WO2025166519A1 - Tag determination method, terminal, network device, communication apparatus, communication system and storage medium - Google Patents

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a TAG determination method, a terminal, a network device, a communication apparatus, a communication system and a storage medium. The method comprises: a terminal performing cell handover, wherein a cell to which the terminal is transferred corresponds to a plurality of timing advance groups (TAGs); and the terminal determining, from among the plurality of TAGs, a TAG corresponding to a TA value used by the cell to which the terminal is transferred. By means of the embodiments of the present disclosure, uplink sending efficiency can be improved.

Description

TAG determination method, terminal, network equipment, communication device, communication system and storage medium Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to the field of communication technologies, and in particular to a TAG determination method, a terminal, a network device, a communication apparatus, a communication system, and a storage medium.

Background Art

In a communication system, a network device may provide one or more candidate configurations to a terminal, where each candidate configuration may include one or more cells (or cell groups). The network side may control the terminal to make changes among multiple candidate configurations (e.g., changing the working cell (or cell group) from "cell (or cell group) -1" to "cell (or cell group) -2") through L1 (such as DCI (Downlink Control Information)) signaling or L2 (MAC CE (Control Element)) signaling; the terminal may also change the cell when pre-configured conditions (such as specific measurement events) are met.

Summary of the Invention

When a terminal changes cells and the changed cell corresponds to multiple timing advance groups, how to determine the timing advance value of the timing advance group used by the cell to which the terminal changes is a technical problem that needs to be solved.

The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a TAG determination method, a terminal, a network device, a communication apparatus, a communication system, and a storage medium.

According to a first aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication method is proposed, comprising: a terminal performing a cell change, wherein the cell to which the terminal changes corresponds to a plurality of timing advance groups (TAGs); and the terminal determining, from the plurality of TAGs, a TAG of a TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes.

According to a second aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication method is proposed, including: a network device determines a TAG of a TA value used by a cell to which a terminal changes, where the cell to which the terminal changes corresponds to multiple TAGs.

According to the third aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a terminal is proposed, comprising: a processing module for performing a cell change, wherein the cell to which the terminal changes corresponds to multiple timing advance groups TAGs, and determining the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes from the multiple TAGs.

According to a fourth aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a network device is proposed, including: a processing module, configured to determine a TAG of a TA value used by a cell to which a terminal changes, wherein the cell to which the terminal changes corresponds to multiple TAGs.

According to a fifth aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication device is proposed, comprising: one or more processors; wherein the processor is configured to execute the TAG determination method of the first aspect.

According to a sixth aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication device network equipment is proposed, including: one or more processors; wherein the processor is used to execute the TAG determination method of the second aspect.

According to a seventh aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication system is proposed, including a terminal and a network device, wherein the terminal is configured to implement the TAG determination method of the first aspect, and the network device is configured to implement the TAG determination method of the second aspect.

According to an eighth aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a storage medium is proposed, which stores instructions, and is characterized in that when the instructions are executed on a communication device, the communication device executes the TAG determination method of the first aspect or the second aspect.

According to a ninth aspect of the embodiments of the present disclosure, a computer program product is proposed, including a computer program/instruction, which implements the TAG determination method of the first aspect or the second aspect when executed by a processor.

Through the embodiments of the present disclosure, when a terminal changes a cell and the changed cell corresponds to multiple TAGs, the terminal can determine the TAG of the TA value used by the changed cell, thereby improving uplink transmission efficiency.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the following drawings required for describing the embodiments are introduced. The following drawings are merely some embodiments of the present disclosure and do not impose specific limitations on the protection scope of the present disclosure.

FIG1A is an exemplary schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG1B is a schematic diagram showing a communication scenario according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG2 is an interactive schematic diagram illustrating a method for determining a TAG according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG3 is a schematic flow chart of a method for determining a TAG according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG4 is a schematic flow chart of a method for determining a TAG according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG5 is an interactive schematic diagram illustrating a method for determining a TAG according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG6 is a schematic diagram showing cell change control signaling according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG7A is a schematic diagram of the structure of a terminal proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG7B is a schematic diagram of the structure of the network device proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG8A is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG8B is a schematic diagram of the structure of the chip proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a TAG determination method, a terminal, a network device, a communication apparatus, a communication system, and a storage medium.

In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a method for determining a TAG, the method comprising: a terminal changes a cell, the cell to which the terminal changes corresponds to multiple timing advance group TAGs; the terminal determines a TAG of a TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes from the multiple TAGs.

In the above embodiment, when the terminal changes cells and the changed cell corresponds to multiple TAGs, the terminal can determine the TAG of the TA value used by the changed cell, thereby improving uplink transmission efficiency.

In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the terminal determines the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes from the multiple TAGs, including: receiving indication information sent by a network device; and based on the indication information, determining the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes from the multiple TAGs.

In the above embodiment, the terminal can use the TA value for the first TAG based on the TAG of the cell used by the terminal based on the indication information sent by the network device, thereby improving uplink transmission efficiency and reducing interference with uplink data transmission.

In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the indication information includes at least one of a TAG identifier and a TAG configuration identifier.

In the above embodiment, the terminal can determine the TAG corresponding to the changed cell based on the TAG identifier and/or the TAG configuration identifier, and thus use the TA value for the TAG, which can improve uplink transmission efficiency and reduce interference with uplink data transmission.

In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the indication information includes at least one of a spatial relationship indication and a reference signal indication.

In the above embodiment, the terminal can determine the TAG corresponding to the changed cell based on the spatial relationship indication and/or the reference signal indication, and thus use the TA value for the TAG, which can improve uplink transmission efficiency and reduce interference in uplink data transmission.

In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the indication information is carried in cell change control signaling.

In the above embodiment, the terminal can obtain indication information from the cell change control signaling, which can save communication resources.

In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes is the TAG initially used by the cell to which the terminal changes.

In the above embodiment, the terminal determines the TAG initially used by the changed cell as the TAG corresponding to the changed cell, and thus uses the TA value for the TAG, which can improve uplink transmission efficiency and reduce interference with uplink data transmission.

In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes is obtained by the terminal during the random access process; the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes is the TAG associated with the random access resource selected by the terminal during the random access process.

In the above embodiment, the terminal determines the TAG corresponding to the reference signal associated with the random access resource selected during the random access process as the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes, thereby using the TA value for the TAG, which can improve uplink transmission efficiency and reduce interference with uplink data transmission.

In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes is obtained by the terminal during a non-random access process; the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes is the TAG associated with the uplink access resource selected by the terminal during the non-random access process.

In the above embodiment, the terminal determines the TAG corresponding to the reference signal associated with the uplink access resource selected in the non-random access process as the TAG of the TA value used by the cell changed by the terminal, thereby using the TA value for the TAG, which can improve the uplink transmission efficiency and reduce the interference of uplink data transmission.

In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes is a TAG associated with the random access resource used when the terminal sends a random access signal, and the random access signal is sent by the terminal to the cell to which the terminal changes before the cell change.

