CN117099422A

CN117099422A - Uplink synchronization method and device and storage medium

Info

Publication number: CN117099422A
Application number: CN202380009809.8A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 李小龙
Original assignee: Beijing Xiaomi Mobile Software Co Ltd
Current assignee: Beijing Xiaomi Mobile Software Co Ltd
Priority date: 2023-06-27
Filing date: 2023-06-27
Publication date: 2023-11-21

Abstract

The disclosure provides an uplink synchronization method and device and a storage medium, wherein the method comprises the following steps: receiving time information sent by network equipment, wherein the time information is used for indicating a first time point when a cell finishes service and/or a second time point when a terminal executes uplink synchronization; and executing uplink synchronization from the second time point. The method and the device can enable the terminal to execute uplink synchronization from the second time point based on the time information sent by the network equipment, and improve the availability and reliability of NTN communication.

Description

Uplink synchronization method and device and storage medium

Technical Field

The disclosure relates to the field of communications, and in particular, to an uplink synchronization method and device, and a storage medium.

Background

Currently, non-terrestrial networks (Non-Terrestrial Networks, NTN) are increasingly used in a wide range of applications. In the NTN scenario, the access network device may be deployed on a satellite, or still be deployed on the ground and communicate with the terminal through the satellite.

Disclosure of Invention

In order to achieve uplink synchronization in an NTN scenario, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides an uplink synchronization method and apparatus, and a storage medium.

According to a first aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, there is provided an uplink synchronization method, which is performed by a terminal, including:

Receiving time information sent by network equipment, wherein the time information is used for indicating a first time point when a cell finishes service and/or a second time point when a terminal executes uplink synchronization;

and executing uplink synchronization from the second time point.

According to a second aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, there is provided an uplink synchronization method, the method being performed by a network device, including:

the method comprises the steps of sending time information to a terminal, wherein the time information is used for indicating a first time point when a cell finishes service and/or a second time point when the terminal executes uplink synchronization;

and determining that the terminal starts to execute uplink synchronization from the second time point.

According to a third aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, there is provided a terminal comprising:

the receiving and transmitting module is configured to receive time information sent by the network equipment, wherein the time information is used for indicating a first time point when a cell finishes service and/or a second time point when a terminal executes uplink synchronization;

and the processing module is configured to execute uplink synchronization from the second time point.

According to a fourth aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, there is provided a network device comprising:

the receiving and transmitting module is configured to send time information to the terminal, wherein the time information is used for indicating a first time point when a cell finishes service and/or a second time point when the terminal executes uplink synchronization;

And the processing module is configured to determine that the terminal starts to execute uplink synchronization from the second time point.

According to a fifth aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, there is provided a terminal comprising:

one or more processors;

the terminal is configured to perform the uplink synchronization method according to any one of the first aspect.

According to a sixth aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, there is provided a network device comprising:

one or more processors;

wherein the network device is configured to perform the uplink synchronization method of any one of the second aspects.

According to a seventh aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, there is provided a communication system, including a terminal configured to implement the uplink synchronization method of any one of the first aspects, and a network device configured to implement the uplink synchronization method of any one of the second aspects.

According to an eighth aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, there is provided a storage medium storing instructions that, when executed on a communication device, cause the communication device to perform the uplink synchronization method according to any one of the first or second aspects.

According to the embodiment of the disclosure, the terminal can execute uplink synchronization from the second time point based on the time information sent by the network equipment, so that the terminal behavior is defined, and the availability and reliability of NTN communication are improved.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the disclosure.

Drawings

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with the invention and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

Fig. 1 is an exemplary schematic diagram of an architecture of a communication system provided in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 2 is an exemplary interaction diagram of an uplink synchronization method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 3A is an exemplary interaction diagram of an uplink synchronization method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 3B is an exemplary interaction diagram of an uplink synchronization method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 4A is an exemplary interaction diagram of an uplink synchronization method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 4B is an exemplary interaction diagram of an uplink synchronization method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 5A is an exemplary interaction diagram of an uplink synchronization device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 5B is an exemplary interaction diagram of an uplink synchronization device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 6A is an exemplary interaction diagram of a communication device provided in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 6B is an exemplary interaction schematic of a chip provided in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

Reference will now be made in detail to exemplary embodiments, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. When the following description refers to the accompanying drawings, the same numbers in different drawings refer to the same or similar elements, unless otherwise indicated. The implementations described in the following exemplary examples do not represent all implementations consistent with the invention. Rather, they are merely examples of apparatus and methods consistent with aspects of the invention as detailed in the accompanying claims.

The terminology used in the present disclosure is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the disclosure. As used in this disclosure and the appended claims, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It should also be understood that the term "and/or" as used herein refers to and encompasses any or all possible combinations of at least one of the associated listed items.

It should be understood that although the terms first, second, third, etc. may be used in this disclosure to describe various messages, these messages should not be limited to these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one type of message from another. For example, a first message may also be referred to as a second message, and similarly, a second message may also be referred to as a first message, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The word "if" as used herein may be interpreted as "at … …" or "at … …" or "responsive to a determination", depending on the context.

The embodiment of the disclosure provides an uplink synchronization method, an uplink synchronization device and a storage medium.

In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes an uplink synchronization method, where the method is executed by a terminal, including:

and executing uplink synchronization from the second time point.

In the above embodiment, the terminal may determine, based on the time information sent by the network device, a first time point when the current cell ends the service and/or a second time point when uplink synchronization is performed, and start to perform uplink synchronization from the second time point, so as to determine the terminal behavior, and improve the availability and reliability of NTN communication.

With reference to some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the time information is at least used to indicate the second time point, and the time information includes any one of the following:

information of the second point in time;

and time length information of an interval between the second time point and the first time point.

In the above embodiment, the terminal may directly determine the second time point for performing uplink synchronization based on the time information, or determine the duration of the interval between the second time point and the first time point when the cell ends service based on the time information, so as to ensure that the terminal may determine the second time point for performing uplink synchronization based on the time information sent by the network device, thereby initiating uplink synchronization in time, and having high availability.

With reference to some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, when the time information is used to indicate the first time point, the method further includes:

the second point in time is determined based on predefined rules.

In the above embodiment, when the time information sent by the network device is used to indicate the first time point when the cell finishes serving, the terminal may determine the second time point for performing uplink synchronization based on the predefined rule, and the network device does not need to separately indicate the second time point, thereby saving signaling resources.

With reference to some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the determining the second point in time includes any one of:

determining that the second point in time reuses the first point in time;

a length of a time interval between the second point in time and the first point in time is determined.

In the above embodiment, when the time information sent by the network device is used to indicate the first time point when the cell ends service, the terminal may reuse the first time point when the cell ends service as the second time point when uplink synchronization is performed based on the predefined rule, without separately indicating the second time point by the network device, thereby saving signaling resources. Or the terminal can determine the time length of the interval between the second time point and the first time point based on the predefined rule, and execute the uplink synchronization after the cell finishes the service and waits for the time length, thereby improving the success rate of the uplink synchronization.

and receiving indication information sent by the network equipment, wherein the indication information is used for indicating whether the second time point reuses the first time point or not.

In the above embodiment, the terminal may determine, based on the indication information sent by the network device, whether to reuse the first time point of the cell ending service as the second time point of executing the uplink synchronization, so that the uplink synchronization may be initiated in time, and availability is high.

With reference to some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the method further comprises at least one of:

during a period of time between the first point in time and the second point in time, not performing a radio link monitoring operation;

and not performing a Radio Resource Control (RRC) reestablishment operation in a period of time between the first time point and the second time point.

In the above embodiment, in the case that the physical cell identifier (Physical Cell Identifier, PCI) is unchanged, in a period between a first time point when the cell ends service and a second time point when the terminal starts to perform uplink synchronization, the terminal is prevented from performing unnecessary operations, power consumption of the terminal is saved, and the availability is high.

With reference to some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the performing no radio link monitoring operation includes at least one of:

the physical layer problem detection operation is not executed;

The step-out indication counting operation is not executed;

the first timer start operation is not performed, and the first timer is a timer for monitoring radio link failure.

