CN116614894A

CN116614894A - Communication method, terminal device and network device

Info

Publication number: CN116614894A
Application number: CN202310460306.4A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 陈磊; 李秉肇; 唐珣; 王宏
Original assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Current assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Priority date: 2019-02-25
Filing date: 2019-02-25
Publication date: 2023-08-18
Also published as: CN111615215B; CN111615215A; WO2020173415A1

Abstract

The application provides a communication method, a terminal device and a network device. In the technical scheme of the application, the terminal equipment determines or calculates the TA value with the network equipment according to the self, so that two signaling interactions of the TA value acquired by the terminal equipment in the random access process in the prior art can be omitted, thereby improving the speed of the terminal equipment accessing the network.

Description

Communication method, terminal device and network device

The present application is a divisional application, the application number of the original application is 201910139150.3, the original application date is 2019, 02 and 25, and the whole content of the original application is incorporated by reference.

Technical Field

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

Background

Random access is an important procedure in cellular networks. In the existing random access scheme, 4 signaling interactions are required between the terminal device and the network device, namely, a random access code (preamble) (also called Msg 1) sent by the terminal device to the network device, a random access response (random access response, RAR) (also called Msg 2) sent by the network device to the terminal device, msg3 sent by the terminal device to the network device, and Msg4 sent by the network device to the terminal device, wherein the Msg4 comprises a conflict resolution message and a message responding to the Msg 3. For terminal equipment in an idle state/inactive state, when the terminal equipment receives Msg4 and passes conflict resolution judgment, the random access of the terminal equipment is considered to be successful; for the terminal equipment in the connection state, if the terminal equipment successfully receives the Msg4, the random access of the terminal equipment is considered to be successful.

Because of the signaling interactions between each terminal device and the network device, a certain transmission time is required (e.g., 500 milliseconds (ms) of transmission time is required for each signaling in a satellite network, especially in a geostationary satellite network), the speed of the terminal device accessing the network in the existing random access scheme may be relatively slow.

Disclosure of Invention

The application provides a communication method, a terminal device and a network device, which can reduce signaling interaction between the terminal device and the network device in the random access process, thereby improving the speed of the terminal device accessing to the network.

In a first aspect, the present application provides a method of communication, the method comprising: the terminal equipment determines a Timing Advance (TA) value between the terminal equipment and the first network equipment according to the first power and/or the first distance; the terminal equipment sends a first message to the first network equipment on a first resource according to the TA value; the first power is a received power of a downlink signal from the first network device, and the first distance is a distance between the terminal device and the first network device.

Alternatively, the downlink signal may be a downlink synchronization reference signal. In other words, the downstream signal may be a synchronization signal block (synchronization signal and physical broadcast channel block, SSB).

In the random access process in the prior art, the network equipment determines the TA value of the terminal equipment according to the sending time and the receiving time of the random access code sent by the terminal equipment and sends the TA value to the terminal equipment, so that the TA value can be obtained only by the terminal equipment with signaling interaction twice. In the technical scheme of the embodiment of the application, the TA value between the terminal equipment and the network equipment is determined or calculated according to the terminal equipment, so that two signaling interactions for the terminal equipment to acquire the TA value in the random access process in the prior art can be omitted, and the speed of the terminal equipment accessing the network is improved.

In one possible implementation, the first message includes at least one of a radio resource control RRC connection establishment request message, an RRC connection recovery request message, an RRC connection reestablishment request message, an RRC reconfiguration complete message, and a cell radio network temporary identity C-RNTI of the terminal device.

Optionally, the first message is Msg3.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: the terminal device sends the TA value to the first network device.

Optionally, the TA value is carried in the first message.

It will be appreciated that the TA may also be carried in other messages.

Since the terminal device may change its location, the TA value between the terminal device and the first network device should also change. In view of the above problems, in the above technical solution, the terminal device sends the determined or calculated TA value to the first network device, so that the first network device can adjust the TA value when the location of the terminal device changes.

In one possible implementation, the first distance is determined at least from the location of the terminal device; or the first distance is determined at least from the first power.

In the above technical solution, the distance between the terminal device and the first network device may be determined by the received power of the terminal device or the downlink signal. Thus, the distance between the terminal devices can be determined through the reception of the downlink signals for the terminal devices without positioning capability, and the distance between the terminal devices with positioning capability and the first network device can be determined through the self-position obtained by positioning.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: the terminal equipment receives first indication information, wherein the first indication information is used for indicating the first resource and a first Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI), and the first resource and the first RNTI have a corresponding relation.

Optionally, the first resource includes one or more of a time domain resource, a frequency domain resource, a code domain resource, and a space domain resource.

In the above technical solution, the terminal device obtains the first resource and the first RNTI through the first indication information, so that the terminal device can obtain the first resource and the first RNTI without sending the Msg1 and receiving the Msg2, that is, the previous two signaling interactions in the random access process in the prior art can be omitted, thereby improving the network access speed of the terminal device.

In addition, the first resource has a corresponding relation with the first RNTI, that is, the terminal device determines the first RNTI when determining the resource for transmitting the first message, so that the first network device transmits the second message and the RNTI used by the terminal device for receiving the second message are consistent, thereby enabling the second message to be transmitted correctly.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: the terminal device receives a second message from the first network device in response to the first message using the C-RNTI or the first RNTI.

In one possible implementation, the first indication information is from the first network device; or the first indication information is from a second network device, the second network device being different from the first network device.

It may be appreciated that the first indication information may be from the first network device in the case where the terminal device performs TA value adjustment during the process from the idle/inactive state to the connected state or where the terminal device is in the connected state; in the case that the terminal device is switched from the second network device to the first network device, the first network device is the target network device, the second network device is the source network device, and the first indication information may be from the second network device. Therefore, it can be known that the above technical solution can be applied to the case where the terminal device performs TA value adjustment in the process from the idle state/inactive state to the connected state or in the connected state, and also can be applied to the case where the terminal device is switched from the second network device to the first network device.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: the terminal device receives second indication information, where the second indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to determine or calculate the timing advance TA value.

In the above technical solution, the first network device instructs the terminal device to determine or calculate the TA value with the first network device, so that the terminal device can know that the first network device also supports the two-step random access procedure, and further determine or calculate the TA value, which can avoid the problem caused by that the terminal device does not know the related information on the network side.

In one possible implementation, the second indication information is from the first network device; or the second indication information is from a second network device, the second network device being different from the first network device.

It can be appreciated that the second indication information may be from the first network device in the case where the terminal device performs TA value adjustment during the process from the idle/inactive state to the connected state or where the terminal device is in the connected state; in the case that the terminal device is switched from the second network device to the first network device, the first network device is the target network device, the second network device is the source network device, and the second indication information may be from the second network device. Therefore, it can be known that the above technical solution can be applied to the case where the terminal device performs TA value adjustment in the process from the idle state/inactive state to the connected state or in the connected state, and also can be applied to the case where the terminal device is switched from the second network device to the first network device.

In one possible implementation, the first indication information is carried in a broadcast message or RRC dedicated signaling.

It can be appreciated that, in the process of the terminal device from the idle state/inactive state to the connection state or in the case that the terminal device is in the connection state to perform TA value adjustment, the first indication information may be carried in the broadcast message; in the case that the terminal device is handed over from the second network device to the first network device, where the first network device is the target network device and the second network device is the source network device, the first indication information may be carried in RRC dedicated signaling (e.g., RRC reconfiguration command, etc.). In addition, under the condition that the number of terminal devices in the service range of the first network device is relatively large, the first indication information is loaded in the broadcast message, so that signaling can be saved; when there are few terminal devices within the service range of the first network device, the first indication information is carried in the RRC dedicated signaling, so that signaling can be saved. Therefore, under different conditions or scenes, the first indication information is carried in the corresponding signaling, so that signaling between the terminal equipment and the network equipment can be saved.