In the above embodiment, the terminal determines the TAG corresponding to the reference signal associated with the random access resource used in the random access signal as the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes, thereby using the TA value for the TAG, which can improve uplink transmission efficiency and reduce interference with uplink data transmission.

In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the TA value is carried in the cell change control signaling.

In the above embodiment, the terminal uses the TA value in the cell change control signaling for the TAG corresponding to the changed cell, which can ensure that the terminal and the network device have consistent understanding of the used TA value.

With reference to some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the cell changed by the terminal includes a primary cell or a primary and secondary cell.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a communication method, which includes: a network device determines a TAG of a TA value used by a cell to which a terminal changes, where the cell to which the terminal changes corresponds to multiple TAGs.

In the above embodiment, the network device can determine the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes, thereby improving the uplink Sending efficiency.

In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the indication information includes at least one of a TAG identifier and a TAG configuration identifier.

In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the indication information includes at least one of a spatial relationship indication and a reference signal indication.

In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the indication information is carried in the cell change control signaling.

In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes is the TAG initially used by the cell to which the terminal changes.

In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes is obtained by the terminal during the random access process; the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes is the TAG associated with the random access resource selected by the terminal during the random access process.

In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes is obtained by the terminal during the non-random access process; the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes is the TAG associated with the uplink access resource selected by the terminal during the non-random access process.

In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes is a TAG associated with the random access resource used when the terminal sends a random access signal, and the random access signal is sent by the terminal to the cell to which the terminal changes before the cell change.

In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the cell changed by the terminal includes a primary cell or a primary and secondary cell.

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a terminal, comprising: a processing module for performing a cell change, wherein the cell to which the terminal changes corresponds to multiple timing advance groups TAG, and a TAG of a TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes is determined from the multiple TAGs.

In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a network device, including: a processing module, configured to determine a TAG of a TA value used by a cell to which a terminal changes, wherein the cell to which the terminal changes corresponds to multiple TAGs.

In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a communication device, comprising: one or more processors; wherein the processor is used to execute the TAG determination method of the first aspect.

In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a communication device, comprising: one or more processors; wherein the processor is used to execute the TAG determination method of the second aspect.

In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a communication system, including a terminal and a network device, wherein the terminal is configured to implement the TAG determination method of the first aspect, and the network device is configured to implement the TAG determination method of the second aspect.

In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a storage medium storing instructions, wherein the storage medium is characterized in that when the instructions are executed on a communication device, the communication device executes the TAG determination method of the first aspect or the second aspect.

In a ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a program product. When the program product is executed by a communication device, the communication device executes the method described in the optional implementation manner of the first aspect or the second aspect.

In a tenth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a computer program, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute the method described in the optional implementation of the first aspect or the second aspect.

In an eleventh aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a chip or a chip system, wherein the chip or chip system includes a processing circuit configured to execute the method described in the optional implementation of the first aspect or the second aspect.

It is understandable that the above-mentioned terminals, network devices, communication devices, communication systems, storage media, program products, computer programs, chips, or chip systems are all used to perform the methods proposed in the embodiments of the present disclosure. Therefore, the beneficial effects that can be achieved can refer to the beneficial effects of the corresponding methods and will not be repeated here.

The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method for determining a TAG, a network device, a terminal, a communication device, a communication system, and a storage medium. In some embodiments, the terms communication method and information processing method are interchangeable, and the terms information processing system and communication system are interchangeable.

The embodiments of the present disclosure are not exhaustive and are merely illustrative of some embodiments, and are not intended to be a specific limitation on the scope of protection of the present disclosure. In the absence of contradiction, each step in a certain embodiment can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the steps can be arbitrarily combined. For example, a solution after removing some steps in a certain embodiment can also be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the order of the steps in a certain embodiment can be arbitrarily exchanged. In addition, the optional implementation methods in a certain embodiment can be arbitrarily combined; in addition, the embodiments can be arbitrarily combined. For example, some or all steps of different embodiments can be arbitrarily combined, and a certain embodiment can be arbitrarily combined with the optional implementation methods of other embodiments.

In each embodiment of the present disclosure, unless otherwise specified or provided for by logic, the terms and/or descriptions between the embodiments are consistent and can be referenced by each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form a new embodiment based on their inherent logical relationships.

The terms used in the embodiments of the present disclosure are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present disclosure.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, unless otherwise specified, elements expressed in the singular, such as "a", "an", "the", "above", "said", "the", "the", etc., may mean "one and only one", or "one or more", "at least one", etc. For example, when using articles such as "a", "an", "the" in English in translation, the noun following the article may be understood as a singular expression or a plural expression.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, “plurality” refers to two or more.

In some embodiments, the terms "at least one of", "one or more", "a plurality of", "multiple", etc. can be used interchangeably.

In some embodiments, descriptions such as "at least one of A and B," "A and/or B," "A in one case, B in another case," or "in response to one case A, in response to another case B" may include the following technical solutions depending on the situation: in some embodiments, A (A is executed independently of B); in some embodiments, B (B is executed independently of A); in some embodiments, execution is selected from A and B (A and B are selectively executed); and in some embodiments, A and B (both A and B are executed). The above is also applicable when there are more branches such as A, B, and C.

In some embodiments, "A or B" and other descriptions may include the following technical solutions depending on the situation: in some embodiments, A (A is executed independently of B); in some embodiments, B (B is executed independently of A); in some embodiments, execution is selected from A and B (A and B are selectively executed). The above is also applicable when there are more branches such as A, B, C, etc.

The prefixes such as "first" and "second" in the embodiments of the present disclosure are only used to distinguish different description objects and do not constitute any restriction on the position, order, priority, quantity or content of the description objects. For the statement of the description object, please refer to the description in the context of the claims or embodiments, and no unnecessary restriction should be constituted due to the use of prefixes. For example, if the description object is a "field", the ordinal number before the "field" in the "first field" and the "second field" does not limit the position or order between the "fields". "First" and "second" do not limit whether the "fields" they modify are in the same message, nor do they limit the order of the "first field" and the "second field". For another example, if the description object is a "level", the ordinal number before the "level" in the "first level" and the "second level" does not limit the priority between the "levels". For another example, the number of description objects is not limited by the ordinal number and can be one or more. Taking "first device" as an example, the number of "devices" can be one or more. In addition, the objects modified by different prefixes can be the same or different. For example, if the description object is "device", then the "first device" and the "second device" can be the same device or different devices, and their types can be the same or different; for another example, if the description object is "information", then the "first information" and the "second information" can be the same information or different information, and their contents can be the same or different.

In some embodiments, “including A,” “comprising A,” “used to indicate A,” and “carrying A” can be interpreted as directly carrying A or indirectly indicating A.

In some embodiments, terms such as "in response to...", "in response to determining...", "in the case of...", "at the time of...", "when...", "if...", "if...", etc. can be used interchangeably.