In the above embodiment, under the condition that the PCI is unchanged, the terminal may avoid performing the radio link monitoring operation in the above period of time, so as to achieve the purpose of saving power consumption of the terminal.

With reference to some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes:

the first timer is suspended in response to determining that the first timer has been started.

In the above embodiment, if the terminal has started the first timer for monitoring the radio link failure, the terminal may suspend the first timer, so as to avoid triggering the radio link failure after the expiration of the first timer, and under the condition that the PCI is unchanged, power consumption of the terminal is saved in the above period.

With reference to some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the performing no RRC reestablishment operation includes at least one of:

not performing a cell selection operation;

the second timer is not executed, and is a timer switched to an idle state after the radio link failure is detected.

In the above embodiment, the terminal may avoid executing the RRC reestablishment operation, so as to achieve the purpose of saving power consumption of the terminal in the above period of time under the condition that the PCI is unchanged.

the second timer is suspended in response to determining that the second timer has been started.

In the above embodiment, if the terminal has started the second timer that is switched to the idle state after the radio link failure is detected, the terminal may suspend the second timer, avoiding performing RRC reestablishment after the expiration of the second timer, and saving power consumption of the terminal under the condition that the PCI is unchanged.

and maintaining the RRC connected state in a period of time between the first time point and the second time point.

In the above embodiment, the terminal may be kept in the RRC connected state in a time point between a first time point when the cell ends service and a second time point when the cell starts to perform uplink synchronization, so that unnecessary operations performed by the terminal are avoided under the condition that the PCI is unchanged, power consumption of the terminal is saved, and usability is high.

With reference to some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the performing uplink synchronization from the second time point includes:

receiving a system message broadcast by the network equipment;

And based on the system message, sending a random access request message to the network equipment at the second time point.

In the above embodiment, the terminal may send the random access request message to the network device at the second time point based on the system message broadcast by the network device, thereby completing uplink synchronization, and improving availability and reliability of NTN communication.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes an uplink synchronization method, where the method is performed by a network device, including:

In the above embodiment, the network device may send time information to the terminal, inform the terminal of a first time point when the cell ends service and/or a second time point when the terminal starts to execute uplink synchronization, so as to define the terminal behavior, ensure that the understanding of the network device and the terminal on the terminal behavior is consistent, and improve the availability and reliability of NTN communication.

With reference to some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the time information is at least used to indicate the second time point, and the time information includes any one of the following:

Information of the second point in time;

With reference to some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, when the time information is used to indicate the first point in time, the method further includes:

the second point in time is determined based on predefined rules.

In the above embodiment, when the time information sent by the network device is used to indicate the first time point when the cell finishes serving, the network device may determine the second time point when the terminal performs uplink synchronization based on the predefined rule, and the network device does not need to separately indicate the second time point, thereby saving signaling resources.

With reference to some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the determining the second point in time includes any one of:

determining that the second point in time reuses the first point in time;

In the above embodiment, when the time information sent by the network device is used to indicate the first time point when the cell ends service, the network device may determine, based on a predefined rule, that the terminal reuses the first time point when the cell ends service as the second time point when uplink synchronization is performed, without separately indicating the second time point by the network device, thereby saving signaling resources. Or the network device can determine the time length of the interval between the second time point and the first time point based on the predefined rule, and determine that the terminal executes uplink synchronization after the cell finishes service and waits for the time length, thereby improving the success rate of the uplink synchronization.

With reference to some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes:

and sending indication information to the terminal, wherein the indication information is used for indicating whether the second time point reuses the first time point or not.

In the above embodiment, the network device may send the indication information, and inform the terminal whether to reuse the first time point of the cell ending service as the second time point of executing the uplink synchronization through the indication information, so that the terminal may initiate the uplink synchronization in time, and ensure that the network device is consistent with the understanding of the terminal on the terminal behavior, and the availability is high.

With reference to some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the method further comprises at least one of:

during a period of time between the first time point and the second time point, the terminal is not expected to perform a radio link monitoring operation;

during a period of time between the first time point and the second time point, the terminal is not expected to perform a Radio Resource Control (RRC) reestablishment operation.

In the above embodiment, under the condition that the PCI is unchanged, the network device does not expect the terminal to perform unnecessary operations in a period between a first time point when the cell finishes the service and a second time point when the terminal starts to perform uplink synchronization, so as to ensure that the network device and the terminal understand the behavior of the terminal consistently, and achieve the purpose of saving the power consumption of the terminal.

With reference to some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the terminal is not expected to perform a radio link monitoring operation, including at least one of:

the terminal is not expected to perform physical layer problem detection operation;

the terminal is not expected to execute out-of-step indication counting operation;

the terminal is not expected to perform a first timer start operation, which is a timer that monitors radio link failure.

In the above embodiment, in the case where the PCI is unchanged, the network device does not expect the terminal to perform the above-described radio link monitoring operation in the above-described period of time, so as to ensure that the network device is consistent with the terminal's understanding of the terminal behavior.

in response to determining that the terminal has started the first timer, it is determined that the terminal suspended the first timer.

In the above embodiment, the network device may determine that the terminal will suspend the started first timer, so as to ensure that the network device is consistent with the terminal's understanding of the terminal behavior.

With reference to some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the terminal is not expected to perform RRC reestablishment operations, including at least one of:

The terminal is not expected to perform a cell selection operation;

the terminal is not expected to perform a second timer start operation, which is a timer that switches to an idle state after detecting a radio link failure.

In the above embodiment, under the condition that the PCI is unchanged, the network device does not expect the terminal to execute the RRC reestablishment operation in the above period of time, so as to ensure that the network device and the terminal understand the terminal behavior consistently.

in response to determining that the terminal has started the second timer, it is determined that the terminal has suspended the second timer.

In the above embodiment, the network device may determine that the terminal will suspend the started second timer, so as to ensure that the network device is consistent with the terminal's understanding of the terminal's behavior.

and determining that the terminal is kept in an RRC connected state in a period of time from the first time point to the second time point.

In the above embodiment, the network device may determine that the terminal remains in the RRC connected state throughout the above period of time, so as to ensure that the network device is consistent with the terminal's understanding of the terminal behavior.

broadcasting a system message;

and receiving a random access request message sent by the terminal at the second time point based on the system message.

In the above embodiment, the network device may broadcast the system message and receive, at the second time point, the random access request message sent by the terminal at the second time point based on the system message, so as to define the terminal behavior, and the availability is high.

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a terminal, including:

In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a network device, including:

In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a terminal, including:

one or more processors;

In a sixth aspect, embodiments of the present disclosure provide a network device, including:

one or more processors;

In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a communication system, including a terminal and a network device, where the terminal is configured to implement the uplink synchronization method of any one of the first aspect, and the network device is configured to implement the uplink synchronization method of any one of the second aspect.

In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a storage medium storing instructions that, when executed on a communication device, cause the communication device to perform the uplink synchronization method according to any one of the first or second aspects.

It will be appreciated that the above-described terminals, network devices, communication systems, storage media, computer programs are all adapted to perform the methods set forth in the embodiments of the present disclosure. Therefore, the advantages achieved by the method can be referred to as the advantages of the corresponding method, and will not be described herein.

The embodiment of the disclosure provides an uplink synchronization method, an uplink synchronization device and a storage medium. In some embodiments, terms such as an uplink synchronization method, an information processing method, a communication method, and the like may be replaced with each other, terms such as an uplink synchronization device, an information processing device, a communication device, and the like may be replaced with each other, and terms such as an information processing system, a communication system, and the like may be replaced with each other.

The embodiments of the present disclosure are not intended to be exhaustive, but rather are exemplary of some embodiments and are not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure. In the case of no contradiction, each step in a certain embodiment may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the steps may be arbitrarily combined, for example, a scheme in which part of the steps are removed in a certain embodiment may also be implemented as an independent embodiment, the order of the steps in a certain embodiment may be arbitrarily exchanged, and further, alternative implementations in a certain embodiment may be arbitrarily combined; furthermore, various embodiments may be arbitrarily combined, for example, some or all steps of different embodiments may be arbitrarily combined, and an embodiment may be arbitrarily combined with alternative implementations of other embodiments.