In a second aspect, the present application provides a communication method comprising: the second network device sends a switching request to the first network device, wherein the switching request comprises third indicating information, and the third indicating information is used for indicating whether the terminal device can determine a timing advance TA value between the terminal device and the first network device; the second network device sends a handover command to the terminal device, the handover command being for instructing the terminal device to be handed over from the second network device to the first network device.

In the above technical solution, the second network device indicates to the first network device whether the terminal device can determine the timing advance TA value between the first network device and the first network device, so that the first network device allocates access resources according to the function or capability of the terminal device, thereby reducing the interruption time of the connection between the terminal device and the network device, and reducing the handover failure rate.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: the second network device receives a response message corresponding to the handover request from the first network device, the response message including fourth indication information for indicating that a TA value between the terminal device and the first network device is determined or calculated by the terminal device.

In the above technical solution, the first network device indicates to the second network device that the TA value between the terminal device and the first network device is determined or calculated by the terminal device, so that the second network device indicates to the terminal device that the terminal device determines or calculates the TA value between the terminal device and the first network device, so that the terminal device can know that the first network device also supports a two-step random access process, and further determine or calculate the TA value, which can avoid the problem that occurs because the terminal device does not know the related information on the network side.

In one possible implementation, the response message further includes a first resource and a first radio network temporary identifier RNTI, where the first resource has a correspondence with the first RNTI.

In the above technical solution, the first network device indicates the first resource and the first time identifier RNTI to the second network device, so that the second network device indicates the first resource and the first RNTI to the terminal device, so that the terminal device can obtain the first resource and the first RNTI without sending Msg1 and receiving Msg2, that is, the previous two signaling interactions in the random access process in the prior art can be omitted, thereby improving the network access speed of the terminal device.

In one possible implementation, the handover command includes first indication information, where the first indication information is used to indicate the first resource and a first RNTI, and the first resource and the first RNTI have a correspondence relationship.

In a possible implementation, the handover command further includes second indication information for instructing the terminal device to determine or calculate the timing advance TA value.

In the above technical solution, the second network device instructs the terminal device to determine or calculate the TA value with the first network device, so that the terminal device can know that the first network device also supports the two-step random access procedure, and further determine or calculate the TA value, which can avoid the problem caused by that the terminal device does not know the related information on the network side.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: the second network device sends a third message to the terminal device, wherein the third message is used for requesting the terminal device to feed back whether the TA value between the terminal device and the network device can be determined or calculated; and/or the second network device receives a fourth message from the terminal device, the fourth message being used to indicate whether the terminal device can determine or calculate a TA value with the network device.

In the above technical solution, the second network device determines whether the terminal device can determine or calculate the TA value information between the terminal device and the network device, so that the second network device feeds back the capability of the terminal device to the first network device, thereby implementing that the first network device determines the resources indicated in the handover request according to the capability of the terminal device (for example, when the terminal device can determine or calculate the TA value, the first network device indicates the resources for transmitting Msg3 in the handover request, and when the terminal device cannot determine or calculate the TA value, the first network device indicates the resources for transmitting Msg1 in the handover request), so as to reduce the interruption time of the connection between the terminal device and the network device, and reduce the handover failure rate.

In a third aspect, the present application provides a communication method comprising: the first network device receives a switching request from the second network device, wherein the switching request comprises third indicating information, and the third indicating information is used for indicating whether the terminal device can determine a timing advance TA value between the terminal device and the first network device; and the first network equipment determines whether the terminal equipment can determine the TA value between the terminal equipment and the first network equipment according to the third indication information.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: the first network device sends a response message corresponding to the handover request to the second network device, the response message including fourth indication information for indicating that a TA value between the terminal device and the first network device is determined or calculated by the terminal device.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: the first network device receives the TA value from the terminal device.

Since the terminal device may change its location, the TA value between the terminal device and the first network device should also change. In view of the above problem, in the above technical solution, the first network device receives the TA value reported by the terminal device, so as to adjust the TA value when the location of the terminal device changes.

In a fourth aspect, the present application provides a method of communication, the method comprising: the first network device sends second indication information to the terminal device, wherein the second indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to determine or calculate the timing advance TA value; the first network device receives the TA value from the terminal device.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: the first network device sends first indication information to the terminal device, wherein the first indication information is used for indicating first resources and first RNTI, and the first resources and the first RNTI have corresponding relations.

In one possible implementation, the first indication information is carried in a broadcast message. By the technical scheme, signaling can be saved.

In a fifth aspect, the present application provides a terminal device, comprising means for performing the first aspect or any implementation manner of the first aspect.

In a sixth aspect, the application provides a network device comprising means for performing the second aspect or any implementation of the second aspect.

In a seventh aspect, the application provides a network device comprising means for performing the third aspect or any implementation of the third aspect.

In an eighth aspect, the present application provides a network device comprising means for performing the fourth aspect or any implementation of the fourth aspect.

In a ninth aspect, the present application provides a chip, where the chip is connected to a memory, or the chip includes a memory, and the software program is used to read and execute the software program stored in the memory, so as to implement the method in the first aspect or any implementation manner of the first aspect.

In a tenth aspect, the present application provides a chip, where the chip is connected to a memory, or the chip includes a memory, and the software program is used to read and execute the software program stored in the memory, so as to implement the method in the second aspect or any implementation manner of the second aspect.

In an eleventh aspect, the present application provides a chip, where the chip is connected to a memory, or the chip includes a memory, and the software program is used to read and execute the software program stored in the memory, so as to implement the method in the third aspect or any implementation manner of the third aspect.

In a twelfth aspect, the present application provides a chip, where the chip is connected to a memory, or the chip includes a memory, and the software program is used to read and execute the software program stored in the memory, so as to implement the method in any one of the fourth aspect or the fourth aspect.

In a thirteenth aspect, the present application provides a terminal device, including a transceiver, a processor and a memory, configured to perform the method according to the first aspect or any implementation manner of the first aspect.

In a fourteenth aspect, the present application provides a network device comprising a transceiver, a processor and a memory for performing the method of the second aspect or any implementation of the second aspect.

In a fifteenth aspect, the present application provides a network device comprising a transceiver, a processor and a memory for performing the method of the third aspect or any implementation of the third aspect.

In a sixteenth aspect, the present application provides a network device comprising a transceiver, a processor and a memory for performing the method of the fourth aspect or any implementation of the fourth aspect.

In a seventeenth aspect, the present application provides a computer readable storage medium comprising instructions which, when run on a terminal device, cause the terminal device to perform the method of the first aspect or any implementation of the first aspect.

In an eighteenth aspect, the present application provides a computer readable storage medium comprising instructions which, when run on a network device, cause the network device to perform the method of the second aspect or any implementation of the second aspect.

In a nineteenth aspect, the present application provides a computer readable storage medium comprising instructions which, when run on a network device, cause the network device to perform the method of the third aspect or any implementation of the third aspect.

In a twentieth aspect, the present application provides a computer readable storage medium comprising instructions that when run on a network device cause the network device to perform the method of the fourth aspect or any implementation of the fourth aspect.

In a twenty-first aspect, the present application provides a computer program product which, when run on a terminal device, causes the terminal device to perform the method of the first aspect or any implementation of the first aspect.

In a twenty-second aspect, the present application provides a computer program product which, when run on a network device, causes the network device to perform the method of the second aspect or any implementation of the second aspect.