In some embodiments, terms such as "greater than", "greater than or equal to", "not less than", "more than", "more than or equal to", "not less than", "higher than", "higher than or equal to", "not less than", and "above" can be replaced with each other, and terms such as "less than", "less than or equal to", "not greater than", "less than", "less than or equal to", "not more than", "lower than", "lower than or equal to", "not higher than", and "below" can be replaced with each other.

In some embodiments, devices, etc. can be interpreted as physical or virtual, and their names are not limited to the names recorded in the embodiments. Terms such as "device", "equipment", "device", "circuit", "network element", "node", "function", "unit", "section", "system", "network", "chip", "chip system", "entity", and "subject" can be used interchangeably.

In some embodiments, "network" can be interpreted as devices included in the network (eg, access network equipment, core network equipment, etc.).

In some embodiments, the terms “access network device (AN device)”, “radio access network device (RAN device)”, “base station (BS)”, “radio base station”, “fixed station”, “node”, “access point”, “transmission point (TP)”, “reception point (RP)”, “transmission/reception point (TRP)”, “panel”, “antenna panel”, “antenna array”, “cell”, “macro cell”, “small cell”, “femto cell”, “pico cell”, “sector”, “cell group”, “serving cell”, “carrier”, “component carrier”, “bandwidth part (BWP)” and the like may be used interchangeably.

In some embodiments, “terminal”, “terminal device”, “user equipment (UE)”, “user terminal”, “mobile station (MS)”, “mobile terminal (MT)”, subscriber station, mobile unit, subscriber unit, wireless unit, remote unit, mobile device, wireless device, wireless communication device, remote device, mobile subscriber station, The terms such as subscriber station, access terminal, mobile terminal, wireless terminal, remote terminal, handset, user agent, mobile client and client are used interchangeably.

In some embodiments, the access network device, the core network device, or the network device can be replaced by a terminal. For example, the various embodiments of the present disclosure can also be applied to a structure in which the communication between the access network device, the core network device, or the network device and the terminal is replaced by communication between multiple terminals (for example, device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X), etc.). In this case, it is also possible to set the structure in which the terminal has all or part of the functions of the access network device. In addition, terms such as "uplink" and "downlink" can also be replaced by terms corresponding to communication between terminals (for example, "side"). For example, uplink channels, downlink channels, etc. can be replaced by side channels, and uplinks, downlinks, etc. can be replaced by side links.

In some embodiments, the terminal may be replaced by an access network device, a core network device, or a network device. In this case, the access network device, the core network device, or the network device may have a structure that has all or part of the functions of the terminal.

In some embodiments, obtaining data, information, etc. may comply with the laws and regulations of the country where the data is obtained.

In some embodiments, data, information, etc. may be obtained with the user's consent.

In addition, each element, each row, or each column in the table of the embodiment of the present disclosure can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the combination of any elements, any rows, and any columns can also be implemented as an independent embodiment.

FIG1A is a schematic diagram showing the architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 1A , a communication system 100 includes a terminal 101 and a network device 102 .

In some embodiments, the terminal 101 includes, for example, a mobile phone, a wearable device, an Internet of Things device, a car with communication function, a smart car, a tablet computer, a computer with wireless transceiver function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal device in industrial control, a wireless terminal device in self-driving, a wireless terminal device in remote medical surgery, a wireless terminal device in a smart grid, a wireless terminal device in transportation safety, a wireless terminal device in a smart city, and at least one of a wireless terminal device in a smart home, but is not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, the network device 102 may be a single device including a first network element, a second network element, etc., or may be a plurality of devices or a group of devices, each including all or part of the first network element, the second network element, etc. The network element may be virtual or physical. The core network may include, for example, at least one of an Evolved Packet Core (EPC), a 5G Core Network (5GCN), and a Next Generation Core (NGC).

It can be understood that the communication system described in the embodiment of the present disclosure is for the purpose of more clearly illustrating the technical solution of the embodiment of the present disclosure, and does not constitute a limitation on the technical solution proposed in the embodiment of the present disclosure. Ordinary technicians in this field can know that with the evolution of the system architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solution proposed in the embodiment of the present disclosure is also applicable to similar technical problems.

The following embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to the communication system 100 shown in FIG1A , or a portion thereof, but are not limited thereto. The entities shown in FIG1A are illustrative only. The communication system may include all or part of the entities shown in FIG1A , or may include other entities other than those shown in FIG1A . The number and form of the entities may be arbitrary, and the entities may be physical or virtual. The connection relationships between the entities are illustrative only. The entities may be connected or disconnected, and the connection may be in any manner, including direct or indirect, wired or wireless.

The embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied to Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), LTE-Beyond (LTE-B), SUPER 3G, IMT-Advanced, the fourth generation mobile communication system (4G), the fifth generation mobile communication system (5G), 5G new radio (NR), future radio access (FRA), new radio access technology (RAT), new radio (NR), new radio access (NX), future generation radio access (FRA), and other technologies. The following systems may be used for communication: IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20 (Ultra-WideBand), Bluetooth, PLMN (Public Land Mobile Network), D2D (Device-to-Device), M2M (Machine-to-Machine), IoT (Internet of Things), V2X (Vehicle-to-Everything), other communication methods, and next-generation systems based on these systems. Furthermore, multiple systems may be combined (for example, a combination of LTE or LTE-A with 5G).

In a communication system (such as a 5G system), network equipment can configure "dynamic cell (or cell group) changes" for terminals, i.e. The network device can provide one or more candidate configurations to the terminal, where each candidate configuration may include one or more cells (or cell groups). The network side can control the terminal to change among multiple candidate configurations (e.g., changing the working cell (or cell group) from "cell (or cell group) -1" to "cell (or cell group) -2") through L1 (such as DCI (Downlink Control Information)) signaling or L2 (MAC CE (Control Element)) signaling. This control signaling can be called cell change control signaling, and the process can be called LTM (L1/L2-triggered Mobility) process.

In a communication system (e.g., a 5G system), network equipment can configure a "conditionally triggered mobility process" for a terminal. This means that the network can pre-configure conditions and corresponding pre-configured cells (or cell groups) for the terminal. When the terminal meets the pre-configured conditions (e.g., a specific measurement event), the terminal changes its serving cell (or cell group) to a "pre-configured cell (or cell group)." This conditionally triggered mobility process includes: CHO (Conditional Handover), CPA (Conditional PSCell Addition), and CPC (Conditional PSCell Change). The terminal can also change the configuration of a specific cell (or cell group) upon meeting the pre-configured conditions, as instructed by the network. For example, the terminal's PCell (Primary Cell) configuration can be changed from "Candidate Cell (or Cell Group) Configuration-1" to "Candidate Cell (or Cell Group) Configuration-2."

During communication, after receiving a downlink signal, a terminal can determine the position of the downlink signal subframe. To avoid uplink interference, the network must ensure that signals sent by different terminals arrive at a fixed time (or time period). Therefore, the network configures an uplink timing advance (TA) for the terminal's uplink transmission. After receiving the TA value, if the terminal wants to transmit an uplink signal, it uses the downlink subframe position as a reference and advances the uplink signal by the TA value.

