle state, wherein the communication device resides in the first cell in the RRC idle state, the first cell is an NR cell, and the second cell is not an NR cell and does not support NSA.

Embodiment 25 the communication device of any of embodiments 18 to 23, wherein the entering of the communication device from the first state to the second state comprises:

the communication device is switched to a first cell in an RRC connection state, wherein the communication device is only connected with NR network equipment, and the first cell is an LTE cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device is switched to a first cell in an RRC (radio resource control) connection state, wherein the communication device is connected with LTE (long term evolution) network equipment and NR (noise-and-noise) network equipment, the NR network equipment is main network equipment, the LTE network equipment is auxiliary network equipment, and the first cell is an LTE cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device is in an RRC connected state, enters an RRC idle state after a link failure occurs, and reselects or selects a first cell through a cell, wherein the communication device is connected with LTE network equipment and NR network equipment when in the RRC connected state, the NR network equipment is main network equipment, the LTE network equipment is auxiliary network equipment, the first cell is an LTE cell, and the first cell does not support NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device is in an RRC connected state, enters an RRC idle state after a link failure occurs, and reselects or selects a first cell through a cell, wherein the communication device is only connected with NR (network noise amplifier) network equipment when being in the RRC connected state, the first cell is an LTE (Long term evolution) cell, and the first cell does not support NSA (non-support for applications); or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device is in an RRC (radio resource control) connection state and releases the connection between the communication device and NR (network noise) network equipment, wherein the communication device is connected with LTE (long term evolution) network equipment and the NR network equipment, the LTE network equipment is main network equipment, and the NR network equipment is auxiliary network equipment; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device is switched to a first cell in an RRC (radio resource control) connection state, wherein the communication device is connected with an NR (network noise amplifier) network device when in the RRC connection state, the communication device is also connected with an LTE (long term evolution) network device, the LTE network device is a main network device, the NR network device is an auxiliary network device, and the first cell supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device is switched to a first cell in an RRC connection state, wherein the communication device is connected with an NR (noise reduction) network device when in the RRC connection state, the communication device is also connected with an LTE (Long term evolution) network device, the LTE network device is a main network device, the NR network device is an auxiliary network device, and the communication device is not configured with an NR auxiliary network device in the first cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device is switched to a first cell in an RRC (radio resource control) connected state, wherein the communication device is connected with an NR (noise-and-noise) network device when in the RRC connected state, the communication device is also connected with an LTE (Long term evolution) network device, the LTE network device is a main network device, the NR network device is an auxiliary network device, and the first cell is not an NR cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device is in an RRC connected state, enters an RRC idle state after a link failure occurs, and reselects or selects a first cell through the cell, wherein when the communication device is in the RRC connected state, the communication device is connected with NR network equipment, the communication device is also connected with LTE network equipment, the LTE network equipment is main network equipment, the NR network equipment is auxiliary network equipment, and the first cell does not support NSA.

Embodiment 26 the communication device of any one of embodiments 18 to 25, wherein the entering of the communication device from the second state to the first state comprises:

the communication device is connected with NR network equipment, and is also connected with LTE network equipment, wherein the LTE network equipment is main network equipment, and the NR network equipment is auxiliary network equipment; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device enters an RRC idle state from an RRC connected state, and the communication device resides in a first cell after entering the RRC idle state, and the first cell supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device is in an RRC (radio resource control) connected state, and after a link failure occurs, a first cell is reselected or selected through a cell, wherein the first cell is an LTE (long term evolution) cell, and supports NSA (non-mobile services architecture); or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device is in an RRC connection state, and after a link failure occurs, a first cell is reselected or selected through a cell, wherein the first cell is an NR cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device is in an RRC idle state in a first cell, and then the communication device performs cell reselection or selection to a second cell, wherein the first cell is not an NR cell and does not support NSA, the second cell is an LTE cell, and the second cell supports NSA; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device is in an RRC idle state when a first cell is in the RRC idle state, and then the communication device performs cell reselection or selection to a second cell, wherein the first cell is not an NR cell and does not support NSA, and the second cell is an NR cell; or the like, or, alternatively,

the communication device is in an RRC (radio resource control) connected state, only LTE (long term evolution) network equipment is connected, and then the communication device is switched to a second cell through the cell, wherein the second cell is an NR (non-random) cell.