In the various embodiments of the disclosure, terms and/or descriptions of the various embodiments are consistent throughout the various embodiments and may be referenced to each other in the absence of any particular explanation or logic conflict, and features from different embodiments may be combined to form new embodiments in accordance with their inherent logic relationships.

The terminology used in the embodiments of the disclosure is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the disclosure.

In the presently disclosed embodiments, elements that are referred to in the singular, such as "a," "an," "the," "said," etc., may mean "one and only one," or "one or more," "at least one," etc., unless otherwise indicated. For example, where an article (article) is used in translation, such as "a," "an," "the," etc., in english, a noun following the article may be understood as a singular expression or as a plural expression.

In the presently disclosed embodiments, "plurality" refers to two or more.

In some embodiments, terms such as "at least one of", "one or more of", "multiple of" and the like may be substituted for each other.

In some embodiments, "A, B at least one of", "a and/or B", "in one case a, in another case B", "in response to one case a", "in response to another case B", and the like, may include the following technical solutions according to circumstances: in some embodiments a (a is performed independently of B); b (B is performed independently of a) in some embodiments; in some embodiments, execution is selected from a and B (a and B are selectively executed); in some embodiments a and B (both a and B are performed). Similar to that described above when there are more branches such as A, B, C.

In some embodiments, the description modes such as "a or B" may include the following technical schemes according to circumstances: in some embodiments a (a is performed independently of B); b (B is performed independently of a) in some embodiments; in some embodiments execution is selected from a and B (a and B are selectively executed). Similar to that described above when there are more branches such as A, B, C.

The prefix words "first", "second", etc. in the embodiments of the present disclosure are only for distinguishing different description objects, and do not limit the location, order, priority, number, content, etc. of the description objects, and the statement of the description object refers to the claims or the description of the embodiment context, and should not constitute unnecessary limitations due to the use of the prefix words. For example, if the description object is a "field", the ordinal words before the "field" in the "first field" and the "second field" do not limit the position or the order between the "fields", and the "first" and the "second" do not limit whether the "fields" modified by the "first" and the "second" are in the same message or not. For another example, describing an object as "level", ordinal words preceding "level" in "first level" and "second level" do not limit priority between "levels". As another example, the number of descriptive objects is not limited by ordinal words, and may be one or more, taking "first device" as an example, where the number of "devices" may be one or more. Furthermore, objects modified by different prefix words may be the same or different, e.g., the description object is "a device", then "a first device" and "a second device" may be the same device or different devices, and the types may be the same or different; for another example, the description object is "information", and the "first information" and the "second information" may be the same information or different information, and the contents thereof may be the same or different.

In some embodiments, "comprising a", "containing a", "for indicating a", "carrying a", may be interpreted as carrying a directly, or as indicating a indirectly.

In some embodiments, terms "responsive to … …", "responsive to determination … …", "in the case of … …", "at … …", "when … …", "if … …", "if … …", and the like may be interchanged.

In some embodiments, the apparatuses and devices may be interpreted as entities, or may be interpreted as virtual, and the names thereof are not limited to those described in the embodiments, and may also be interpreted as "devices (apparatuses)", "circuits", "network elements", "nodes", "functions", "units", "components", "sections", "systems", "networks", "entities", "bodies", and so on in some cases.

In some embodiments, a "network" may be interpreted as an apparatus comprised in the network, e.g. an access network device, a core network device, etc.

In some embodiments, the "access network device (access network device, AN device)" may also be referred to as a "radio access network device (radio access network device, RAN device)", "Base Station (BS)", "radio base station (radio base station)", "fixed station (fixed station)", and in some embodiments may also be referred to as a "node)", "access point (access point)", "transmission point (transmission point, TP)", "Reception Point (RP)", "transmission and/or reception point (transmission/reception point), TRP)", "panel", "antenna array", "cell", "macrocell", "microcell", "femto cell", "pico cell", "sector", "cell group", "serving cell", "carrier", "component carrier (component carrier)", bandwidth part (BWP), etc.

In some embodiments, a "terminal" or "terminal device" may be referred to as a "user equipment" (UE), a "user terminal" (MS), a "mobile station" (MT), a subscriber station (subscriber station), a mobile unit (mobile unit), a subscriber unit (subscore unit), a wireless unit (wireless unit), a remote unit (remote unit), a mobile device (mobile device), a wireless device (wireless device), a wireless communication device (wireless communication device), a remote device (remote device), a mobile subscriber station (mobile subscriber station), an access terminal (access terminal), a mobile terminal (mobile terminal), a wireless terminal (wireless terminal), a remote terminal (mobile terminal), a handheld device (handset), a user agent (user), a mobile client (client), a client, etc.

In some embodiments, the acquisition of data, information, etc. may comply with laws and regulations of the country of locale.

In some embodiments, data, information, etc. may be obtained after user consent is obtained.

Furthermore, each element, each row, or each column in the tables of the embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented as a separate embodiment, and any combination of elements, any rows, or any columns may also be implemented as a separate embodiment.

Fig. 1 is a schematic architecture diagram of a communication system shown in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

As shown in fig. 1, the communication system 100 includes a terminal (terminal) 101 and a network device 102.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 includes at least one of a mobile phone (mobile phone), a wearable device, an internet of things device, a communication enabled car, a smart car, a tablet (Pad), a wireless transceiver enabled computer, a Virtual Reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (augmented reality, AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal device in industrial control (industrial control), a wireless terminal device in unmanned (self-driving), a wireless terminal device in teleoperation (remote medical surgery), a wireless terminal device in smart grid (smart grid), a wireless terminal device in transportation security (transportation safety), a wireless terminal device in smart city (smart city), a wireless terminal device in smart home (smart home), for example, but is not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, the network device 102 includes an access network device 1021, e.g., a node or device that accesses a terminal to a wireless network, where the access network device 1021 may include at least one of an evolved NodeB (eNB), a next generation NodeB (next generation eNB, ng-eNB), a next generation NodeB (gNB), a NodeB (node B, NB), a Home NodeB (HNB), a home NodeB (home evolved nodeB, heNB), a wireless backhaul device, a wireless network controller (radio network controller, RNC), a base station controller (base station controller, BSC), a base transceiver station (base transceiver station, BTS), a baseband unit (base band unit, BBU), a mobile switching center, a base station in a 6G communication system, an Open base station (Open RAN), a Cloud base station (Cloud RAN), a base station in other communication systems, an access node in a Wi-Fi system, but is not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, the technical solutions of the present disclosure may be applied to an Open RAN architecture, where an access network device or an interface in an access network device according to the embodiments of the present disclosure may become an internal interface of the Open RAN, and flow and information interaction between these internal interfaces may be implemented by using software or a program.

In some embodiments, the access network device 1021 may be composed of a Central Unit (CU) and a Distributed Unit (DU), where the CU may also be referred to as a control unit (control unit), and the protocol layers of the access network device 1021 may be separated by adopting a CU-DU structure, where functions of part of the protocol layers are centrally controlled by the CU, and functions of part or all of the protocol layers are distributed in the DU, and the DU is centrally controlled by the CU, but is not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, network device 102 includes a core network device 1022. Core network device 1022 may be one device or may be a plurality of devices or groups of devices. The network element may be virtual or physical. The core network comprises, for example, at least one of an evolved packet core (Evolved Packet Core, EPC), a 5G core network (5G Core Network,5GCN), a next generation core (Next Generation Core, NGC).

Illustratively, the core network device 1022 may include, but is not limited to, an access management function (Access and Mobility Management Function, AMF), a user plane function (User Plane Function, UPF), and the like.

It may be understood that, the communication system described in the embodiments of the present disclosure is for more clearly describing the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present disclosure, and is not limited to the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present disclosure, and those skilled in the art can know that, with the evolution of the system architecture and the appearance of new service scenarios, the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable to similar technical problems.

The embodiments of the present disclosure described below may be applied to the communication system 100 shown in fig. 1, or a part of the main body, but are not limited thereto. The respective bodies shown in fig. 1 are examples, and the communication system may include all or part of the bodies in fig. 1, or may include other bodies than fig. 1, and the number and form of the respective bodies may be arbitrary, and the respective bodies may be physical or virtual, and the connection relationship between the respective bodies is examples, and the respective bodies may not be connected or may be connected, and the connection may be arbitrary, direct connection or indirect connection, or wired connection or wireless connection.

The embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to long term evolution (Long Term Evolution, LTE), LTE-Advanced (LTE-a), LTE-Beyond (LTE-B), SUPER 3G, IMT-Advanced, fourth generation mobile communication system (4th generation mobile communication system,4G), fifth generation mobile communication system (5th generation mobile communication system,5G), 5G New air interface (NR), future wireless access (Future Radio Access, FRA), new wireless access technology (New-Radio Access Technology, RAT), new wireless (New Radio, NR), new wireless access (New Radio access, NX), future generation wireless access (Future generation Radio access, FX), global System for Mobile communications (GSM (registered trademark)), CDMA2000, ultra mobile broadband (Ultra Mobile Broadband, UMB), IEEE 802.11 (registered trademark), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX (registered trademark)), IEEE 802.20, ultra WideBand (Ultra-wide, UWB), bluetooth (Bluetooth) network (Public Land Mobile Network), PLMN, a network using the same, and other systems based on the same. In addition, a plurality of system combinations (e.g., LTE or a combination of LTE-a and 5G, etc.) may be applied.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the interface between the access network device 1021 and the core network device 1022 may be an NG interface.

In the disclosed embodiment, the access network device 1021 may include, but is not limited to, gateway devices (Gateway) and satellites (payload), where NTN gateways are connected to satellites through feeder links (feeder links).

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the interface between the access network device 1021 and the terminal 101 may be a New Radio (NR) Uu interface. The link between the satellite and the terminal 101 is a service link (service link).

For satellites that are not geosynchronous orbit (Non-Geosynchronous orbit), there are dynamic cells (earth moving) and semi-static cells (quasi earth fixed).

For dynamic cells, the satellite-provided serving cell will continue to move over time on the ground.

For semi-static cells, the satellite-provided serving cell may be fixed somewhere in a certain period of time and then fixed elsewhere in another period of time.

As shown in fig. 1 above, the satellite is connected to the NTN gateway through feeder link, and as the satellite moves, the satellite needs to switch between different NTN gateways. In a semi-static cell scenario, when one satellite moves away and the other satellite moves away and two different satellites are connected to the same terrestrial gateway, from the terminal's perspective, if the PCIs of the serving cells provided by the two satellites do not change (i.e., the PCIs of the serving cells provided by the two satellites are the same), then the serving cells of the terminal may not change (the terrestrial gateway does not change), and the terminal does not need to perform a cell handover.

For terminal handover, the following handover situations are included:

hard satellite handoff (hard satellite switching), non-overlapping satellite coverage at handoff.

Soft satellite handoff (soft satellite switching) with overlapping satellite coverage.

For hard and/or soft satellite handoffs, the terminal is required to reacquire uplink synchronization.

Fig. 2 is an interactive schematic diagram of an uplink synchronization method according to an embodiment of the disclosure. As shown in fig. 2, an embodiment of the present disclosure relates to an uplink synchronization method, where the method includes:

in step S2101, the network apparatus 102 transmits time information to the terminal 101.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 receives the time information. In some embodiments, the name of the time information is not limited, and is, for example, a time message, a first signaling, or the like.

In some embodiments, the time information is used to indicate a first point in time at which the cell is ending service.

For example, the first point in time may be denoted as t-service, and accordingly, the time information is used to indicate t-service.

In some embodiments, the time information sent by the network device 102 is used to indicate a first point in time, and the terminal 101 may determine a second point in time to perform uplink synchronization based on predefined rules.

Illustratively, the predefined rule may be used to indicate any of the following: the second point in time reuses the first point in time; a length of time between the second point in time and the first point in time.

For example, the terminal 101 may reuse the first time point as the second time point for performing the uplink synchronization according to a predefined rule, and determine to immediately start performing the uplink synchronization at the first time point when the cell ends the service.

Illustratively, the terminal 101 may determine the duration of the interval according to a predefined rule. The terminal 101 determines a second time point at which to perform uplink synchronization in common based on the first time point and the duration of the interval.

The duration of the above interval may be denoted as t-gap. Illustratively, t-gap may be a non-negative number, e.g., t-gap may be 0, or a positive number.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, in the case where t-gap is 0, the terminal 101 determines that the uplink synchronization starts immediately at the first time point. In the case where t-gap is a positive number, the terminal 101 determines a time length of an interval t-gap after the cell finishes service, and resumes execution of uplink synchronization.

In some embodiments, the time information sent by the network device 102 is used to indicate a first point in time, and the network device 102 also sends indication information that is used to indicate whether the second point in time reuses the first point in time.

If the terminal 101 determines to reuse the t-service as the second time point according to the indication information, the terminal 101 determines to immediately perform uplink synchronization at the first time point when the cell finishes serving, but in this case, if the next satellite has not moved to the cell, that is, no network device can provide service for the terminal 101 at this time, the uplink synchronization of the terminal 101 may fail, and thus the cell corresponding to the target satellite cannot be accessed.

If the terminal 101 determines that the t-service is not reused as the second time point according to the indication information, the terminal 101 may determine the second time point according to the predefined rule, and perform uplink synchronization at the second time point, where the manner of determining the second time point according to the predefined rule is described in the foregoing embodiment, which is not repeated herein.

If the time length of the interval between the second time point and the first time point is not 0, the success rate of the terminal for executing uplink synchronization can be effectively improved.

In some embodiments, the time information is used to instruct the terminal to perform the second point in time of uplink synchronization.

For example, the time information may include information of the second point in time. I.e. the network device 102 directly informs the terminal 101 of the second point in time of performing the uplink synchronization by means of the time information.

Illustratively, the second point in time is denoted as t-start, and the time information is used to indicate t-start.

For example, the time information may include duration information of an interval between the second time point and the first time point.

This duration can also be denoted as t-gap.

The terminal 101 may determine a first time point when the cell ends service based on a system message, configuration information, scheduling information, or the like sent by the network device 101, and further determine a second time point when uplink synchronization is performed based on the t-gap indicated by the time indication information.

For example, the terminal 101 may determine the first point in time based on a protocol predefined rule, e.g. the terminal 101 cannot receive any signaling or message sent by the network device 102 within a period exceeding a preset duration, the terminal 101 then determines this point in time as the first point in time. As another example, the terminal 101 may determine the first point in time based on ephemeris information or the like.

In some embodiments, the time information is used to indicate a first point in time when the cell ends service and a second point in time when the terminal performs uplink synchronization.

The first point in time may be denoted as t-service, for example.

For example, the second point in time may be denoted as t-start.

For example, the duration of the interval between the second point in time and the first point in time may be denoted as t-gap.

Illustratively, the time information is used to indicate t-service and t-start. Wherein, t-start may be the same time as t-service, or t-start may be a time after t-service, which is not limited in this disclosure.

Illustratively, the time information is used to indicate t-services and t-gap. Wherein t-gap may be a non-negative number, and the terminal determines t-start based on the t-service and t-gap together.

In some embodiments, the network device 102 sends, in addition to the time information, an indication information, where the indication information is used to instruct the second time point to multiplex other time points, for example, other time points different from the first time point, and the terminal 101 performs uplink synchronization at the time point indicated by the indication information.

In some embodiments, the network device 102 may send a time information, thereby indicating a first point in time when the cell ends service and/or a second point in time when the terminal performs uplink synchronization.

In some embodiments, the network device 102 may transmit different time information indicating the first point in time and the second point in time, respectively. The first point in time is indicated, for example, by the first time information, and the second point in time is indicated by the second time information. In some embodiments, other ways of determining the first point in time and/or the second point in time by the terminal 101 based at least on the time information shall also fall within the scope of the present disclosure.

In step S2102, the terminal 101 does not perform a radio link monitoring operation in a period of time between the first time point and the second time point.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 does not perform the physical layer problem (physical layer problems) detection operation for a period of time between the first point in time and the second point in time.

Illustratively, the physical layer of the terminal 101 does not send out-of-sync indications (out-of-sync indications) to higher layers.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 does not perform an out-of-sync indication (out-of-sync indication) counting operation during a period of time between the first time point and the second time point.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 does not perform the first timer start operation during a period of time between the first time point and the second time point.