When the terminal is out of synchronization in the uplink, it needs to obtain the TA value. The terminal can trigger the random access process by itself, or the network side triggers the terminal to initiate the random access process, and the network side sends the TA value to the terminal in the random access response.

Because the terminal's location may change, the validity of the TA value needs to be maintained. The network can set a TAT timer (i.e., TimeAlignmentTimer) for the terminal's TA value. This timer starts when the network sends the TA value to the terminal; before the timer expires, the network sends a new TA value to the terminal. The terminal can start or restart upon receiving the TA value based on the timer set by the network. After the timer expires, the TA value is considered invalid and the terminal enters an out-of-sync state.

A cell of a terminal can be configured with one PTAG (Primary Timing Advance Group) and up to three STAGs (Secondary Timing Advance Groups). Among them, SpCell (including PCell and PSCell) can only belong to PTAG, and SCell can belong to PTAG or STAG.

FIG1B is a schematic diagram showing a communication scenario according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

As shown in Figure 1B, since the terminal can be configured to send uplink signals to multiple transmission nodes at different locations in the same cell (such as TRP_1 and TRP_2), and the TA values of the transmission nodes at different locations are not the same, the uplink transmission signals corresponding to multiple different transmission nodes in the same cell have different TAGs (Timing Advance Groups) (such as the TAG corresponding to TA_1 and the TAG corresponding to TA_2), and one TAG can also contain multiple cells (such as Cell_1 and Cell_2) at the same time.

When the network side configures "dynamic cell (or cell group) change" or "condition-triggered mobility process" for the terminal and configures multiple TAGs for the target cell to which the terminal changes, how to make the terminal's understanding of the TA value used during the cell (or cell group) change process consistent with the network side (for example, whether to use the TA value of PCell's TAG-1 or the TA value of PCell's TAG-2) to reduce the interference of the terminal's uplink transmission on the network side is a technical problem that needs to be solved.

The present disclosure provides a method for determining a TAG. When a terminal changes cells and the cell to which the terminal changes corresponds to multiple timing advance group TAGs, the terminal determines the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes from the multiple TAGs. Based on the communication method provided by the present disclosure, when a terminal changes cells and the cell to which the terminal changes corresponds to multiple timing advance groups, the terminal can determine the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes from the multiple TAGs, thereby improving uplink transmission efficiency.

FIG2 is an interactive diagram of a method for determining a TAG according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG2 , the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a method for determining a TAG, and the method includes:

Step S2101: The network device sends configuration information to the terminal.

In some embodiments, the terminal receives configuration information sent by the network device.

In some embodiments, the configuration information is carried in an RRC (Radio Resource Control) configuration message.

In some embodiments, the configuration information may include one or more candidate configurations, that is, the network device may provide one or more candidate configurations to the terminal; wherein one candidate configuration may include one or more candidate cell (or cell group) configurations.

In some embodiments, the purpose of the candidate configuration may be that the network side may subsequently control the terminal through signaling to change between multiple candidate cells (or cell groups).

In some embodiments, the purpose of the candidate configuration may be to change the serving cell configuration to a candidate cell (or cell group) configuration when a trigger condition specified by the network configuration or protocol is met. For example, when the terminal's measurement meets the A3 or A5 event, the serving MCG (Master Cell Group) configuration may be changed to a candidate MCG configuration.

In some embodiments, a target cell corresponding to a candidate configuration may be configured with multiple TAGs. For example, a PCell may be configured with TAG-1 and TAG-2.

In some embodiments, the configuration information may indicate the TAG initially used by the target cell.

Step S2102: The network device sends instruction information to the terminal.

In some embodiments, the terminal receives indication information sent by the network device.

In some embodiments, the indication information is used to determine the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes.

In some embodiments, the terminal determines the TAGTAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes according to the indication information sent by the network device.

In some embodiments, the indication information is carried in the cell change control signaling sent by the network device to the terminal.

In some embodiments, the indication information may explicitly indicate the TAG used by the cell to which the terminal changes.

In some embodiments, the indication information may include at least one of a TAG identifier and a TAG configuration identifier.

In some embodiments, the TI field in the cell change control signaling may include indication information for indicating a TAG identifier and/or a TAG configuration identifier.

In some embodiments, the TAG identifier corresponds one-to-one with the TAG corresponding to the target cell.

In some embodiments, the TAG configuration identifier is an identifier for indicating a TAG configured for the target cell, and the TAG configured for the target cell is determined from a TAG corresponding to the target cell.

In some embodiments, the number of TAG configuration identifiers may be less than the number of TAG identifiers.

For example, a target cell (such as PCell) can be configured with 2 tags, and the configuration identifiers of these 2 tags can be 1 and 2; a target cell can correspond to 4 tags (the configured 2 tags are 2 of these 4 tags), and each tag has its own tag identifier; the corresponding tag can be found according to the tag identifier and the tag configuration identifier.

In some embodiments, the indication information may implicitly indicate the TAG used by the cell to which the terminal changes.

In some embodiments, the indication information may include at least one of a spatial relationship indication and a reference signal indication.

In some embodiments, the cell change control signaling includes a spatial relationship indication.

In some embodiments, the spatial relationship indication includes a TCI (Transmission Configuration Indicator) state ID or a UL (Uplink) TCI state ID.

In some embodiments, the cell change control signaling includes a reference signal indication.

In some embodiments, the reference signal indication includes an SS/PBCH (Physical Broadcast Channel) index.

Step S2103: The terminal changes the cell.

In some embodiments, the terminal may perform a cell (or cell group) change.

In some embodiments, the terminal may change cells when conditions pre-configured by the network side are met.

In some embodiments, the terminal may perform a cell change upon receiving a cell change control signaling sent by the network side.

In some embodiments, the target cell corresponds to multiple TAGs.

In some embodiments, the target cell is a PCell (primary cell) or a PSCell (primary secondary cell).

In some embodiments, the target cell is a candidate cell (or cell group) in a candidate configuration configured by the network side for the terminal.

In some embodiments, the terminal may perform a cell change based on a random access procedure.

In some embodiments, the terminal may perform a cell change based on a non-random access procedure.

In some embodiments, before the terminal performs a cell change, the terminal may send random access information to the cell to access the target cell.

In step S2104, the terminal determines the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes.

In some embodiments, the terminal may determine the TAG used by the changed cell based on protocol agreement.

In some embodiments, the terminal may determine the TAG used by the changed cell based on the indication information sent by the network device.

In some embodiments, the TA value may be carried in the cell change control signaling sent by the network device to the terminal, or may be calculated and determined by the terminal itself.

In some embodiments, the cell change control signaling can be, for example, L1 (such as DCI (Downlink Control Information)) signaling or L2 (MAC CE (Control Element)) signaling.

In some embodiments, the cell change control signaling includes a timing advance command (Timing Advance Command), and the timing advance command includes a TA value.

In some embodiments, when the cell to which the terminal changes is configured with multiple TAGs, the terminal uses the received TA value for one or more TAGs among the multiple TAGs.