Embodiment 27, a communication device, comprising:

the processing module is used for starting a timer when the timer is not operated and the communication device enters a second state from a first state, wherein the communication device keeps displaying the first icon during the operation period of the timer;

or, the processing module is configured to restart the timer when the timer is in a running state and the communication device enters the second state from the first state.

Embodiment 28, the communication device of embodiment 28, wherein the processing module is configured to restart the timer by:

stopping running the timer;

resetting the timer;

the timer is started.

Embodiment 29, the communication device according to embodiment 27 or embodiment 28, wherein the display module is further configured to display the second icon if the communication device is in the second state or display the first icon if the communication device is in the first state when the timer expires.

Embodiment 30, the communication device of any of embodiments 27 to 29, wherein the communication device in the first state comprises:

Embodiment 31, the communication device of embodiment 30, further comprising a transceiver module; the first cell supports NSA, including:

Embodiment 32, the communication device of any of embodiments 27-31, wherein the communication device in the second state comprises:

Embodiment 33 the communication device of any of embodiments 27 to 32, wherein the entering of the communication device from the first state to the second state comprises:

Embodiment 34 the communication device of any of embodiments 27 to 32, wherein the entering of the communication device from the first state to the second state comprises:

Embodiment 35, a communication device, wherein the communication device comprises a processor and a display, the processor and the display coupled to be capable of performing the method of any of embodiments 1 to 9 or to perform the method of any of embodiments 10 to 17.

Embodiment 36, a chip comprising a processor, the processor configured to perform the method of any of embodiments 1 to 9 above, or to perform the method of any of embodiments 10 to 17 above when the processor executes instructions. The instructions may come from memory internal to the chip or from memory external to the chip. Optionally, the chip further comprises an input-output circuit.

Embodiment 37, a communication system, wherein the communication system comprises the communication device according to any one of embodiments 18 to 26.

Embodiment 38, a communication system, wherein the communication system comprises the communication device according to any one of embodiment 27 to embodiment 34.

Embodiment 39, a computer-readable storage medium for storing a computer program which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method of any one of embodiments 1 to 9, or causes the computer to perform the method of any one of embodiments 10 to 17.

Embodiment 40, a computer program product for storing a computer program which, when executed by a computer, the computer may implement the method as described in any one of embodiments 1 to 9, or the method as described in any one of embodiments 10 to 17.

While the present application has been described in connection with various embodiments, other variations to the disclosed embodiments can be understood and effected by those skilled in the art from a review of the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps, and the word "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality. A single processor or other unit may fulfill the functions of several items recited in the claims. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.

Claims

1. A method of communication, comprising:

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the terminal device is in the first state, comprising:

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first cell supports NSA, comprising:

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the terminal device is in the second state and comprises:

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising:

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising:

the timer is reset.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the terminal device enters the second state from the first state, comprising:

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the terminal device enters the second state from the first state, comprising:

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the entering of the terminal device from the second state into the first state comprises:

10. A method of communication, comprising:

11. The method of claim 10, wherein restarting the timer comprises:

stopping running the timer;

resetting the timer;

the timer is started.

12. The method according to claim 10 or 11, characterized in that the method further comprises:

13. The method according to any one of claims 10 to 12, wherein the terminal device is in the first state and comprises:

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the first cell supports NSA, comprising:

15. The method according to any one of claims 10 to 14, wherein the terminal device is in the second state and comprises:

16. The method according to any one of claims 10 to 15, wherein the terminal device enters the second state from the first state, comprising:

17. The method according to any one of claims 10 to 15, wherein the terminal device enters the second state from the first state, comprising:

18. A communication device comprising a display module and a processing module, the display module and the processing module being coupled to perform the method of any of claims 1 to 9 or to perform the method of any of claims 10 to 17.

19. A computer-readable storage medium, for storing a computer program which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 9, or causes the computer to perform the method of any one of claims 10 to 17.