Illustratively, the first timer is a timer that monitors radio link failure.

Illustratively, the first timer is a T310 timer.

Illustratively, the RRC layer of terminal 101 receives N310 consecutive out-of-sync indications sent by the physical layer, and does not start the first timer.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 does not perform two or three of the physical layer problem detection operation, the out-of-sync indication count operation, and the first timer start operation for a period of time between the first time point and the second time point.

In step S2103, the network device 102 does not expect the terminal 101 to perform a radio link monitoring operation in a period of time between the first time point and the second time point.

In some embodiments, the network device 102 does not expect the terminal 101 to perform physical layer problem detection operations during a period of time between the first point in time and the second point in time.

In some embodiments, the network device 102 does not expect the terminal 101 to perform the out-of-sync indication count operation during a period of time between the first point in time and the second point in time.

In some embodiments, the network device 102 does not expect the terminal 101 to perform the first timer-initiated operation during a period of time between the first point in time and the second point in time.

Illustratively, the first timer is a timer that monitors radio link failure.

Illustratively, the first timer is a T310 timer.

In some embodiments, the network device 102 does not expect the terminal 101 to perform two or three of a physical layer problem detection operation, a step out indication count operation, and a first timer start operation during a period of time between the first point in time and the second point in time.

In step S2104, the terminal 101 suspends the first timer in response to determining that the first timer has been started in a period of time between the first time point and the second time point.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 may suspend or stop the first timer if the terminal 101 has already started the first timer during a period of time between the first point in time and the second point in time. Illustratively, after the terminal 101 hangs up or stops the first timer, the terminal 101 does not detect a radio link failure.

Illustratively, the first timer is a timer that monitors radio link failure.

Illustratively, the first timer is a T310 timer.

In step S2105, the network device 102 determines that the terminal 101 has suspended the first timer in response to determining that the terminal 101 has started the first timer in a period of time between the first time point and the second time point.

In step S2106, the terminal 101 does not perform a radio resource control (Radio Resource Control, RRC) reestablishment operation during a period of time between the first time point and the second time point.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 does not perform a cell selection operation during a period of time between the first point in time and the second point in time.

Illustratively, the terminal 101 not performing cell selection includes the terminal 101 not measuring neighbor cells and/or the terminal 101 not sending RRC reestablishment requests to neighbor cells.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 satisfies the condition for performing RRC reestablishment during the period between the first time and the second time point, and the terminal 101 does not perform RRC reestablishment. Illustratively, the meeting the RRC reestablishment condition during the period of time between the first time and the second time point includes: the terminal 101 detects a radio link failure.

Illustratively, the terminal 101 not performing RRC reestablishment includes the terminal 101 not performing one or more of the operations related to RRC reestablishment in the 3rd generation partnership project (3rd Generation Partnership Project,3GPP) protocol.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 does not perform the second timer start operation during a period of time between the first time point and the second time point.

The second timer is illustratively a timer that switches to an idle state upon detection of a radio link failure.

Illustratively, the second timer is a T311 timer.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 does not perform the cell selection operation and does not perform the second timer start operation during a period of time between the first time point and the second time point.

In step S2107, the network device 102 does not expect the terminal 101 to perform an RRC reestablishment operation in a period of time between the first time point and the second time point.

In some embodiments, the network device 102 does not expect the terminal 101 to perform cell selection operations during the period of time between the first point in time and the second point in time.

In some embodiments, the network device 102 does not expect the terminal 101 to perform the second timer-starting operation during a period of time between the first point in time and the second point in time.

Illustratively, the second timer is a T311 timer.

In some embodiments, the network device 102 does not expect the terminal 101 to perform cell selection operations and second timer start operations during a period of time between the first point in time and the second point in time.

In step S2108, the terminal 101 suspends the second timer in response to determining that the second timer has been started in a period of time between the first time point and the second time point.

In some embodiments, during the period of time between the first point in time and the second point in time, if the terminal 101 has started the second timer, the terminal 101 may suspend or stop the second timer.

Illustratively, after the terminal 101 hangs up or stops the second timer, the terminal 101 does not enter the RRC idle state because the second timer times out.

Illustratively, the second timer is a T311 timer.

In step S2109, the network device 102 determines that the terminal 101 has suspended the second timer in response to determining that the terminal 101 has started the second timer in a period of time between the first time point and the second time point.

Step S2110, the terminal 101 remains in the RRC connected state for a period of time between the first time point and the second time point.

In step S2111, the network device 102 determines that the terminal 101 remains in the RRC connected state during the period between the first time point and the second time point.

In the disclosed embodiment, it is considered that a certain period of time is required for a satellite handoff, especially during a hard satellite handoff, the terminal 101 may first disconnect from a previous satellite and then access another satellite. If the previous satellite has finished servicing. Failure of the next satellite to timely cover the cell in which terminal 101 is currently located can result in intervals between the times that the satellite is providing service. Failure of the terminal 101 to receive the downlink signal during this interval may result in physical link failure, which in turn triggers RRC reestablishment. The RRC reestablishment is a cell search procedure, which may cause the terminal 101 to search for other cells and perform RRC reestablishment in other cells, or may not search for a cell at all (e.g., the next satellite has not completed handover) when the terminal 101 performs RRC reestablishment, thereby causing the terminal 101 to enter an idle state and not complete the handover procedure. In addition, in the case where the PCI is not changed, the terminal actually only needs to perform uplink synchronization at a designated time, so that the operation of the terminal 101 is meaningless from the first time point to the second time point, and the power consumption of the terminal is wasted.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the terminal 101 does not perform the radio link monitoring operation and/or the RRC reestablishment operation in the above period of time, so that the success rate of uplink synchronization can be improved, the waste of terminal power consumption is avoided, in addition, the consistency of understanding of the network device 102 and the terminal 101 on the terminal behavior can be ensured, and the reliability and availability of NTN communication are improved.

In step S2112, the network device 102 broadcasts the system message.

In some embodiments, terminal 101 receives the system message.

In some embodiments, the system message is used for the terminal 101 to acquire ephemeris information, complete downlink synchronization, and initiate random access, thereby accessing the network device 102.

In step S2113, the terminal 101 starts to perform uplink synchronization from the second time point.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 sends a random access request message to the network device 102 at the second point in time based on the received system message.

In some embodiments, the network device 102 receives the random access request message sent by the terminal 101 at the second point in time.

In some embodiments, the names of information and the like are not limited to the names described in the embodiments, and terms such as "information", "message", "signal", "signaling", "report", "configuration", "instruction", "command", "channel", "parameter", "field", "symbol", "codebook", "code word", "code point", "bit", "data", "program", "chip", and the like may be replaced with each other.

In some embodiments, terms "uplink", "physical uplink", and the like may be interchanged.

In some embodiments, terms such as "radio," "wireless," "radio access network," "RAN," and "RAN-based," may be used interchangeably.

In some embodiments, terms such as "send," "transmit," "report," "send," "transmit," "bi-directional," "send and/or receive," and the like may be used interchangeably.

In some embodiments, "acquire," "obtain," "receive," "transmit," "bi-directional transmit," "send and/or receive" may be used interchangeably and may be interpreted as receiving from other principals, acquiring from protocols, acquiring from higher layers, processing itself, autonomous implementation, etc.

In some embodiments, terms such as "specific (specific)", "predetermined", "preset", "set", "indicated", "certain", "arbitrary", "first", and the like may be replaced with each other, and "specific a", "predetermined a", "preset a", "set a", "indicated a", "certain a", "arbitrary a", "first a" may be interpreted as a predetermined in a protocol or the like, may be interpreted as a obtained by setting, configuring, or indicating, or the like, may be interpreted as specific a, certain a, arbitrary a, or first a, or the like, but are not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, "not expected to receive" may be interpreted as not receiving on time domain resources and/or frequency domain resources, or as not performing subsequent processing on data or the like after the data or the like is received; "not expected to transmit" may be interpreted as not transmitting, or may be interpreted as transmitting but not expecting the receiver to respond to the transmitted content.