In some embodiments, a TAG identifier is indicated in the cell control signaling, and the terminal determines the TAG corresponding to the TAG identifier indicated in the cell control information as the TAGTAG of the TA value used by the cell changed by the terminal.

In some embodiments, the cell control signaling indicates a TAG configuration identifier, and the terminal determines the TAG corresponding to the TAG identifier indicated in the cell control information as the TAGTAG of the TA value used by the cell changed by the terminal.

In some embodiments, the cell control signaling includes a spatial relationship indication, which is associated with a TAG. The terminal determines the TAG associated with the spatial relationship indication in the cell control signaling as the TAGTAG of the TA value used by the cell changed by the terminal.

For example, the RRC configuration message configures an association relationship between the spatial relationship indication and the TAG, and the terminal uses the TA value indicated in the cell change control signaling for the TAG associated with the spatial relationship indication indicated in the cell change control signaling.

In some embodiments, the spatial relationship indication is a TCI state ID or a UL TCI state ID.

In some embodiments, the cell control signaling includes a reference signal indication, which is associated with a TAG. The terminal determines the TAG associated with the reference signal indication in the cell control signaling as the TAGTAG of the TA value used by the cell changed by the terminal.

For example, the RRC configuration message configures an association relationship between the reference signal indication and the TAG, and the terminal uses the TA value indicated in the cell change control signaling for the TAG associated with the reference signal indication indicated in the cell change control signaling.

In some embodiments, the spatial relationship indication is, for example, an SS/PBCH index.

In some embodiments, the terminal determines the TAG initially used by the changed cell as the TAG of the TA value used by the changed cell.

In some embodiments, the TAG initially used by the changed cell may be configured by the network device or agreed upon by a protocol.

In some embodiments, when the terminal changes the cell based on the random access process (RACH-based), the terminal determines the TAG corresponding to the reference signal associated with the random access resource selected in the random access process as the TAG corresponding to the cell to which the terminal changes; the terminal receives a TA value during the random access process, and the terminal uses the TA value for the determined TAG.

For example, in the random access process, the PRACH (Physical Random Access Channel) occasion-1 resource is selected to send the random access signal. The PRACH occasion-1 is associated with the SSB (Synchronization Signal/PBCH)-1. The TAG-1 associated with the SSB-1 adopts the TA value received in the random access process.

In some embodiments, when the terminal changes the cell based on the non-random access process (RACH-less), the terminal determines the TAG associated with the reference signal associated with the uplink access resource selected in the non-random access process as the TAG corresponding to the cell changed by the terminal; the terminal receives the TA value in the non-random access process, and the terminal uses the TA value for the determined TAG.

For example, in the random access process, the PUSCH (Physical Uplink Shared Channel) occasion-1 resource is selected to send the uplink access signal, and the PUSCH occasion-1 is associated with SSB-1. The TAG-1 associated with the SSB-1 adopts the TA value received in the non-random access process.

In some embodiments, before the terminal changes the cell, the terminal sends a random access signal to the cell to be accessed; the terminal determines the TAG corresponding to the reference signal associated with the random access resource used when sending the random access signal as the TAG corresponding to the cell to which the terminal changes; the terminal receives the TA value during the random access process, and the terminal uses the TA value for the determined TAG.

For example, before the "candidate configuration" is changed, the terminal sends a random access signal (such as PRACH) to the target cell corresponding to the "candidate configuration". After the terminal receives the TA value indicated by the network side (such as receiving the TA value of the target cell corresponding to the "candidate configuration" change in the "cell change control signaling"), the TA value is used for the TAG corresponding to the reference signal associated with the random access signal.

For example, before the "candidate configuration" is changed, the terminal uses the PRACH occasion-1 resource to send a random access signal to the target cell corresponding to the "candidate configuration", where PRACH occasion-1 is associated with SSB-1; during the process of changing the "candidate configuration", the terminal receives the "cell change control signaling", and the terminal uses the TA value indicated by the "cell change control signaling" for TAG-1 associated with SSB-1.

In some embodiments, the terms "cell change" and "cell handover" may be used interchangeably.

In some embodiments, the names of information, etc. are not limited to the names described in the embodiments, and terms such as "information", "message", "signal", "signaling", "report", "configuration", "indication", "instruction", "command", "channel", "parameter", "domain", "field", "symbol", "symbol", "codeword", "codebook", "codeword", "codepoint", "bit", "data", "program", and "chip" can be used interchangeably.

In some embodiments, terms such as "moment", "time point", "time", and "time position" can be replaced with each other, and terms such as "duration", "period", "time window", "window", and "time" can be replaced with each other.

In some embodiments, "obtain", "get", "get", "receive", "transmit", "bidirectionally transmit", "send and/or receive" may be It can be interpreted as receiving from other entities, obtaining from protocols, obtaining from higher levels, obtaining by self-processing, and realizing independently.

In some embodiments, terms such as "send", "transmit", "report", "download", "transmit", "bidirectional transmission", "send and/or receive" can be used interchangeably.

In some embodiments, terms such as "certain", "preset", "preset", "setting", "indicated", "a certain", "any", and "first" can be interchangeable. "Specific A", "preset A", "preset A", "setting A", "indicated A", "a certain A", "any A", and "first A" can be interpreted as A pre-specified in a protocol, etc., or as A obtained through setting, configuration, or indication, etc., or as specific A, a certain A, any A, or first A, etc., but not limited to this.

In some embodiments, the determination or judgment can be performed by a value represented by 1 bit (0 or 1), or by a true or false value (Boolean value) represented by true or false, or by comparison of numerical values (for example, comparison with a predetermined value), but is not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, "not expecting to receive" can be interpreted as not receiving on time domain resources and/or frequency domain resources, or as not performing subsequent processing on the data after receiving it; "not expecting to send" can be interpreted as not sending, or as sending but not expecting the recipient to respond to the content sent.

The communication method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps S2101 to S2104. For example, step S2101 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, step S2102 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, step S2103 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, step S2104 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, steps S2101+S2102 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, steps S2103+S2104 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and steps S2102+S2103+S2104 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, steps S2101 and S2102 are optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

In some embodiments, step S2103 is optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

In some embodiments, reference may be made to other optional implementations described before or after the description corresponding to FIG. 2 .

FIG3 is a flow chart of a method for determining a TAG according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG3 , the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a method for determining a TAG, and the method includes:

Step S3101, obtain configuration information.

The optional implementation of step S3101 can refer to the optional implementation of step S2101 in Figure 2 and other related parts in the embodiment involved in Figure 2, which will not be repeated here.

In some embodiments, the terminal receives configuration information sent by the network device, but is not limited thereto and may also receive configuration information sent by other entities.

Step S3102, obtain instruction information.

The optional implementation of step S3102 can refer to the optional implementation of step S2102 in Figure 2 and other related parts in the embodiment involved in Figure 2, which will not be repeated here.

In some embodiments, the terminal receives indication information sent by the network device, but is not limited thereto, and may also receive indication information sent by other entities.