In a twenty-third aspect, the present application provides a computer program product which, when run on a network device, causes the network device to perform the method of the third aspect or any implementation of the third aspect.

In a twenty-fourth aspect, the present application provides a computer program product which, when run on a network device, causes the network device to perform the method of the fourth aspect or any implementation of the fourth aspect.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a block diagram of a system to which the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application can be applied.

Fig. 2 is a schematic flow diagram of a prior art random access.

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

Fig. 4 is a schematic flow chart of random access of a terminal device to a first network device.

Fig. 5 is a schematic flow chart of a terminal device switching from a second network device to a first network device.

Fig. 6 is a schematic structural diagram of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 7 is a schematic block diagram of a network device according to an embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 8 is a schematic structural diagram of a network device according to another embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 9 is a schematic structural diagram of a network device according to another embodiment of the present application.

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

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

Fig. 12 is a schematic block diagram of a network device according to another embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 13 is a schematic block diagram of a network device according to another embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

The technical scheme of the application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The technical scheme of the embodiment of the application can be applied to various communication systems as long as the entity in the communication system needs to send the transmission direction indication information, and the other entity needs to receive the indication information and determine the transmission direction in a certain time according to the indication information. For example: global system for mobile communications (global system for mobile communications, GSM), code division multiple access (code division multiple access, CDMA) system, wideband code division multiple access (wideband code division multiple access, WCDMA) system, general packet radio service (general packet radio service, GPRS), long term evolution (long term evolution, LTE) system, LTE frequency division duplex (frequency division duplex, FDD) system, LTE time division duplex (time division duplex, TDD), universal mobile telecommunications system (universal mobile telecommunication system, UMTS), worldwide interoperability for microwave access (worldwide interoperability for microwave access, wiMAX) communication system, future fifth generation (5th generation,5G) system, or New Radio (NR), etc.

The terminal device in the embodiments of the present application may refer to a user device, an access terminal, a subscriber unit, a subscriber station, a mobile station, a remote terminal, a mobile device, a user terminal, a wireless communication device, a user agent, or a user apparatus. The terminal device may also be a cellular telephone, a cordless telephone, a session initiation protocol (session initiation protocol, SIP) phone, a wireless local loop (wireless local loop, WLL) station, a personal digital assistant (personal digital assistant, PDA), a handheld device with wireless communication capabilities, a computing device or other processing device connected to a wireless modem, an in-vehicle device, a wearable device, a terminal device in a future 5G network or a terminal device in a future evolved public land mobile network (public land mobile network, PLMN), etc., as embodiments of the present application are not limited in this respect.

The network device in the embodiment of the present application may be a device for communicating with a terminal device, where the network device may be a base station (base transceiver station, BTS) in a global system for mobile communications (global system for mobile communications, GSM) or code division multiple access (code division multiple access, CDMA), a base station (NodeB, NB) in a wideband code division multiple access (wideband code division multiple access, WCDMA) system, an evolved NodeB (eNB or eNodeB) in an LTE system, a wireless controller in a cloud wireless access network (cloud radio access network, CRAN) scenario, or the network device may be a relay station, an access point, a vehicle-mounted device, a wearable device, a network device in a future 5G network, or a network device in a future evolved PLMN network, etc., and the embodiment of the present application is not limited.

In the embodiment of the application, the terminal equipment or the network equipment comprises a hardware layer, an operating system layer running on the hardware layer and an application layer running on the operating system layer. The hardware layer includes hardware such as a central processing unit (central processing unit, CPU), a memory management unit (memory management unit, MMU), and a memory (also referred to as a main memory). The operating system may be any one or more computer operating systems that implement business processes through processes (processes), such as a Linux operating system, a Unix operating system, an Android operating system, an iOS operating system, or a windows operating system. The application layer comprises applications such as a browser, an address book, word processing software, instant messaging software and the like. Further, the embodiment of the present application is not particularly limited to the specific structure of the execution body of the method provided by the embodiment of the present application, as long as the communication can be performed by the method provided according to the embodiment of the present application by running the program recorded with the code of the method provided by the embodiment of the present application, and for example, the execution body of the method provided by the embodiment of the present application may be a terminal device or a network device, or a functional module in the terminal device or the network device that can call the program and execute the program.

Furthermore, various aspects or features of the application may be implemented as a method, apparatus, or article of manufacture using standard programming and/or engineering techniques. The term "article of manufacture" as used herein encompasses a computer program accessible from any computer-readable device, carrier, or media. For example, computer-readable media can include, but are not limited to, magnetic storage devices (e.g., hard disk, floppy disk, or magnetic strips, etc.), optical disks (e.g., compact disk, CD, digital versatile disk, digital versatile disc, DVD, etc.), smart cards, and flash memory devices (e.g., erasable programmable read-only memory, EPROM), cards, sticks, or key drives, etc. Additionally, various storage media described herein can represent one or more devices and/or other machine-readable media for storing information. The term "machine-readable medium" can include, without being limited to, wireless channels and various other media capable of storing, containing, and/or carrying instruction(s) and/or data.

It should be understood that the terms "system" and "network" are used interchangeably herein. The term "and/or" in the present application is merely an association relation describing the association object, and indicates that three kinds of relations may exist, for example, a and/or B may indicate: a exists alone, A and B exist together, and B exists alone. In addition, the character "/" herein generally indicates that the front and rear associated objects are an "or" relationship.

Fig. 1 is a block diagram of a system to which the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application can be applied. It should be understood that fig. 1 is only exemplary, and the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application may also be applied to other communication systems.

As shown in fig. 1, at least one of the core network device, the base station, the satellite station, and the plurality of terminal devices constitutes a communication system. In the communication system, the terminal devices 1 to 6 can transmit uplink data to the base station, and the base station needs to receive the uplink data transmitted from the terminal devices 1 to 6. Likewise, the base station may transmit downlink data to the terminal devices 1 to 6, and the terminal devices 1 to 6 need to receive the downlink data from the base station. In addition, the terminal apparatuses 4 to 6 may also constitute a communication system. In the communication system, the base station may transmit downlink data to the terminal device 1, the terminal device 2, the terminal device 5, and the like; the terminal device 5 may also send downlink data to the terminal devices 4, 6.

The terminal devices 7 to 9 may transmit uplink data to the satellite station, and the satellite station needs to receive the uplink data transmitted from the terminal devices 7 to 9. Likewise, the satellite station may transmit downlink data to the terminal devices 7 to 9, and the terminal devices 7 to 9 need to receive the downlink data from the satellite station.

The base station and the satellite station are connected to the core network equipment in different modes, and mutual data transmission can be carried out between the base station and the core network equipment and between the satellite station and the core network equipment. The satellite station and the core network equipment perform mutual data transmission through the satellite viewing station.

The satellite station may be a load with all or part of the base station functions carried by an empty platform, which may be an aerial platform with a determined orbit, for example, a satellite, an unmanned aerial vehicle, a hot air balloon, an aircraft, etc.; the system can also be a ground platform with a determined running track, such as a bus, a ship and the like with a determined track, and the embodiment of the application is not limited.

The star point may have the function of a non-terrestrial network (non terrestrial networks, NTN) gateway. The NTN gateway is a node of a transport network layer (transport Network layer, TNL) for transparent transmission of data or signaling, and may be replaced by a fixed location receiving node or a donor node.

It should be emphasized that the system architecture shown in fig. 1 may comprise a plurality of satellite stations or a plurality of base stations, which may also serve terminal devices like terminal device 1 to terminal device 6.

The terminal apparatuses 1 to 9 shown in fig. 1 can access network apparatuses (e.g., base stations, satellite stations, etc. in fig. 1) by way of random access.