In some embodiments, the uplink synchronization method according to the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of step S2101 to step S2113. For example, step S2101 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step S2102, step S2106 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step S2113 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step S2101+s2113 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step S2102+s2104 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step S2106+s2108 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step S2102+s2103 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and step S2106+s2107 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, but is not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, step S2102, step S2106 may be performed in exchange for sequence or simultaneously.

In some embodiments, steps S2102 through S2111 are optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

In some embodiments, step S2112 is optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

In some embodiments, steps S2101 through S2113 (optional, one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments).

In the above embodiment, the terminal may perform uplink synchronization from the second time point based on the time information sent by the network device, thereby improving availability and reliability of NTN communication, avoiding the terminal from performing unnecessary operations in a period between the first time point when the cell finishes service and the second time point when the terminal starts performing uplink synchronization, and saving power consumption of the terminal.

Fig. 3A is a flow chart illustrating an uplink synchronization method according to an embodiment of the disclosure. As shown in fig. 3A, an embodiment of the present disclosure relates to an uplink synchronization method, which may be performed by the terminal 101, where the method includes:

in step S3101, time information is acquired.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 acquires time information transmitted by the network device 102, but is not limited thereto, and may also receive time information transmitted by other subjects.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 obtains time information specified by the protocol.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 processes to obtain time information.

In some embodiments, step S3101 is omitted, and terminal 101 autonomously implements the function indicated by the time information, or the above-described function is default or default.

In some embodiments, the optional implementation of step S3101 may refer to the optional implementation of step S2101 of fig. 2, and other relevant parts in the embodiment related to fig. 2, which are not described herein.

Step S3102, uplink synchronization is performed.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 performs uplink synchronization from the second point in time.

In some embodiments, the optional implementation of step S3102 may refer to the optional implementation of step S2113 in fig. 2, and other relevant parts in the embodiment related to fig. 2, which are not described herein.

The communication method according to the embodiment of the present disclosure may include at least one of step S3101 to step S3102. For example, step S3101 may be implemented as a separate embodiment, step S3102 may be implemented as a separate embodiment, and steps S3101 to S3102 may be implemented as a separate embodiment, but are not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, step S3102 is optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

In some embodiments, step S3101 is optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

In the above embodiment, the terminal may determine the second time point at which to perform uplink synchronization based on the acquired time information, and perform uplink synchronization from the second time point. The availability and reliability of NTN communication are improved.

Fig. 3B is a flow chart illustrating an uplink synchronization method according to an embodiment of the disclosure. As shown in fig. 3B, an embodiment of the present disclosure relates to an uplink synchronization method, which may be performed by the terminal 101, where the method includes:

in step S3201, time information is acquired.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 processes to obtain time information.

In some embodiments, step S3101 is omitted, and terminal 101 autonomously implements the time information and indicated functions, or the functions are default or default.

In some embodiments, the optional implementation of step S3201 may refer to the optional implementation of step S2101 of fig. 2, and other relevant parts in the embodiment related to fig. 2, which are not described herein.

Step S3202, no radio link monitoring operation and/or no RRC reestablishment operation is performed.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 does not perform radio link monitoring operations and/or does not perform RRC reestablishment operations during a period of time between the first point in time and the second point in time.

In some embodiments, the optional implementation of step S3202 may refer to the optional implementation of steps S2102 and S2107 in fig. 2, and other relevant parts in the embodiment related to fig. 2, which are not described herein.

Step S3203, the first timer is suspended (or stopped) and/or the second timer is suspended (or stopped).

In some embodiments, the optional implementation of step S3203 may refer to the optional implementation of steps S2104 and S2108 in fig. 2, and other relevant parts in the embodiment related to fig. 2, which are not described herein.

In step S3204, uplink synchronization is started.

In some embodiments, the terminal starts to perform uplink synchronization at the second point in time.

In some embodiments, the optional implementation of step S3204 may refer to the optional implementation of step S2113 in fig. 2, and other relevant parts in the embodiment related to fig. 2, which are not described herein.

The communication method according to the embodiment of the present disclosure may include at least one of step S3201 to step S3204. For example, step S3201 may be implemented as a separate embodiment, step S3204 may be implemented as a separate embodiment, and step s3201+step S3204 may be implemented as a separate embodiment, but is not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, step S3202 is optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

In some embodiments, step S3203 is optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

In the above embodiment, under the condition that the PCI is unchanged, the terminal may avoid executing the radio link monitoring operation and/or the RRC reestablishment operation in the above period of time, so as to achieve the purpose of saving the power consumption of the terminal.

Fig. 4A is a flow chart illustrating an uplink synchronization method according to an embodiment of the disclosure. As shown in fig. 4A, embodiments of the present disclosure relate to an uplink synchronization method, which may be performed by the network device 102, including:

step S4101, time information is transmitted.

In some embodiments, the network device 102 transmits time information to the terminal 101.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 receives time information.

In some embodiments, the optional implementation of step S4101 may refer to the optional implementation of step S2101 of fig. 2, and other relevant parts in the embodiment related to fig. 2, which are not described herein.

In step S4102, it is determined that the terminal 101 starts to perform uplink synchronization.

In some embodiments, the network device 102 determines that the terminal performs uplink synchronization from the second point in time.

In some embodiments, the optional implementation of step S4102 may refer to the optional implementation of step S2113 of fig. 2, and other relevant parts in the embodiment related to fig. 2, which are not described herein.

The communication method according to the embodiment of the present disclosure may include at least one of step S4101 to step S4102. For example, step S4101 may be implemented as a separate embodiment, step S4102 may be implemented as a separate embodiment, and steps S4101 to S4102 may be implemented as separate embodiments, but are not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, step S4102 is optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

In some embodiments, step S4101 is optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

In the above embodiment, the network device may send time information to the terminal, so as to inform the terminal of the first time point when the cell finishes the service and/or the second time point when the terminal starts to perform uplink synchronization, thereby improving availability and reliability of NTN communication.

Fig. 4B is a flow chart illustrating an uplink synchronization method according to an embodiment of the disclosure. As shown in fig. 4B, embodiments of the present disclosure relate to an uplink synchronization method, which may be performed by the network device 102, including:

step S4201, time information is transmitted.

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 receives time information.

In some embodiments, the optional implementation of step S4201 may refer to the optional implementation of step S2101 of fig. 2, and other relevant parts in the embodiment related to fig. 2, which are not described herein.

Step S4202, the terminal 101 is not expected to perform radio link monitoring operations and/or RRC reestablishment operations.

In some embodiments, the network device 102 does not expect the terminal 101 to perform radio link monitoring operations and/or RRC reestablishment operations during the period of time between the first point in time and the second point in time.

In some embodiments, the optional implementation of step S3202 may refer to the optional implementation of steps S2103 and S2108 in fig. 2, and other relevant parts in the embodiment related to fig. 2, which are not described herein.

In step S4203, it is determined that the terminal 101 suspends (or stops) the first timer and/or the second timer.

In some embodiments, the optional implementation of step S3202 may refer to the optional implementation of steps S2105 and S2109 in fig. 2, and other relevant parts in the embodiment related to fig. 2, which are not described herein.

In step S4204, it is determined that the terminal 101 starts to perform uplink synchronization.

In some embodiments, the optional implementation of step S4202 may refer to the optional implementation of step S2113 of fig. 2, and other relevant parts in the embodiment related to fig. 2, which are not described herein.

The communication method according to the embodiment of the present disclosure may include at least one of step S4201 to step S4204. For example, step S4201 may be implemented as a separate embodiment, step S4204 may be implemented as a separate embodiment, and step S4201+step S4204 may be implemented as a separate embodiment, but is not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, step S4202 is optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

In some embodiments, step S4203 is optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

In the above embodiment, under the condition that the PCI is unchanged, the network device does not expect the terminal to perform the radio link monitoring operation and/or the RRC reestablishment operation in the above period of time, so as to ensure that the network device is consistent with the understanding of the terminal.

The foregoing schemes provided for the embodiments of the present disclosure are further illustrated below.