Step S3103: Change the cell.

The optional implementation of step S3103 can refer to the optional implementation of step S2103 in Figure 2 and other related parts in the embodiment involved in Figure 2, which will not be repeated here.

Step S3104: Determine the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes.

The optional implementation of step S3104 can refer to the optional implementation of step S2104 in Figure 2 and other related parts in the embodiment involved in Figure 2, which will not be repeated here.

The communication method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps S3101 to S3104. For example, step S3101 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, step S3102 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, step S3103 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, step S3104 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, steps S3101+S3102 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, steps S3103+S3104 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and steps S3102+S3103+S3104 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, steps S3101 and S3102 are optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

In some embodiments, step S3103 is optional, and one or more of these steps may be performed in different embodiments. Omit or substitute.

FIG4 is a flow chart of a method for determining a TAG according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG4 , the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a method for determining a TAG, and the method includes:

Step S4101, sending configuration information.

The optional implementation of step S4101 can refer to the optional implementation of step S2101 in Figure 2 and other related parts in the embodiment involved in Figure 2, which will not be repeated here.

In some embodiments, the network device sends configuration information to the terminal.

Step S4102, sending instruction information.

The optional implementation of step S4102 can refer to the optional implementation of step S2102 in Figure 2 and other related parts in the embodiment involved in Figure 2, which will not be repeated here.

In some embodiments, the network device sends indication information to the terminal.

In some embodiments, the indication information is used to instruct the terminal to determine a TAG of a TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes from a plurality of TAGs.

The communication method involved in the embodiment of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps S4101 to S4102. For example, step S4101 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and step S4102 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

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

FIG5 is a schematic diagram of a method for determining a TAG according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG5 , the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a method for determining a TAG, and the method includes:

In step S5101, the terminal changes a cell, and the cell changed by the terminal corresponds to multiple TAGs.

The optional implementation of step S5101 can refer to the optional implementation of step S2103 in Figure 2, step S3103 in Figure 3, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in Figures 2 and 3, which will not be repeated here.

In step S5102, the terminal determines, from multiple tags, a tag with a TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes.

The optional implementation of step S5102 can refer to the optional implementation of step S2104 in Figure 2, step S3104 in Figure 3, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in Figures 2 and 3, which will not be repeated here.

In some embodiments, the above method may include the methods of the above embodiments of the communication system side, terminal side, network device side, etc., which will not be repeated here.

The method for determining a TAG provided by the embodiment of the present disclosure may include the following steps 1 and 2.

Step 1: The network side provides one or more "candidate configurations" to the terminal side (eg, "candidate configurations" provided through an RRC configuration message, where a "candidate configuration" may include one or more "cell (or cell group) configurations").

The purpose of the "candidate configuration" can be at least one of the following:

Use 1: The network side can subsequently change multiple "candidate cells (or cell groups)" through signaling control terminals.

Purpose 2: When the terminal meets the triggering conditions of the network configuration or protocol, the terminal changes the configuration to the candidate cell (or cell group) configuration (for example, when the terminal measurement meets the A3 or A5 event, the service MCG configuration is changed to the candidate MCG configuration).

In some embodiments, a target cell corresponding to a "candidate configuration" may be configured with multiple TAGs (eg, PCell is configured with TAG-1 and TAG-2).

Step 2: According to the "candidate configuration" in step 1, when the terminal changes to the target cell corresponding to the "candidate configuration" and the target cell is configured with multiple TAGs, the terminal determines the TA value of the terminal in the specific TAG (also called the first TAG) of the target cell according to network instructions or protocol agreements.

The method of "determining the TA value of the specific TAG of the terminal in the target cell according to network instructions or protocol agreement" includes any one of the following methods 1 to 5.

FIG6 is a schematic diagram showing cell change control signaling according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to Figure 6, the cell change control signaling may include Target Config ID, TI, Timing Advance Command, TCI state ID, UL TCI state ID, Random Access Preamble index, SS/PBCH index, PRACH Mask index, etc.

Method 1: Indicate the TA value corresponding to the specific TAG in the "cell change control signaling". The indication method of the "specific TAG" includes any of the following: explicit indication and implicit indication.

The "display indication" includes any one of the following: a TAG identifier and a TAG configuration identifier.

Indicating a specific TAG by a TAG identifier can be, for example, indicated by the "TI" field in the cell change control signaling shown in FIG6 . The TA value of the target cell in the "cell change control signaling" is the TAG identifier used for target cell configuration - 1. The TA value can be carried in the "Timing Advance Command" in the cell control signaling.

Indicating a specific TAG through a TAG configuration identifier can be, for example, indicated by the "TI" field in the cell change control signaling shown in FIG6 , where the TA value of the target cell in the "cell change control signaling" is the TAG identifier -1 corresponding to the TAG configuration -1 configured for the target cell.

The “display indication” includes any one of the following: a spatial relationship indication and a reference signal indication.

Indicating a specific TAG through a "spatial relationship indication" can, for example, be: an association between the "spatial relationship indication" and a TAG is configured in the RRC configuration; then, the TA value indicated in the "cell change control signaling" shown in Figure 6 is used for the TAG associated with the "spatial relationship indication" indicated in the "cell change control signaling." The spatial relationship indication is, for example, a "TCI state ID" or a "UL TCI state ID."

Indicating a specific TAG through a "reference signal indication" may, for example, be: an association between the "reference signal indication" and the TAG is configured in the RRC configuration; then, the TA value indicated in the "cell change control signaling" shown in FIG6 is used for the TAG associated with the "reference signal indication" indicated in the "cell change control signaling." The reference signal indication is, for example, an "SS/PBCH index."

Method 2: Indicate the "initial TAG" of the target cell after the cell change in the "candidate configuration".

For example, the TA value of the target cell in the "cell change control signaling" is the "initial used TAG" of the target cell indicated in the "candidate configuration".

Mode 3: For the change of "candidate configuration" based on the random access process (ie, RACH-based), the TA value obtained by the terminal in this process is the "TAG corresponding to the reference signal associated with the random access resource selected by the terminal".

For example, the random access process selects PRACH occasion-1 resource to send a random access signal, PRACH occasion-1 is associated with SSB-1, and the TAG-1 associated with SSB-1 adopts the TA value received by the terminal in the random access process.

Mode 4: For the change of "candidate configuration" based on the non-random access process (ie, RACH-less), the TA value obtained by the terminal in this process is the "TAG corresponding to the reference signal associated with the uplink access resource selected by the terminal".

For example, the non-random access process selects PUSCH occasion-1 resources to send an uplink access signal, PUSCH occasion-1 is associated with SSB-1, and the TAG-1 associated with SSB-1 adopts the TA value received in the non-random access process.

Method 5: If the terminal sends a random access signal (e.g., PRACH) to the target cell corresponding to the "candidate configuration" before the "candidate configuration" is changed; then, after the terminal receives the TA value indicated by the network side (e.g., receiving the TA value of the target cell corresponding to the "candidate configuration" change in the "cell change control signaling"), the TA value is used for the TAG corresponding to the reference signal associated with the random access signal sent to the target cell corresponding to the "candidate configuration" before the "candidate configuration" is changed.