Fig. 2 is a schematic flow diagram of a prior art random access. As shown in fig. 2, the random access procedure may include steps 210-240.

In 210, the terminal device selects a random access code from random access code (preamble) resources notified by the network device, and sends the random access code to the network device (i.e., msg 1).

In 220, the terminal device receives a random access response (random access response, RAR) (i.e. Msg 2) within a specific time window using a random access radio network temporary identity (random access radio network temporary identifier, RA-RNTI) associated with the random access code selected in 210. A Timing Advance (TA) value, a time-frequency resource for transmitting Msg3, a temporary cell radio network temporary identifier (temporary cell radio network temporary identifier, TC-RNTI), a back off parameter, etc. may be carried in the RAR.

The TA value is generally used for uplink transmission of the terminal device. Specifically, in order to make the time packet of the uplink data of the terminal device arrive at the base station within a desired time, the radio frequency transmission delay caused by the distance is estimated, so that the terminal device sends the uplink data in advance by a corresponding time. The network device may calculate the TA value of the terminal device by receiving the time of receiving the random access code sent by the terminal device.

In 230, the terminal device transmits Msg3 on the time-frequency resources indicated by the RAR. If the terminal device is in a connected state, a cell radio network temporary identity (cell radio network temporary identifier, C-RNTI) of the terminal device may be included in Msg3.

In 240, the terminal device receives Msg4 sent by the network device. The terminal equipment in a connection state uses the C-RNTI to receive the Msg4, and if the Msg4 is successfully received, the terminal equipment is considered to be successfully accessed randomly; and the terminal equipment in the idle state/inactive state receives the Msg4 by using the TC-RNTI, detects a conflict resolution block in the Msg4, considers that the random access of the terminal equipment is successful if the conflict resolution block passes the detection, and uses the TC-RNTI as the C-RNTI.

In the random access scheme shown in fig. 2, 4 signaling interactions are required between the terminal device and the network device. The random access scheme of fig. 2 may be slow for the terminal devices to access the network because of the signaling interactions between each terminal device and the network device, requiring a certain transmission time (e.g., 500 milliseconds (ms) for each signaling in a satellite network, particularly in a geostationary satellite network).

The communication method provided by the embodiment of the application can reduce the number of times of signaling interaction between the terminal equipment and the network equipment in the random access process, thereby improving the speed of the terminal equipment accessing to the network.

Fig. 3 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method of an embodiment of the application. The first network device in fig. 3 may correspond to the above network device. The method shown in fig. 3 may include at least some of the following.

In 310, the terminal device determines or calculates a TA value with the first network device.

The terminal device in the embodiment of the present application may be an entity on the user side for receiving or transmitting signals, for example, a mobile phone, a User Equipment (UE), or the like. The network device in the embodiment of the present application may be an entity on the network side for transmitting or receiving signals, for example, a base station, a satellite station, etc. shown in fig. 1. Optionally, the first network device is a network device to which the terminal device is to be connected.

The TA value with the first network device is the TA value between the terminal device and the first network device. That is, in order to make the uplink data of the terminal device arrive at the first network device at a desired time, the terminal device transmits the time value of the uplink data in advance.

There are many ways in which the terminal device may determine or calculate the TA value with the first network device.

As one example, the terminal device may determine a TA value with the first network device based on the first power. The first power is a received power of a downlink signal from the first network device. The received power of the downlink signal may be the power of the downlink signal received by the terminal device.

For example, the terminal device may obtain the space loss of the downlink signal according to the received power and the transmitted power of the downlink signal, and further obtain the TA value between the terminal device and the first network device according to the space loss of the downlink signal. Specifically, the terminal device may obtain the transmitting power p_t of the downlink signal through the broadcast message of the first network device, detect to obtain the receiving power p_r of the downlink signal, and further obtain the space loss PL of the downlink signal according to the space loss formula p_r=p_t-PL (f, d, other parameters); the space loss PL is a function of distance d, frequency f and some other parameters, where f and some other parameters are known and thus d can be extrapolated back; and ta= 2*d/c, whereby the TA value can be determined, where c is the speed of light.

Alternatively, the downlink signal may be a downlink synchronization reference signal sent by the first network device or any other downlink signal, as long as the terminal device can obtain the sending power and the receiving power of the downlink signal.

The TA value between the terminal device and the first network device determined according to the received power of the downlink signal may also be other specific implementation manners, and the embodiment of the present application is not limited specifically.

As another example, the terminal device may determine the TA value with the first network device according to a first distance, where the first distance is a distance between the terminal device and the first network device. For example, the terminal device determines a TA value according to the formula ta= 2*d/c, where d is the first distance and c is the speed of light.

There are many ways in which the terminal device determines the first distance, for example, the terminal device may be determined by the location of the terminal device and the location of the first network device, and for example, the terminal device may be determined by the transmit power and the receive power of the downlink signal, which is not specifically limited in the embodiment of the present application.

There are many methods for determining the location of the terminal device, and the embodiment of the present application is not limited specifically. For example, by means of a global positioning system, base station positioning, etc.

There are many ways of determining the location of the first network device, and embodiments of the present application are not limited in detail. For example, in the NTN scenario, the first network device may be a satellite station, and since the link where the terminal device and the satellite station are directly connected is a visible path, the terminal device may determine the distance between the terminal device and the first network device according to its own location and the constellation diagram of the first network device. The terminal device may obtain the constellation of the first network device via a broadcast message from the first network device or radio resource control (radio resource control, RRC) dedicated signaling.

The constellation map describes the position information of the satellite at a certain moment. The constellation diagram can also have other expression modes, such as a constellation table, an ephemeris table and the like, based on the recorded position information of the satellite. For convenience of description, the constellation diagram is used in the present application.

As another example, the terminal device may determine a TA value with the first network device based on the first power and the first distance. For example, the terminal device may determine one TA value according to the first power, determine another TA value according to the first distance, and further obtain the TA value between the terminal device and the first network device according to the two TA values.

In other scenarios, the terminal device may also determine or calculate the TA value with the first network device in other manners, which is not limited in the embodiment of the present application.

Optionally, before the terminal device performs 310, the terminal device may further receive a second indication message, where the second indication message is used to instruct the terminal device to determine or calculate a TA value with the first network device. That is to say, the terminal device will determine the TA value with the first network device itself when receiving the second indication information from the network side. The second indication information may be carried in the new configuration signaling, or may be multiplexing an existing signaling.

The second indication information may instruct the terminal device to determine or calculate the TA value with the first network device in an explicit, implicit or non-explicit manner. Taking the TA value between the terminal device and the first network device determined according to the constellation diagram of the first network device and the location of the terminal device as an example, the first indication information received by the terminal device may include a specific field, a character, or an identification bit, etc., to explicitly indicate the terminal device to determine or calculate the TA value between the terminal device and the first network device; or the terminal equipment receives the constellation diagram of the first network equipment, and the terminal equipment determines the TA value between the terminal equipment and the first network equipment by itself; or the first terminal device defaults to determine the TA value with the first network device.

The second indication information may be from the first network device in the process of the terminal device from the idle state/inactive state to the connected state or in the case that the terminal device is in the connected state for TA value adjustment; in the case that the terminal device is switched from the second network device to the first network device, the first network device is the target network device, the second network device is the source network device, and the second indication information may be from the second network device.

In 320, the terminal device sends a first message to the first network device on a first resource according to the TA value.

The first message may be message 3 (Msg 3) or other messages in the random access procedure. That is, the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application may be applied not only in the random access process, but also in a scenario where any terminal device sends uplink data to a network device. The embodiment of the application uses Msg3 as an example to describe the technical scheme of the embodiment of the application.

