WO2025242105A1 - On-demand sib1 communication method - Google Patents

Abstract

The present application provides a communication method for requesting a system information block 1 (SIB1) message on demand, applied to a first-type terminal, and comprising: receiving configuration information of a first cell from a first network device, wherein the configuration information of the first cell includes a random access MSG1 resource for N types of terminals, the MSG1 resource is used for sending a message requesting first system information of the first cell, the first system information is an SIB1, and N is an integer greater than or equal to 1. A second network device manages the first cell, and the first network device and the second network device are different. Thus, a terminal device can acquire an SIB1 message of the first cell on demand by using a random access resource matching a terminal type.

Description

A communication method for on-demand SIB1

This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202410639291.2, filed on May 21, 2024, entitled “A Communication Method for On-Demand SIB1”, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Technical Field

This application relates to the field of wireless communication, and more specifically, to an on-demand SIB1 communication method.

Background Technology

As the deployment range of base stations increases and user data grows, the power consumption of base stations becomes increasingly prominent. Base stations can reduce power consumption by not sending certain signals or reducing the frequency of sending certain signals. When a terminal device needs certain messages, it can send a wake-up signal to the base station to wake it up and send the corresponding message. This allows the terminal device to obtain relevant information based on the message and thus access the base station.

In existing technologies, System Information Block 1 (SIB1) is a signal continuously broadcast by the base station. SIB1 provides necessary system information for the cell, including cell access information and cell selection information. To ensure that terminal devices can obtain cell access and cell selection information, SIB1 needs to be broadcast periodically. This periodic broadcasting of SIB1 by the base station results in significant energy consumption. Therefore, how the base station can transmit SIB1 to reduce its energy consumption is a problem that needs to be solved.

Summary of the Invention

This application provides a communication method, communication device, and system that helps reduce network energy consumption caused by periodic broadcast SIB1.

Firstly, this application provides a communication method that can be applied to a network device, for example, executed by the network device itself, or executed by components configured in the network device (such as processors, chips, chip systems, etc.), or implemented by logic modules or software capable of realizing all or part of the functions of the network device. This application does not limit the scope of this method.

The method includes: an application to a first network device, the first network device receiving configuration information of a first cell from a second network device, the configuration information of the first cell including MSG1 resources for random access of N terminal types, the MSG1 resources being used to send a message requesting first system information of the first cell, the first system information being system information block 1 (SIB1), N being an integer greater than or equal to 1, the second network device managing the first cell, the first network device being different from the second network device, and the first network device broadcasting the configuration information of the first cell.

In the above method, network energy saving (NES) cells can configure different random access resources for different types of terminals. Subsequently, by receiving MSG1 messages sent through different random access resources, different terminal types requesting SIB1 messages can be distinguished, and different scheduling resources can be allocated to different terminal types to ensure that different types of terminals can obtain the requested SIB1 messages from the NES cell as needed.

In conjunction with the first aspect, the MSG1 resources for random access include at least one of the following: time-domain resources, frequency-domain resources, preamble information, uplink carrier information corresponding to the MSG1 resources, and the number of repetitions of MSG1.

If any of the above resources are different, then the MSG1 resources for random access are different for different terminal types. For example, different types of terminals have different time domain resources.

In conjunction with the first aspect, the configuration information of the first cell also includes one or more of the following: the Physical Cell Identity (PCI) of the first cell, the absolute frequency SSB of the synchronization signal block (SSB) of the first cell, the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) configuration information corresponding to the N terminal types, or cell prohibition information for the N terminal types. The aforementioned absolute frequency SSB includes cell-defining SSB (CD-SSB) frequency information or non-cell-defining SSB (NCD-SSB) frequency information. The aforementioned PDCCH configuration information corresponding to the N terminal types is used to receive MSG2 for random access or to receive the first system information. The Physical Cell Identity (PCI) and Absolute Frequency SSB of the first cell can help the terminal distinguish between different NES cells.

Secondly, a method for a terminal to request an SIB1 message is provided. The method includes, applied to a first type of terminal, receiving configuration information of a first cell from a first network device. The configuration information of the first cell includes MSG1 resources for random access of N types of terminals. The MSG1 resources are used to send a message requesting first system information of the first cell. The first system information is system information block 1 (SIB1). N is an integer greater than or equal to 1. A second network device manages the first cell. The first network device and the second network device are different.