The embodiment of the disclosure provides a method for uplink synchronization under a PCI unchanged scene, which comprises the following steps:

if the network device 102 provides a time for cell end service and a time for instructing the terminal to perform uplink synchronization, then:

the terminal 101 does not perform radio link monitoring after the cell end service time and before the uplink synchronization time, including:

physical layer problem detection is not performed;

not counting the step-out indication;

t310 is not started.

If T310 has been started, then T310 is suspended.

After the cell end service time and before the uplink synchronization time, the terminal 101 does not perform RRC reestablishment if the terminal 101 detects a radio link failure (Radio Link Failure, RLF), including:

The cell selection procedure is not performed;

t311 is not started.

If T311 has been started, terminal 101 suspends T311.

The terminal 101 remains in the RRC connected state after the cell end service time and before the uplink synchronization time.

The uplink synchronization method provided by the embodiment of the disclosure comprises the following steps:

first, the network device provides time information for ending the service and time for uplink synchronization.

Next, the end service time indicates an end time of the current cell for providing the service, and the time of the uplink synchronization indicates that the terminal 101 performs uplink synchronization in the cell at the time.

Again, the uplink synchronization time may be a certain time or a time period of an interval between the uplink synchronization time and the end service time.

Again, the terminal 101 does not perform radio link monitoring between the end service time and the uplink synchronization time.

Again, the lack of radio link monitoring includes one of:

physical layer problem detection is not performed;

not counting the step-out indication;

t310 is not started;

if T310 has been started, then T310 is suspended;

the terminal 101 remains in the RRC connected state.

Again, the terminal 101 does not perform RRC reestablishment between the end service time and the uplink synchronization time.

Again, the lack of RRC reestablishment includes one of:

the cell selection procedure is not performed;

t311 is not activated;

if T311 has been started, then T311 is suspended;

and remains in the RRC connected state.

Again, the terminal 101 performs uplink synchronization in the cell at the uplink synchronization time, for example, initiates random access.

In the above embodiment, the terminal may determine the second time point of performing uplink synchronization based on the time information sent by the network device, and perform uplink synchronization from the second time point, thereby improving availability and reliability of NTN communication. And the terminal can be prevented from executing unnecessary operations in the time period from the first time point when the cell finishes service to the second time point when the uplink synchronization is executed, so that the power consumption of the terminal is saved.

The embodiments of the present disclosure also provide an apparatus for implementing any of the above methods, for example, an apparatus is provided, where the apparatus includes a unit or a module for implementing each step performed by the terminal in any of the above methods. For another example, another apparatus is also proposed, which includes a unit or module configured to implement each step performed by a network device (e.g., an access network device, etc.) in any of the above methods.

It should be understood that the division of each unit or module in the above apparatus is merely a division of a logic function, and may be fully or partially integrated into one physical entity or may be physically separated when actually implemented. Furthermore, units or modules in the apparatus may be implemented in the form of processor-invoked software: the device comprises, for example, a processor, the processor being connected to a memory, the memory having instructions stored therein, the processor invoking the instructions stored in the memory to perform any of the methods or to perform the functions of the units or modules of the device, wherein the processor is, for example, a general purpose processor, such as a central processing unit (Central Processing Unit, CPU) or microprocessor, and the memory is internal to the device or external to the device. Alternatively, the units or modules in the apparatus may be implemented in the form of hardware circuits, and part or all of the functions of the units or modules may be implemented by designing hardware circuits, which may be understood as one or more processors; for example, in one implementation, the hardware circuit is an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), and the functions of some or all of the units or modules are implemented by designing the logic relationships of elements in the circuit; for another example, in another implementation, the above hardware circuit may be implemented by a programmable logic device (programmable logic device, PLD), for example, a field programmable gate array (Field Programmable Gate Array, FPGA), which may include a large number of logic gates, and the connection relationship between the logic gates is configured by a configuration file, so as to implement the functions of some or all of the above units or modules. All units or modules of the above device may be realized in the form of invoking software by a processor, or in the form of hardware circuits, or in part in the form of invoking software by a processor, and in the rest in the form of hardware circuits.

In the disclosed embodiments, the processor is a circuit with signal processing capabilities, and in one implementation, the processor may be a circuit with instruction reading and running capabilities, such as a central processing unit (Central Processing Unit, CPU), microprocessor, graphics processor (graphics processing unit, GPU) (which may be understood as a microprocessor), or digital signal processor (digital signal processor, DSP), etc.; in another implementation, the processor may implement a function through a logical relationship of hardware circuits that are fixed or reconfigurable, e.g., a hardware circuit implemented as an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or a programmable logic device (programmable logic device, PLD), such as an FPGA. In the reconfigurable hardware circuit, the processor loads the configuration document, and the process of implementing the configuration of the hardware circuit may be understood as a process of loading instructions by the processor to implement the functions of some or all of the above units or modules. Furthermore, hardware circuits designed for artificial intelligence may be used, which may be understood as ASICs, such as neural network processing units (Neural Network Processing Unit, NPU), tensor processing units (Tensor Processing Unit, TPU), deep learning processing units (Deep learning Processing Unit, DPU), etc.

Fig. 5A is a schematic structural diagram of a terminal according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in fig. 5A, the terminal 5100 may include: transceiver module 5101, and processing module 5102.

In some embodiments, the transceiver module 5101 is configured to receive time information sent by a network device, where the time information is used to indicate a first time point when a cell ends service and/or a second time point when a terminal performs uplink synchronization.

In some embodiments, the processing module 5102 is configured to perform upstream synchronization from the second point in time.

Optionally, the transceiver module 5101 is configured to perform at least one of other steps (e.g., step S2101, step S2112, step S2113, but not limited thereto) performed by the terminal 101 in any of the above methods, which are not described herein.

Optionally, the processing module 5102 is configured to perform at least one of the communication steps (e.g., step S2102, step S2104, step S2106, step S2108, step S2110, but not limited thereto) such as transmission and/or reception performed by the terminal 101 in any of the above methods, which is not described herein.

In some embodiments, the time information is at least used to indicate the second point in time, the time information including any one of:

Information of the second point in time;

In some embodiments, when the time information is used to indicate the first point in time, the processing module 5102 is further configured to:

the second point in time is determined based on predefined rules.

In some embodiments, the processing module 5102 is further configured to any of:

determining that the second point in time reuses the first point in time;

In some embodiments, when the time information is used to indicate the first time point, the transceiver module 5101 is further configured to:

In some embodiments, the processing module 5102 is further configured to at least one of:

the physical layer problem detection operation is not executed;

the step-out indication counting operation is not executed;

In some embodiments, the processing module 5102 is further configured to:

not performing a cell selection operation;

In some embodiments, the processing module 5102 is further configured to:

In some embodiments, the transceiver module 5101 is further configured to:

Receiving a system message broadcast by the network equipment;

Fig. 5B is a schematic structural diagram of a network device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in fig. 5B, the network device 5200 can include: transceiver module 5201, processing module 5202.

In some embodiments, the transceiver module 5201 is configured to send time information to the terminal, where the time information is used to indicate a first time point when the cell ends service and/or a second time point when the terminal performs uplink synchronization.

In some embodiments, the processing module 5102 described above is configured to determine that the terminal performs uplink synchronization from the second point in time.

Optionally, the transceiver module 5201 is configured to perform at least one of the other steps (e.g., the steps S2101, S2112, S2113, but not limited thereto) performed by the network device 102 in any of the above methods, which is not described herein.

Optionally, the processing module 5202 is configured to perform at least one of the communication steps (e.g., step S2103, step S2105, step S2107, step S2109, step S2111, but not limited thereto) performed by the network device 102 in any of the above methods, which is not described herein.

information of the second point in time;

In some embodiments, when the time information is used to indicate the first point in time, the processing module 5202 is further configured to:

the second point in time is determined based on predefined rules.

In some embodiments, the processing module 5202 is further configured to any one of:

determining that the second point in time reuses the first point in time;

In some embodiments, the transceiver module 5201 is further configured to:

In some embodiments, the processing module 5202 is further configured to at least one of:

In some embodiments, the processing module 5202 is further configured to:

the terminal is not expected to perform a cell selection operation;

In some embodiments, the processing module 5202 is further configured to:

In some embodiments, the transceiver module 5201 is further configured to:

broadcasting a system message;

In some embodiments, the transceiver module may include a transmitting module and/or a receiving module, which may be separate or integrated. Alternatively, the transceiver module may be interchangeable with a transceiver.