The terminal device sends the Msg3 to the first network device according to the TA value, which can be understood as that the terminal device sends the Msg3 to the first network device in advance of the TA value.

The transmission of Msg3 is part of the random access procedure. Msg3 is transmitted on the uplink shared channel and contains a media access control layer control element (media access controls control element, MAC CE) of a C-RNTI or a service data unit (service data unit, SDU) of a common control channel (common control channel, CCCH). Wherein the SDU of the CCCH may comprise one of an RRC connection setup request message, an RRC connection resume request message, an RRC connection reestablishment request message. The first message may also carry an RRC reconfiguration complete message. That is, msg3 may be used to transmit at least one of an RRC connection setup request message, an RRC connection recovery request message, an RRC connection reestablishment request message, and an RRC reconfiguration complete message.

It will be appreciated that when the terminal device is in the connected state, the terminal device already has the C-RNTI, so the terminal device in the connected state may include the C-RNTI in the Msg3 so that the first network device uses the C-RNTI to scramble the Msg 4.

Optionally, the terminal device may further report a TA value between the terminal device and the first network device to the first network device through Msg3, so that the first network device performs TA adjustment.

It will be appreciated that the TA value between the terminal device and the first network device may also be reported to the first network device by a subsequent further message.

The first resource for transmitting the Msg3 may include at least one of a time domain resource, a frequency domain resource, a code domain resource, a space resource, and the like for transmitting the Msg 3. Optionally, the terminal device further comprises receiving first indication information before performing 320, where the first indication information is used to indicate the first resource.

The terminal device may obtain the first indication information through broadcast information or RRC dedicated signaling.

The first indication information may be from the first network device in the process of the terminal device from the idle state/inactive state to the connected state or in the case that the terminal device is in the connected state for TA value adjustment; in the case that the terminal device is switched from the second network device to the first network device, the first network device is the target network device, the second network device is the source network device, and the first indication information may be from the second network device.

For terminal devices in idle/inactive state, the terminal device has no C-RNTI yet, so the terminal device needs a temporary radio network temporary identity (radio network temporary identifier, RNTI) for transmission of signalling during random access. Thus, the first indication information may also be used to indicate the first radio network temporary identity RNTI.

Optionally, the first RNTI has a correspondence with the first resource. In other words, the first RNTI is associated with a first resource, and when the terminal device transmits Msg3 using a certain resource, the terminal device will use the RNTI corresponding to that resource. For example, one resource corresponds to one first RNTI.

It is understood that the first RNTI may be determined by a implicit method, for example, rnti=function (time domain location of the first resource, frequency domain location of the first resource, physical cell identity (physical cell identifier, PCI), physical uplink shared channel (physical uplink shared channel, PUSCH) sequence type).

After 320, the terminal device receives a second message in response to the first message. Wherein a second message responsive to the first message may be received from the first network device using the C-RNTI for the terminal device in the connected state; alternatively, a second message responsive to the first message may be received from the first network device using the first RNTI for the terminal device in the idle/inactive state.

When the first message is Msg3, the corresponding second message may include at least one of an RRC connection setup message, an RRC connection recovery message, an RRC connection reestablishment message, and an RRC reconfiguration complete response message. For example, when the RRC connection establishment request message is included in the Msg3, the RRC connection establishment message may be included in the second message; when the RRC connection recovery message request is included in Msg3, the RRC connection recovery message and the like may be included in the second message.

The second message may also include a conflict resolution message. For the terminal equipment in the connection state, when the terminal equipment receives the second message, the random access is considered to be successful; for the terminal device in idle state/inactive state, the terminal device also needs to detect the conflict resolution block in the conflict resolution message, and when passing the detection, the terminal device can be considered to be successfully accessed randomly.

For the terminal equipment in a connection state, the terminal equipment receives a second message by using the C-RNTI; for the terminal equipment in the idle state/inactive state, the terminal equipment uses the first RNTI to receive the second message, and at the moment, the second message can also carry a second RNTI allocated by the first network equipment for the terminal equipment, wherein the second RNTI is the RNTI used for communication between the subsequent terminal equipment and the first network equipment.

The communication method according to the embodiment of the present application is described below with reference to specific examples.

Taking the first message as Msg3 and the second message as Msg4 as an example.

In 410, the first network device sends a broadcast message to the terminal device, the broadcast message including first indication information and second indication information. The first indication information and the second indication information may be carried in the same broadcast message or may be carried in two broadcast messages. The second indication information includes a constellation diagram of the first network device (the hidden terminal device uses the constellation diagram to determine a TA value between the hidden terminal device and the first network device) or indicates that the terminal device can estimate the TA through the transmitting power and the receiving power of the downlink signal. The first indication information indicates resources (e.g., time/frequency locations) to transmit Msg3 and RNTIs associated with each Msg3 resource.

In 420, the terminal device determines or calculates a TA value with the first network device, and a specific implementation method may be referred to in the related description of 310. If the terminal device can determine or calculate the TA value with the first network device by itself, the terminal device determines or calculates the TA value with the first network device and performs 430; if the terminal device cannot determine or calculate the TA value with the first network device by itself, the terminal device accesses the first network device using the access procedure shown in fig. 2.

In 430, the terminal device sends Msg3 to the first network device using the determined or calculated TA value. The TA value may be included in Msg 3; if the terminal equipment is in a connected state, the Msg3 can also carry the C-RNTI of the terminal equipment.

In 440, the terminal device in idle state/inactive state detects Msg4 with RNTI associated with the resource for transmitting Msg3, and performs collision resolution decision, if so, the random access of the terminal device is successful, and the Msg4 carries a second RNTI allocated to the terminal device for the first network device; the terminal equipment in the connection state uses the C-RNTI to detect the Msg4, and if the Msg4 is detected, the random access of the terminal equipment is successful.

Fig. 5 is a schematic flow chart of a terminal device switching from a second network device to a first network device. In cellular networks, in order to ensure continuity of service for terminal devices in a connected state, a handover of a network device is triggered when a terminal device moves to the cell edge. As shown in fig. 5, the terminal device switches from the second network device to the first network device, and the terminal device initiates a random access procedure to the first network device.

For the scenario of switching network devices, since the first network device has not yet established a connection with the terminal device, the first network device needs to acquire some information of the terminal device from the second network device, for example, whether the terminal device can determine or calculate a TA value with the first network device, etc.

Taking the first message as Msg3 and the second message as Msg4 as an example.

In 504, the second network device sends a handover request to the first network device, the handover request including third indication information indicating whether the terminal device can determine a timing advance TA value with the first network device.

In an alternative design, the second network device may execute 501, before executing 504, to receive a fourth message sent by the terminal device, where the fourth message is used to indicate whether the terminal device can determine or calculate a TA value with the network device; or the second network device may perform 501 and/or 502, where the second network device sends a third message to the terminal device, where the third message is used to request the terminal device to feedback whether the TA value between the terminal device and the network device can be determined or calculated, and the second network device receives a fourth message sent by the terminal device, where the fourth message is used to indicate whether the terminal device can determine or calculate the TA value between the terminal device and the network device.

Alternatively, the third message may be carried in a location information request and the fourth message may be carried in a location information report.

In an alternative design, the second network device may also perform 503 a handover decision prior to performing 504. When it is determined that a handoff from the second network device to the first network device is required, the second network device performs 504.

In 505, the first network device receives the handover request in step 504, and determines, according to the third indication information carried in the handover request in step 504, that the terminal device is able to determine or calculate a TA value with the first network device.