Based on the random access MSG1 resource of the first type of terminal, a random access MSG1 message is sent to the first cell of the second network device. The MSG1 message is used to request the first system information of the first cell.

The above method can ensure that the terminal uses random access resources that match its type, thereby requesting SIB1 messages from the NES cell on demand.

In conjunction with the second aspect, the MSG1 resources for random access include at least one of the following: time-domain resources, frequency-domain resources, preamble information, uplink carrier information corresponding to the MSG1 resources, and the number of repetitions of MSG1.

If any of the above resources are different, then the MSG1 resources for random access are different for different terminal types. For example, different types of terminals have different time domain resources.

In conjunction with the second aspect, the configuration information of the first cell also includes one or more of the following: the Physical Cell Identity (PCI) of the first cell, the absolute frequency SSB of the first cell, the PDCCH configuration information corresponding to N terminal types, and cell prohibition information for N terminal types. The aforementioned absolute frequency SSB includes cell-defined synchronization signal block (CD-SSB) frequency information or non-cell-defined synchronization signal block (NCD-SSB) frequency information. The aforementioned PDCCH configuration information corresponding to the N terminal types is used to receive MSG2 for random access or to receive the first system information. The aforementioned Physical Cell Identity (PCI) and absolute frequency SSB of the first cell can help the terminal distinguish between different NES cells.

In conjunction with the second aspect, another possible implementation method is as follows: the first type of terminal receives the second system information of the second network device, and the second system information indicates that the state of the first cell is barred; if the configuration information of the first cell includes the random access resources of the first type of terminal, the first cell is determined to be notbarred for the first type of terminal; or, if the configuration information of the first cell does not include the random access resources of the first type of terminal, the first cell is determined to be barred for the first type of terminal.

In this method, the barred state indicates that the terminal excludes the first cell from the candidate cells for cell selection/reselection within 300s; the notbarred state indicates that the terminal accepts the first cell as a candidate cell for cell selection/reselection.

In this method, the terminal can reasonably understand the cell prohibition status of the first cell for the first type of terminal by using the configuration information of the first cell and the cell prohibition information broadcast by the first cell.

When the cell prohibition status for the first type of terminal in the first cell is notbarred, the random access MSG1 resource matching the first type of terminal is selected according to the configuration information of the first cell, and the random access MSG1 is sent to the second network device.

In conjunction with the second aspect, the first type of terminal receives randomly accessed MSG2 messages or the first system information based on the configuration information of the first cell.

In conjunction with the second aspect, the first type of terminal is a low-complexity terminal (RedCap UE), or an even lower-complexity terminal (eRedCap UE), or a normal terminal.

Thirdly, this application provides a processor for executing the methods provided in any of the implementations of the first and second aspects described above. In executing these methods, the processes of sending and receiving the aforementioned information can be understood as the processor outputting the aforementioned information and the processor receiving the input information. When outputting the aforementioned information, the processor outputs the information to an interface for transmission. After being output by the processor, the information may require further processing before reaching the interface. Similarly, when the processor receives the input information, the interface acquires/receives the information and inputs it into the processor. Furthermore, after the interface receives the information, the information may require further processing before being input into the processor.

Unless otherwise specified, or if the transmission, sending, and acquisition/reception operations involved do not contradict their actual function or internal logic in the relevant description, they can be understood as output and reception, input, etc., or as transmission, sending, and reception operations performed by radio frequency circuits and antennas. This application does not limit them in this regard.

In implementation, the processor can be a dedicated processor for executing these methods, or it can be a processor that executes computer programs or instructions stored in memory to perform these methods, such as a general-purpose processor. The memory can be a non-transitory memory, such as read-only memory (ROM), which can be integrated with the processor on the same chip or disposed on different chips. This application does not limit the type of memory or the arrangement of the memory and processor.

Fourthly, a computer-readable storage medium is provided that stores program code for execution by a device, the program code including a method for performing any of the implementations of the first and second aspects described above.

Fifthly, a computer program product containing instructions is provided, which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method provided by any one of the implementations of the first and second aspects described above.

In a seventh aspect, a chip is provided, the chip including a processor and a communication interface, the processor reading instructions stored in a memory through the communication interface and executing the method provided by any one of the implementations of the first to second aspects.