In some embodiments, the processing module may be one module or may include a plurality of sub-modules. Optionally, the plurality of sub-modules perform all or part of the steps required to be performed by the processing module, respectively. Alternatively, the processing module may be interchanged with the processor.

Fig. 6A is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device 6100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The communication device 6100 may be a network device (e.g., an access network device or the like), a terminal (e.g., a user device or the like), a chip system, a processor or the like that supports the core network device to implement any of the above methods, or a chip, a chip system, a processor or the like that supports the terminal to implement any of the above methods. The communication device 6100 may be used to implement the methods described in the above method embodiments, and in particular reference may be made to the description of the above method embodiments.

As shown in fig. 6A, the communication device 6100 includes one or more processors 6101. The processor 6101 may be a general purpose processor or a special purpose processor or the like, and may be a baseband processor or a central processing unit, for example. The baseband processor may be used to process communication protocols and communication data, and the central processor may be used to control communication devices (e.g., base stations, baseband chips, terminal devices, terminal device chips, DUs or CUs, etc.), execute programs, and process data for the programs. The communication device 6100 is for performing any of the above methods.

In some embodiments, communication device 6100 also includes one or more memories 6102 to store instructions. Alternatively, all or part of the memory 6102 may be external to the communication device 6100.

In some embodiments, the communication device 6100 also includes one or more transceivers 6103. When the communication device 6100 includes one or more transceivers 6103, the transceivers 6103 perform at least one of the communication steps (e.g., but not limited to step S2101) of the above method of transmission and/or reception, and the processor 6101 performs at least one of the other steps (e.g., but not limited to step S2102, step S2103).

In some embodiments, the transceiver may include a receiver and/or a transmitter, which may be separate or integrated. Alternatively, terms such as transceiver, transceiver unit, transceiver circuit, etc. may be replaced with each other, terms such as transmitter, transmitter circuit, etc. may be replaced with each other, and terms such as receiver, receiving unit, receiver, receiving circuit, etc. may be replaced with each other.

In some embodiments, the communication device 6100 may include one or more interface circuits 6104. Optionally, interface circuit 6104 is coupled to memory 6102, and interface circuit 6104 may be used to receive signals from memory 6102 or other devices and may be used to send signals to memory 6102 or other devices. For example, the interface circuit 6104 may read instructions stored in the memory 6102 and send the instructions to the processor 6101.

The communication device 6100 in the above embodiment description may be a network device or a terminal, but the scope of the communication device 6100 described in the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and the structure of the communication device 6100 may not be limited by fig. 6A. The communication device may be a stand-alone device or may be part of a larger device. For example, the communication device may be: 1) A stand-alone integrated circuit IC, or chip, or a system-on-a-chip or subsystem; (2) A set of one or more ICs, optionally including storage means for storing data, programs; (3) an ASIC, such as a Modem (Modem); (4) modules that may be embedded within other devices; (5) A receiver, a terminal device, an intelligent terminal device, a cellular phone, a wireless device, a handset, a mobile unit, a vehicle-mounted device, a network device, a cloud device, an artificial intelligent device, and the like; (6) others, and so on.

Fig. 6B is a schematic structural diagram of a chip 6200 according to an embodiment of the disclosure. For the case where the communication device 6200 may be a chip or a chip system, reference may be made to a schematic structural diagram of the chip 6200 shown in fig. 6B, but is not limited thereto.

The chip 6200 includes one or more processors 6201, the chip 6200 being configured to perform any of the above methods.

In some embodiments, the chip 6200 further includes one or more interface circuits 6202. Optionally, an interface circuit 6202 is coupled to the memory 6203, the interface circuit 6202 may be configured to receive signals from the memory 6203 or other device, and the interface circuit 6202 may be configured to transmit signals to the memory 6203 or other device. For example, the interface circuit 6202 may read an instruction stored in the memory 6203 and send the instruction to the processor 6201.

In some embodiments, the interface circuit 6202 performs at least one of the communication steps (e.g., but not limited to step S2101) of the above-described method, and the processor 6201 performs at least one of the other steps (e.g., but not limited to step S2102, step S2103).

In some embodiments, the terms interface circuit, interface, transceiver pin, transceiver, etc. may be interchanged.

In some embodiments, the chip 6200 further includes one or more memories 6203 for storing instructions. Alternatively, all or part of the memory 6203 may be external to the chip 6200.

The present disclosure also proposes a storage medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed on a communication device 6100, cause the communication device 6100 to perform any of the above methods. Optionally, the storage medium is an electronic storage medium. Alternatively, the storage medium described above is a computer-readable storage medium, but is not limited thereto, and it may be a storage medium readable by other devices. Alternatively, the above-described storage medium may be a non-transitory (non-transitory) storage medium, but is not limited thereto, and it may also be a transitory storage medium.

The present disclosure also proposes a program product which, when executed by a communication device 6100, causes the communication device 6100 to perform any of the above methods. Optionally, the above-described program product is a computer program product.

The present disclosure also proposes a computer program which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform any of the above methods.

Other embodiments of the disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the disclosure disclosed herein. This disclosure is intended to cover any adaptations, uses, or adaptations of the disclosure following the general principles of the disclosure and including such departures from the present disclosure as come within known or customary practice within the art to which the disclosure pertains. It is intended that the specification and examples be considered as exemplary only, with a true scope and spirit of the disclosure being indicated by the following claims.

It is to be understood that the present disclosure is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown in the drawings, and that various modifications and changes may be effected without departing from the scope thereof. The scope of the present disclosure is limited only by the appended claims.

Claims

1. An uplink synchronization method, wherein the method is performed by a terminal and comprises:

and executing uplink synchronization from the second time point.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the time information is at least used to indicate the second point in time, the time information comprising any one of:

information of the second point in time;

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the time information is used to indicate the first point in time, the method further comprising:

the second point in time is determined based on predefined rules.

4. A method according to claim 3, wherein said determining said second point in time comprises any one of:

Determining that the second point in time reuses the first point in time;

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the time information is used to indicate the first point in time, the method further comprising:

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

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the not performing radio link monitoring operation comprises at least one of:

the physical layer problem detection operation is not executed;

the step-out indication counting operation is not executed;

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

9. The method according to any of claims 6-8, wherein the performing no RRC reestablishment operation comprises at least one of:

not performing a cell selection operation;

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the method further comprises:

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

12. The method according to any one of claims 1-11, wherein said performing uplink synchronization from said second point in time comprises:

receiving a system message broadcast by the network equipment;

13. An uplink synchronization method, wherein the method is performed by a network device, and comprises:

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the time information is at least used to indicate the second point in time, and the time information includes any one of the following:

information of the second point in time;

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the time information is used to indicate the first point in time, the method further comprising:

the second point in time is determined based on predefined rules.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the determining the second point in time comprises any one of:

determining that the second point in time reuses the first point in time;

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the method further comprises:

18. The method according to any one of claims 13-17, further comprising at least one of:

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the terminal not being expected to perform radio link monitoring operations comprises at least one of:

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the method further comprises:

21. The method according to any of claims 18-20, wherein the terminal not being expected to perform RRC re-establishment operations comprises at least one of:

the terminal is not expected to perform a cell selection operation;

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the method further comprises:

23. The method according to any one of claims 13-22, further comprising:

24. The method according to any one of claims 13-23, further comprising:

broadcasting a system message;

25. A terminal, the terminal comprising:

26. A network device, the network device comprising:

27. A terminal, comprising:

one or more processors;

wherein the terminal is configured to perform the uplink synchronization method of any one of claims 1-12.

28. A network device, comprising:

one or more processors;

wherein the network device is configured to perform the uplink synchronization method of any one of claims 13-24.

29. A communication system comprising a terminal configured to implement the uplink synchronization method of any one of claims 1-12, a network device configured to implement the uplink synchronization method of any one of claims 13-24.

30. A storage medium storing instructions that, when executed on a communication device, cause the communication device to perform the uplink synchronization method of any one of claims 1-12 or 13-24.