In 506, when it is determined that the terminal device is able to determine or calculate a TA value with the first network device, the first network device carries fourth indication information in a response message corresponding to the handover request in 504, the fourth indication information being used to indicate that the TA value between the terminal device and the first network device is determined or calculated by the terminal device. Optionally, the response message further comprises a first resource and a first RNTI, wherein the first resource comprises a resource for transmitting Msg 3. Optionally, the first resource has a corresponding relation with the first RNTI.

When it is determined that the terminal device cannot determine or calculate the TA value with the first network device, the terminal device accesses the first network device according to the access procedure shown in fig. 2, and the first network device carries the resource for transmitting Msg1 in the response message corresponding to the handover request in 504.

In 507, the second network device sends a handover command to the terminal device, the handover command being for instructing the terminal device to handover from the second network device to the first network device.

The handover command may also include the first indication information or the resources to transmit Msg 1.

Optionally, the handover command may further include second indication information. The second indication information may be as set forth above.

In 508, the terminal device determines or calculates a TA value with the first network device, and a specific implementation method may be referred to in the related description of 310. If the terminal device can determine or calculate the TA value with the first network device by itself, the terminal device determines or calculates the TA value with the first network device and performs 509; if the terminal device cannot determine or calculate the TA value with the first network device by itself, the terminal device accesses the first network device using the access procedure shown in fig. 2.

In 509, the terminal device sends Msg3 to the first network device using the determined or calculated TA value. The TA value may be included in Msg 3; if the terminal equipment is in a connected state, the Msg3 can also carry the C-RNTI of the terminal equipment.

In 510, the terminal device in idle state/inactive state detects Msg4 with RNTI associated with the resource for transmitting Msg3, and performs conflict resolution and judgment, if the judgment is passed, the random access of the terminal device is successful, and the Msg4 carries a second RNTI allocated to the terminal device for the first network device; the terminal equipment in the connection state uses the C-RNTI to detect the Msg4, and if the Msg4 is detected, the random access of the terminal equipment is successful.

In the random access process in the prior art, the network equipment determines the TA value of the terminal equipment according to the receiving time of the random access code sent by the terminal equipment and sends the TA value to the terminal equipment, so that the TA value can be obtained only by the terminal equipment needing two signaling interaction. In the technical scheme of the embodiment of the application, the TA value is determined by the terminal equipment according to the distance between the position of the terminal equipment and the position of the network equipment, so that two signaling interactions for the terminal equipment to acquire the TA value in the random access process in the prior art can be omitted, and the speed of the terminal equipment accessing the network is improved.

An embodiment of the device of the present application will be described below with reference to fig. 6 to 13.

Fig. 6 is a schematic structural diagram of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present application. The terminal device 600 shown in fig. 6 may correspond to the above terminal device, and as shown in fig. 6, the terminal device 600 includes a transmission module 620 and a processing module 630.

A processing module 630 is configured to determine a timing advance TA value with the first network device based on the first power and/or the first distance.

A sending module 620, configured to send a first message to the first network device on a first resource according to the TA value.

The first power is a received power of a downlink signal from the first network device, and the first distance is a distance between the terminal device and the first network device.

Optionally, the first message includes at least one of a radio resource control RRC connection setup request message, an RRC connection recovery request message, an RRC connection reestablishment request message, an RRC reconfiguration complete message, and a cell radio network temporary identity C-RNTI of the terminal device.

Optionally, the sending module 620 is further configured to: the TA value is sent to the first network device.

Optionally, the first distance is determined at least according to the location of the terminal device; or the first distance is determined at least from the first power.

Optionally, the terminal device 600 further includes a receiving module 610, configured to receive first indication information, where the first indication information is used to indicate the first resource and a first radio network temporary identifier RNTI, and the first resource and the first RNTI have a corresponding relationship.

Optionally, the receiving module 610 is further configured to: a second message is received from the first network device in response to the first message using the C-RNTI or the first RNTI.

Optionally, the first indication information is from the first network device; or the first indication information is from a second network device, the second network device being different from the first network device.

The receiving module 610 and the transmitting module 620 may be implemented by transceivers. The processing module 630 may be implemented by a processor. The specific functions and advantages of the receiving module 610, the transmitting module 620 and the processing module 630 may be referred to as methods shown in fig. 3 to 5, and will not be described herein.

Fig. 7 is a schematic block diagram of a network device according to an embodiment of the present application. The network device 700 shown in fig. 7 may correspond to the above second network device, as shown in fig. 7, the terminal device 700 comprising a transmitting module 720.

A sending module 720, configured to send a handover request to the first network device, where the handover request includes third indication information, where the third indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device can determine a timing advance TA value with the first network device.

The sending module 720 is further configured to send a handover command to the terminal device, where the handover command is used to instruct the terminal device to be handed over from the second network device to the first network device.

Optionally, the network device 700 further comprises a receiving module 710 for receiving a response message corresponding to the handover request from the first network device, the response message comprising fourth indication information for indicating that a TA value between the terminal device and the first network device is determined or calculated by the terminal device.

Optionally, the response message further includes a first resource and a first radio network temporary identifier RNTI, where the first resource has a correspondence with the first RNTI.

Optionally, the handover command includes first indication information, where the first indication information is used to indicate the first resource and a first RNTI, and the first resource and the first RNTI have a corresponding relationship.

Optionally, the sending module 720 is further configured to send a third message to the terminal device, where the third message is used to request the terminal device to feed back whether the TA value between the terminal device and the network device can be determined or calculated; and/or the receiving module 710 is further configured to receive a fourth message from the terminal device, where the fourth message is used to indicate whether the terminal device can determine or calculate a TA value with the network device.

The receiving module 710 and the transmitting module 720 may be implemented by transceivers. The specific functions and advantages of the receiving module 710 and the transmitting module 720 may be referred to as methods shown in fig. 3 to 5, and will not be described herein.

Fig. 8 is a schematic structural diagram of a network device according to another embodiment of the present application. The network device 800 shown in fig. 8 may correspond to the above first network device, as shown in fig. 8, and the terminal device 800 includes a transmitting module 820 and a processing module 830.

A receiving module 810 is configured to receive a handover request from a second network device, where the handover request includes third indication information, where the third indication information is used to indicate whether a timing advance TA value between the terminal device and the first network device can be determined.

And a processing module 830, configured to determine whether the terminal device can determine a TA value with the first network device according to the third indication information.

Optionally, the network device 800 further includes a sending module 820 configured to send a response message corresponding to the handover request to the second network device, where the response message includes fourth indication information, where the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the TA value between the terminal device and the first network device is determined or calculated by the terminal device.

Optionally, the receiving module 810 is further configured to receive the TA value from the terminal device.

The receiving module 810 and the transmitting module 820 may be implemented by transceivers. The processing module 830 may be implemented by a processor. The specific functions and advantages of the receiving module 810, the transmitting module 820 and the processing module 830 can be referred to the methods shown in fig. 3 to 5, and will not be described herein.

Fig. 9 is a schematic structural diagram of a network device according to another embodiment of the present application. The terminal device 900 shown in fig. 9 may correspond to the above first network device, and as shown in fig. 9, the terminal device 900 includes a receiving module 910 and a transmitting module 920.

A sending module 920, configured to send second instruction information to the terminal device, where the second instruction information is used to instruct the terminal device to determine or calculate the timing advance TA value;

a receiving module 910, configured to receive the TA value from the terminal device.

Optionally, the sending module 920 is further configured to: and sending first indication information to the terminal equipment, wherein the first indication information is used for indicating a first resource and a first RNTI, and the first resource and the first RNTI have a corresponding relation.

Optionally, the first indication information is carried in a broadcast message.