For example, before the "candidate configuration" is changed, the terminal uses the PRACH occasion-1 resource to send a random access signal to the target cell corresponding to the "candidate configuration", and PRACH occasion-1 is associated with SSB-1; during the "candidate configuration" change process, the terminal receives the "cell change control signaling", and the TA value indicated by the "cell change control signaling" is used for TAG-1 associated with SSB-1.

The target cell may be limited to a PCell or a PSCell.

Among them, the above-mentioned "indication method of a specific TAG" can indicate one or more TAGs.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, some or all of the steps and their optional implementations may be arbitrarily combined with some or all of the steps in other embodiments, or may be arbitrarily combined with the optional implementations of other embodiments.

The embodiments of the present disclosure further provide an apparatus for implementing any of the above methods. For example, an apparatus is provided, comprising units or modules for implementing each step performed by a terminal in any of the above methods. For another example, another apparatus is provided, comprising units or modules for implementing each step performed by a network device (e.g., an access network device, a core network function node, a core network device, etc.) in any of the above methods.

It should be understood that the division of the various units or modules in the above device is merely a division of logical functions. In actual implementation, they may be fully or partially integrated into a physical entity, or they may be physically separated. In addition, the units or modules in the device may be implemented in the form of a processor calling software: for example, the device includes a processor, the processor is connected to a memory, and the memory stores instructions. The processor calls the instructions stored in the memory to implement any of the above methods or implement the functions of the various units or modules of the above device, wherein the processor is, for example, a general-purpose processor, such as a central processing unit (CPU) or a microprocessor, and the memory is a memory within the device or a memory outside the device. Alternatively, the units or modules in the device can be implemented in the form of hardware circuits, and the functions of some or all of the units or modules can be realized by designing the hardware circuits. The above-mentioned hardware circuits can be understood as one or more processors; for example, in one implementation, the above-mentioned hardware circuit is an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), and the functions of some or all of the above units or modules are realized by designing the logical relationship of the components in the circuit; for example, in another implementation, the above-mentioned hardware circuit can be implemented by a programmable logic device (PLD). Taking a field programmable gate array (FPGA) as an example, it can include a large number of logic gate circuits, and the connection relationship between the logic gate circuits is configured through a configuration file, thereby realizing the functions of some or all of the above units or modules. All units or modules of the above devices can be implemented in the form of software called by the processor, or in the form of hardware circuits, or in part by the processor calling software. The rest is implemented in the form of hardware circuits.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor is a circuit with signal processing capabilities. In one implementation, the processor can be a circuit with instruction reading and execution capabilities, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a graphics processing unit (GPU) (which can be understood as a microprocessor), or a digital signal processor (DSP). In another implementation, the processor can implement certain functions through the logical relationship of a hardware circuit. The logical relationship of the above-mentioned hardware circuit is fixed or reconfigurable. For example, the processor is a hardware circuit implemented by an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or a programmable logic device (PLD), such as an FPGA. In a reconfigurable hardware circuit, the process of the processor loading a configuration document to implement the hardware circuit configuration can be understood as the process of the processor loading instructions to implement the functions of some or all of the above units or modules. In addition, it can also be a hardware circuit designed for artificial intelligence, which can be understood as ASIC, such as the Neural Network Processing Unit (NPU), the Tensor Processing Unit (TPU), the Deep Learning Processing Unit (DPU), etc.

Figure 7A is a schematic diagram of the structure of a terminal proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 7A, terminal 7100 may include: a processing module 7101. In some embodiments, processing module 7101 is used to change a cell, where the cell to which the terminal changes corresponds to multiple timing advance groups (TAGs), and to determine, from the multiple TAGs, a TAG with a TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes. Optionally, the processing module is used to perform at least one of the steps (such as step S2103, step S2104, but not limited thereto) performed by the terminal in any of the above methods, and will not be repeated here.

Figure 7B is a schematic diagram of the structure of a network device proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 7B, network device 7200 may include: a processing module 7201. In some embodiments, the processing module 7201 is used to determine the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes, and the cell to which the terminal changes corresponds to multiple TAGs. Optionally, the transceiver module is used to perform at least one of the steps (such as step S2101 and step S2102, but not limited thereto) performed by the network device in any of the above methods, and will not be repeated here.

In some embodiments, the module may be a single module or may include multiple submodules. Optionally, the multiple submodules each execute all or part of the steps required to be executed by the processing module. Optionally, the processing module may be interchangeable with the processor.

Figure 8A is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device 8100 proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure. Communication device 8100 can be a network device (e.g., an access network device, a core network device, etc.), a terminal (e.g., a user equipment, etc.), a chip, a chip system, or a processor that supports a network device to implement any of the above methods, or a chip, a chip system, or a processor that supports a terminal to implement any of the above methods. Communication device 8100 can be used to implement the methods described in the above method embodiments. For details, please refer to the description of the above method embodiments.

As shown in Figure 8A, the communication device 8100 includes one or more processors 8101. The processor 8101 can be a general-purpose processor or a dedicated processor, for example, a baseband processor or a central processing unit. The baseband processor can be used to process the communication protocol and communication data, and the central processing unit can be used to control the communication device (such as a base station, a baseband chip, a terminal device, a terminal device chip, a DU or a CU, etc.), execute programs, and process program data. Optionally, the communication device 8100 is used to perform any of the above methods. Optionally, one or more processors 8101 are used to call instructions to enable the communication device 8100 to perform any of the above methods.

In some embodiments, the communication device 8100 further includes one or more transceivers 8102. When the communication device 8100 includes one or more transceivers 8102, the transceiver 8102 performs at least one of the communication steps such as sending and/or receiving in the above method (for example, step S2101 and step S2102, but not limited thereto), and the processor 8101 performs at least one of the other steps (for example, step S2103, but not limited thereto). In an optional embodiment, the transceiver may include a receiver and/or a transmitter, and the receiver and transmitter may be separate or integrated. Optionally, the terms transceiver, transceiver unit, transceiver, transceiver circuit, interface circuit, and interface may be interchangeable, the terms transmitter, transmitting unit, transmitter, and transmitting circuit may be interchangeable, and the terms receiver, receiving unit, receiver, and receiving circuit may be interchangeable.

In some embodiments, the communication device 8100 further includes one or more memories 8103 for storing data. Alternatively, all or part of the memories 8103 may be located outside the communication device 8100. In alternative embodiments, the communication device 8100 may include one or more interface circuits 8104. Optionally, the interface circuits 8104 are connected to the memories 8103 and may be configured to receive data from the memories 8103 or other devices, or to send data to the memories 8103 or other devices. For example, the interface circuits 8104 may read data stored in the memories 8103 and send the data to the processor 8101.