The receiving module 910 and the transmitting module 920 may be implemented by transceivers. The specific functions and advantages of the receiving module 910 and the transmitting module 920 may be referred to the methods shown in fig. 3 to 5, and will not be described herein.

Fig. 10 is a schematic block diagram of a terminal device according to another embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 10, terminal device 1000 can include a transceiver 1010, a processor 1020, and a memory 1030.

Only one memory and processor is shown in fig. 10. 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 storage device, etc. The memory may be provided separately from the processor or may be integrated with the processor, as the embodiments of the application are not limited in this respect.

The transceiver 1010, the processor 1020, and the memory 1030 communicate with each other via internal communication paths to transfer control and/or data signals.

In particular, the transceiver 1010 is configured to determine a timing advance, TA, value with the first network device based on the first power and/or the first distance; for sending a first message to the first network device on a first resource according to the TA value; the first power is a received power of a downlink signal from the first network device, and the first distance is a distance between the terminal device and the first network device.

The specific operation and advantages of the network device 1000 may be described in the embodiments shown in fig. 3 to 5, and will not be described herein.

Fig. 11 is a schematic block diagram of a network device according to another embodiment of the present application. The terminal device 1100 shown in fig. 11 may correspond to the above second network device, and as shown in fig. 11, the network device 1100 may include a transceiver 1110, a processor 1120, and a memory 1130.

Only one memory and processor is shown in fig. 11. In an actual network 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 storage device, etc. The memory may be provided separately from the processor or may be integrated with the processor, as the embodiments of the application are not limited in this respect.

The transceiver 1110, the processor 1120, and the memory 1130 communicate with each other via internal communication paths to transfer control and/or data signals.

Specifically, the transceiver 1110 is configured to send a handover request to a first network device, where the handover request includes third indication information, where the third indication information is used to indicate whether a terminal device can determine a timing advance TA value between the terminal device and the first network device; for sending a handover command to the terminal device, the handover command being for instructing the terminal device to be handed over from the second network device to the first network device.

The specific operation and advantages of the network device 1100 may be described with reference to the embodiment shown in fig. 6, and will not be described herein.

Fig. 12 is a schematic block diagram of a network device according to another embodiment of the present application. The terminal device 1200 shown in fig. 12 may correspond to the above first network device, and as shown in fig. 12, the network device 1200 may include a transceiver 1210, a processor 1220, and a memory 1230.

Only one memory and processor is shown in fig. 12. In an actual network 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 storage device, etc. The memory may be provided separately from the processor or may be integrated with the processor, as the embodiments of the application are not limited in this respect.

The transceiver 1210, processor 1220 and memory 1230 communicate with each other via internal communication paths to transfer control and/or data signals.

Specifically, the transceiver 1210 is configured to receive a handover request from a second network device, where the handover request includes third indication information, where the third indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device can determine a timing advance TA value with the first network device.

Processor 1220 is configured to determine whether the terminal device can determine a TA value with the first network device according to the third indication information.

The specific operation and advantages of the network device 1200 may be described in the embodiment shown in fig. 6, and will not be described herein.

Fig. 13 is a schematic block diagram of a network device according to another embodiment of the present application. The terminal device 1300 shown in fig. 13 may correspond to the above first network device, and as shown in fig. 13, the network device 1300 may include a transceiver 1310, a processor 1320, and a memory 1330.

Only one memory and processor is shown in fig. 13. In an actual network 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 storage device, etc. The memory may be provided separately from the processor or may be integrated with the processor, as the embodiments of the application are not limited in this respect.

The transceiver 1310, the processor 1320, and the memory 1330 communicate with each other via internal communication paths to transfer control and/or data signals.

Specifically, the transceiver 1310 is configured to send second indication information to the terminal device, where the second indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to determine or calculate the timing advance TA value; for receiving the TA value from the terminal device.

The specific operation and advantages of the network device 1300 may be described in the embodiment shown in fig. 6, and will not be described herein.

The transceiver according to the embodiments of the present application may also be referred to as a transceiver unit, a transceiver device, etc. The processor may also be referred to as a processing unit, processing board, processing module, processing device, etc. Alternatively, the device for implementing the receiving function in the transceiver may be regarded as a receiving unit, and the device for implementing the transmitting function in the transceiver may be regarded as a transmitting unit, i.e. the transceiver comprises a receiving unit and a transmitting unit. The receiving unit may also be referred to as a receiver, or receiving circuit, among others. The transmitting unit may also sometimes be referred to as a transmitter, or a transmitting circuit, etc.

The memory described in various embodiments of the application is used to store computer instructions and parameters required for the operation of the processor.

The processor according to the embodiments of the present application may be an integrated circuit chip having signal processing capability. In implementation, the steps of the above method may be performed by integrated logic circuits of hardware in a processor or by instructions in the form of software. The processor described by embodiments of the application may be a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (digital signal processor, DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (application specific integrated circuit, ASIC), an off-the-shelf programmable gate array (field programmable gate array, FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic device, discrete hardware components. The disclosed methods, steps, and logic blocks in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented or performed. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor or the processor may be any conventional processor or the like. The steps of the method disclosed in connection with the embodiments of the present application may be embodied directly in the execution of a hardware decoding processor, or in the execution of a combination of hardware and software modules in a decoding processor. The software modules may be located in a memory medium well known in the art such as random access memory (random access memory, RAM), flash memory, read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory, or electrically erasable programmable memory, registers, and the like. The storage medium is located in a memory, and the processor reads instructions from the memory and, in combination with its hardware, performs the steps of the method described above.

In the present application, unless otherwise specified, "first" and "second" are used merely to distinguish between different individuals in a noun of the same category, and are not to be construed as limiting the noun, e.g., the "first cell" and the "second cell" are two or more different types of cells, but are not otherwise limited thereto. However, the portions specifically described for "first" and "second" are not applicable to the above explanation.

In various embodiments of the present application, the sequence number of each process does not mean the sequence of execution sequence, and the execution sequence of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of the present application.

In the above embodiments, it may be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware, or any other combination. 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, produces a flow or function in accordance with embodiments of the present application, in whole or in part. The computer may be a general purpose computer, a special purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable apparatus. The computer instructions may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium, for example, the computer instructions may be transmitted from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center by a wired (e.g., coaxial cable, fiber optic, digital subscriber line (digital subscriber line, DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.). The computer readable storage medium may be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device including one or more servers, data centers, etc. that can be integrated with the available medium. The usable medium may be a magnetic medium (e.g., a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (e.g., a digital video disc (digital video disc, DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., a Solid State Disk (SSD)), or the like.

Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the various illustrative elements and algorithm steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware, or combinations of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the solution. Skilled artisans may implement the described functionality in varying ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the present application.

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

In the several embodiments provided by the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, devices, and methods may be implemented in other manners. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative, e.g., the division of the units is merely a logical function division, and there may be additional divisions when actually implemented, e.g., multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be omitted or not performed. Alternatively, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed with each other may be an indirect coupling or communication connection via some interfaces, devices or units, which may be in electrical, mechanical or other form.

The units described as separate units may or may not be physically separate, and units shown as units may or may not be physical units, may be located in one place, or may be distributed on a plurality of network units. Some or all of the units may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of this embodiment.

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

The functions, if implemented in the form of software functional units and sold or used as a stand-alone product, may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application may be embodied essentially or in a part contributing to the prior art or in a part of the technical solution, in the form of a software product stored in a storage medium, comprising several instructions for causing a computer device (which may be a personal computer, a server, a network device, etc.) to perform all or part of the steps of the method according to the embodiments of the present application. And the aforementioned storage medium includes: a U-disk, a removable hard disk, a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (random access memory, RAM), a magnetic disk, or an optical disk, or other various media capable of storing program codes.