The communication device 8100 described in the above embodiments may be a network device or a terminal, but the scope of the communication device 8100 described in the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and the structure of the communication device 8100 may not be limited to FIG8A. The communication device may be an independent device or may be part of a larger device. For example, the communication device may be: 1) an independent integrated circuit IC, or a chip, or a chip system or subsystem; (2) a collection of one or more ICs, optionally, the above IC collection may also include a storage component for storing data and programs; (3) an ASIC, such as a modem; (4) a module that can be embedded in other devices; (5) a receiver, a terminal device, an intelligent terminal device, a cellular phone, a wireless device, a handheld device, a mobile unit, a vehicle-mounted device, a network device, a cloud device, Artificial intelligence equipment, etc.; (6) Others, etc.

FIG8B is a schematic diagram of the structure of a chip 8200 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. If the communication device 8100 can be a chip or a chip system, please refer to the schematic diagram of the structure of the chip 8200 shown in FIG8B , but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

The chip 8200 includes one or more processors 8201. The chip 8200 is configured to execute any of the above methods.

In some embodiments, chip 8200 further includes one or more interface circuits 8202. Terms such as interface circuit, interface, and transceiver pins may be used interchangeably. In some embodiments, chip 8200 further includes one or more memories 8203 for storing data. Alternatively, all or part of memory 8203 may be located external to chip 8200. Optionally, interface circuit 8202 is connected to memory 8203 and may be used to receive data from memory 8203 or other devices, or may be used to send data to memory 8203 or other devices. For example, interface circuit 8202 may read data stored in memory 8203 and send the data to processor 8201.

In some embodiments, the interface circuit 8202 performs at least one of the communication steps (e.g., step S2101 and step S2102, but not limited thereto) of the aforementioned method. The interface circuit 8202 performing the communication steps (e.g., step S2101 and step S2102, but not limited thereto) of the aforementioned method means, for example, that the interface circuit 8202 performs data exchange between the processor 8201, chip 8200, memory 8203, or a transceiver device. In some embodiments, the processor 8201 performs at least one of the other steps (e.g., step S2103, but not limited thereto).

The modules and/or devices described in various embodiments, such as virtual devices, physical devices, and chips, can be arbitrarily combined or separated according to circumstances. Optionally, some or all steps can also be performed collaboratively by multiple modules and/or devices, which is not limited here.

The present disclosure also proposes a storage medium having instructions stored thereon, which, when executed on the communication device 8100, causes the communication device 8100 to execute any of the above methods. Optionally, the storage medium is an electronic storage medium. Optionally, the storage medium is a computer-readable storage medium, but is not limited thereto, and may also be a storage medium readable by other devices. Optionally, the storage medium may be a non-transitory storage medium, but is not limited thereto, and may also be a temporary storage medium.

The present disclosure also provides a program product, which, when executed by the communication device 8100, enables the communication device 8100 to perform any of the above methods. Optionally, the program product is a computer program product.

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

Claims (27)

A method for determining a timing advance group (TAG), characterized in that the method comprises: The terminal changes a cell, where the cell to which the terminal changes corresponds to multiple timing advance groups TAGs; The terminal determines, from the multiple TAGs, a TAG having a TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes. The method according to claim 1, wherein the terminal determines, from the multiple TAGs, a TAG of a TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes, comprising: receiving instruction information sent by the network device; The terminal determines, from the multiple TAGs, a TAG of a TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes, according to the indication information. The method according to claim 2, wherein the indication information includes at least one of a TAG identifier and a TAG configuration identifier. The method according to claim 2, wherein the indication information includes at least one of a spatial relationship indication and a reference signal indication. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 4 is characterized in that the indication information is carried in cell change control signaling. The method according to claim 1 or 2 is characterized in that the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes is the TAG initially used by the cell to which the terminal changes. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the TA value used by the cell changed by the terminal is obtained by the terminal during a random access process; The TAG of the TA value used by the cell changed by the terminal is the TAG associated with the random access resource selected by the terminal during the random access process. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the TA value used by the cell changed by the terminal is obtained by the terminal during a non-random access process; The TAG of the TA value used by the cell changed by the terminal is the TAG associated with the uplink access resource selected by the terminal during the non-random access process. The method according to claim 1 or 2 is characterized in that the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes is a TAG associated with the random access resource used when the terminal sends a random access signal, and the random access signal is sent by the terminal to the cell to which the terminal changes before the cell change. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9 is characterized in that the cell changed by the terminal includes a primary cell or a primary and secondary cell. A method for determining a TAG, characterized in that the method comprises: The network device determines a TAG of a TA value used by a cell to which the terminal changes, where the cell to which the terminal changes corresponds to multiple TAGs. The method according to claim 11, further comprising: The network device sends indication information to the terminal, where the indication information is used to instruct the terminal to determine a TAG corresponding to the TA value from the multiple TAGs. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that the indication information includes at least one of a TAG identifier and a TAG configuration identifier. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that the indication information includes at least one of a spatial relationship indication and a reference signal indication. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 14 is characterized in that the indication information is carried in cell change control signaling. The method according to claim 11 or 12 is characterized in that the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes is the TAG initially used by the cell to which the terminal changes. The method according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that the TA value used by the cell changed by the terminal is obtained by the terminal during a random access process; The TAG of the TA value used by the cell changed by the terminal is the TAG associated with the random access resource selected by the terminal during the random access process. The method according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that the TA value used by the cell changed by the terminal is obtained by the terminal during a non-random access process; The TAG of the TA value used by the cell changed by the terminal is the TAG associated with the uplink access resource selected by the terminal during the non-random access process. The method according to claim 11 or 12 is characterized in that the TAG of the TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes is a TAG associated with the random access resource used when the terminal sends a random access signal, and the random access signal is sent by the terminal to the cell to which the terminal changes before the cell change. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 19 is characterized in that the cell changed by the terminal includes a primary cell or a primary and secondary cell. A terminal, comprising: The processing module is configured to perform a cell change, wherein the cell to which the terminal changes corresponds to a plurality of timing advance groups (TAGs), and to determine a TAG of a TA value used by the cell to which the terminal changes from the plurality of TAGs. A network device, comprising: The processing module is used to determine a TAG of a TA value used by a cell to which the terminal changes, where the cell to which the terminal changes corresponds to multiple TAGs. A communication device, comprising: one or more processors; The communication device is configured to execute the TAG determination method according to any one of claims 1 to 10. A communication device, comprising: one or more processors; The communication device is configured to execute the TAG determination method according to any one of claims 11 to 20. A communication system, characterized in that it includes a terminal and a network device, wherein the terminal is configured to implement the TAG determination method described in any one of claims 1 to 10, and the network device is configured to implement the TAG determination method described in any one of claims 11 to 20. A storage medium storing instructions, characterized in that when the instructions are executed on a communication device, the communication device executes the TAG determination method according to any one of claims 1 to 10 or the TAG determination method according to any one of claims 11 to 20. A computer program product, comprising a computer program/instruction, characterized in that when the computer program/instruction is executed by a processor, the method for determining a TAG according to any one of claims 1 to 10 or the method for determining a TAG according to any one of claims 11 to 20 is implemented.