The foregoing is merely illustrative of the present application, and the present application is not limited thereto, and any person skilled in the art will readily recognize that variations or substitutions are within the scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application shall be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A method of communication, the method comprising:

the terminal equipment receives first indication information, wherein the first indication information is used for indicating a first resource;

the terminal equipment determines a Timing Advance (TA) value between the terminal equipment and first network equipment according to the first power and/or the first distance;

the terminal equipment sends a first message to the first network equipment on the first resource according to the TA value;

the first power is the receiving power of a downlink signal from the first network device, and the first distance is the distance between the terminal device and the first network device, wherein the first distance is determined according to the position of the terminal device; or the first distance is determined from the first power.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first message comprises at least one of a radio resource control, RRC, connection establishment request message, an RRC connection recovery request message, an RRC connection reestablishment request message, an RRC reconfiguration complete message, and a cell radio network temporary identity, C-RNTI, of the terminal device.

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

and the terminal equipment sends the TA value to the first network equipment.

4. A method according to any one of claim 1 to 3, wherein,

the first indication information is further used for indicating a first Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI), and the first resource and the first RNTI have a corresponding relation.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the method further comprises:

the terminal device receives a second message from the first network device in response to the first message using the C-RNTI or the first RNTI.

6. The method according to any one of claim 1 to 5, wherein,

the first indication information is from the first network device; or alternatively

The first indication information is from a second network device, the second network device being different from the first network device.

7. A method of communication, the method comprising:

the second network equipment sends a switching request to the first network equipment, wherein the switching request comprises third indicating information which is used for indicating whether the terminal equipment can determine a Timing Advance (TA) value between the terminal equipment and the first network equipment;

the second network device sends a switching command to the terminal device, wherein the switching command is used for indicating the terminal device to be switched from the second network device to the first network device, the switching command comprises first indication information, the first indication information is used for indicating a first resource and a first RNTI, and the first resource and the first RNTI have a corresponding relation.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the method further comprises:

the second network device receives a response message corresponding to the handover request from the first network device, the response message including fourth indication information for indicating that a TA value between the terminal device and the first network device is determined or calculated by the terminal device.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the response message further comprises a first resource and a first radio network temporary identity, RNTI, the first resource having a correspondence with the first RNTI.

10. The method according to any one of claims 7 to 9, further comprising:

the second network device sends a third message to the terminal device, wherein the third message is used for requesting the terminal device to feed back whether the TA value between the terminal device and the network device can be determined or calculated; and/or

The second network device receives a fourth message from the terminal device, where the fourth message is used to indicate whether the terminal device can determine or calculate a TA value with the network device.

11. A method of communication, the method comprising:

the first network equipment receives a switching request from the second network equipment, wherein the switching request comprises third indicating information which is used for indicating whether the terminal equipment can determine a timing advance TA value between the terminal equipment and the first network equipment;

the first network device sends a response message corresponding to the handover request to the second network device, wherein the response message comprises fourth indication information, and the fourth indication information is used for indicating the TA value between the terminal device and the first network device to be determined or calculated by the terminal device;

and the first network equipment determines whether the terminal equipment can determine the TA value between the terminal equipment and the first network equipment according to the third indication information.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the response message further comprises a first resource and a first radio network temporary identity, RNTI, the first resource having a correspondence with the first RNTI.

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

the first network device receives the TA value from the terminal device.

14. A communication device, the communication device comprising:

the receiving module is used for receiving first indication information, wherein the first indication information is used for indicating first resources;

a processing module, configured to determine a timing advance TA value between the processing module and the first network device according to the first power and/or the first distance;

a sending module, configured to send a first message to the first network device on the first resource according to the TA value;

the first power is the receiving power of a downlink signal from the first network device, and the first distance is the distance between the communication device and the first network device, wherein the first distance is determined according to the position of the communication device; or the first distance is determined from the first power.

15. The communication apparatus of claim 14, wherein the first message comprises at least one of a radio resource control, RRC, connection establishment request message, an RRC connection recovery request message, an RRC connection reestablishment request message, an RRC reconfiguration complete message, and a cell radio network temporary identity, C-RNTI, of the communication apparatus.

16. The communication device according to claim 14 or 15, wherein the sending module is further configured to:

and sending the TA value to the first network equipment.

17. The communication apparatus according to any one of claims 14 to 16, wherein the first indication information is further configured to indicate a first radio network temporary identity, RNTI, the first resource having a correspondence with the first RNTI.

18. The communication device of claim 17, wherein the receiving module is further configured to:

a second message is received from the first network device in response to the first message using the C-RNTI or the first RNTI.

19. The communication device according to any one of claims 14 to 18, wherein,

20. A communication device, the communication device comprising:

a sending module, configured to send a handover request to a first network device, where the handover request includes third indication information, where the third indication information is used to indicate whether a terminal device can determine a timing advance TA value between the terminal device and the first network device;

the sending module is further configured to send a handover command to the terminal device, where the handover command is used to instruct the terminal device to be handed over from the communication device to the first network device, the handover command includes first indication information, the first indication information is used to indicate a first resource and a first RNTI, and the first resource and the first RNTI have a correspondence relationship.

21. The communication device of claim 20, wherein the communication device further comprises:

a receiving module, configured to receive a response message corresponding to the handover request from the first network device, where the response message includes fourth indication information, where the fourth indication information is used to indicate that a TA value between the terminal device and the first network device is determined or calculated by the terminal device.

22. The communications apparatus of claim 21, wherein the response message further comprises a first resource and a first radio network temporary identity, RNTI, the first resource having a correspondence with the first RNTI.

23. The communication device according to any one of claims 20 to 22, wherein,

the sending module is further configured to send a third message to the terminal device, where the third message is used to request the terminal device to feed back whether a TA value between the terminal device and the network device can be determined or calculated; and/or

The receiving module is further configured to receive a fourth message from the terminal device, where the fourth message is used to indicate whether the terminal device can determine or calculate a TA value with a network device.

24. A communication device, the communication device comprising:

a receiving module, configured to receive a handover request from a second network device, where the handover request includes third indication information, where the third indication information is used to indicate whether a terminal device can determine a timing advance TA value with the communication apparatus;

a sending module, configured to send a response message corresponding to the handover request to the second network device, where the response message includes fourth indication information, where the fourth indication information is used to indicate that a TA value between the terminal device and the communication apparatus is determined or calculated by the terminal device;

And the processing module is used for determining whether the terminal equipment can determine the TA value between the terminal equipment and the communication device according to the third indication information.

25. The communications apparatus of claim 24, wherein the response message further comprises a first resource and a first radio network temporary identity, RNTI, the first resource having a correspondence with the first RNTI.

26. The communication apparatus according to claim 24 or 25, wherein the receiving module is further configured to receive the TA value from the terminal device.

27. A communication device comprising means or units for performing the method of any of claims 1 to 13.

28. A communication device comprising a transceiver, a processor and a memory for performing the method of any of claims 1 to 13.

29. A chip, characterized in that it is connected to a memory or comprises a memory in said chip for reading and executing a software program stored in said memory for implementing the method according to any of claims 1 to 13.

30. A computer readable storage medium, characterized in that the storage medium has stored therein a computer program or instructions which, when executed by a communication device, implement the method of any of claims 1 to 13.

31. A computer program product comprising a computer program which, when run, implements the method of any one of claims 1 to 13.

32. A communication system, comprising: the terminal device of any one of claims 1 to 6, the second network device of any one of claims 7 to 10, and the first network device of any one of claims 11 to 13.