Optionally, as one implementation, the chip may also include a memory storing computer programs or instructions, and a processor for executing the computer programs or instructions stored in the memory. When the computer programs or instructions are executed, the processor is used to execute the method provided by any one of the first to second aspects described above.

Attached Figure Description

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a system architecture provided in an embodiment of this application;

Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the 5G network architecture provided in an embodiment of this application;

Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the open RAN architecture provided in an embodiment of this application;

Figure 4 is a schematic flowchart of a system information request method provided in an embodiment of this application;

Figure 5 is a schematic flowchart of another system information request method provided in an embodiment of this application;

Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the first cell configuration information provided in an embodiment of this application;

Figure 7 is a schematic flowchart of another system information request method provided in an embodiment of this application;

Figure 8 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of this application.

Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of another communication device provided in an embodiment of this application.

Figure 10 is a schematic diagram of a chip system provided in an embodiment of this application.

Detailed Implementation

The technical solutions in this application will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

First, in this application, "for indicating" can include both direct and indirect indication. When describing an indication message as indicating A, it can include whether the indication message directly indicates A or indirectly indicates A, but does not necessarily mean that the indication message carries A.

The information indicated by the instruction is called the information to be instructed. In the specific implementation process, there are many ways to indicate the information to be instructed, such as, but not limited to, directly indicating the information to be instructed, such as the information to be instructed itself or its index. It can also be indirectly indicated by indicating other information, where there is a relationship between the other information and the information to be instructed. It can also indicate only a part of the information to be indicated, while the other parts are known or pre-agreed upon. For example, the instruction of specific information can be achieved by using a pre-agreed (e.g., protocol-defined) arrangement of various pieces of information, thereby reducing instruction overhead to some extent. At the same time, common parts of various pieces of information can be identified and indicated uniformly to reduce the instruction overhead caused by individually indicating the same information.

Second, in this application, "at least one" refers to one or more, and "more than one" refers to two or more. Furthermore, in the embodiments of this application, "first," "second," and various numerical designations (e.g., "#1," "#2," etc.) are merely for descriptive convenience and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of this application. The sequence numbers of the processes below do not imply an order of execution; the execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of this application. It should be understood that the objects described in this way can be interchanged where appropriate to describe solutions other than those in the embodiments of this application. Moreover, in the embodiments of this application, terms such as "S210" are merely identifiers for descriptive convenience and do not limit the order of execution steps.

Third, in the embodiments of this application, the words "exemplary" or "for example" are used to indicate that they are examples, illustrations, or descriptions. Any embodiment or design that is described as "exemplary" or "for example" in this application should not be construed as being more preferred or advantageous than other embodiments or design options. Specifically, the use of the words "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present the relevant concepts in a specific manner.

Fourth, the term "storage" in the embodiments of this application can refer to storage in one or more memories. These memories can be separate installations or integrated into an encoder, decoder, processor, or communication device. Alternatively, some memories can be separately installed, while others can be integrated into the decoder, processor, or communication device. The type of memory can be any form of storage medium, and this application does not limit this.

Fifth, in the implementation of this application, "protocol" may refer to standard protocols in the field of communications, such as the NR protocol and related protocols applied in future communication systems, and this application does not limit it.

Sixth, in the embodiments of this application, the terms "of", "corresponding (relevant)", "corresponding", and "associate" can sometimes be used interchangeably. It should be noted that when their differences are not emphasized, their intended meanings are consistent.

Seventh, in the embodiments of this application, "under the circumstances", "when", and "if" can sometimes be used interchangeably. It should be noted that when the distinction is not emphasized, their intended meanings are consistent.

Eighth, the term "and/or" in this article is merely a description of the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and/or B can represent: A existing alone, A and B existing simultaneously, or B existing alone. Additionally, the character "/" in this article generally indicates that the preceding and following related objects have an "or" relationship.

For ease of description, the system architecture of the embodiments of this application will be described in detail below.

The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application can be applied to various communication systems, such as: Global System of Mobile Communication (GSM) system, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) system, Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) system, General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, LTE Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) system, LTE Time Division Duplex (TDD) system, Universal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) system, 5th Generation (5G) mobile communication system or New Radio (NR) system, and future evolved communication systems, etc., and this application does not limit them. Among them, the 5G mobile communication system can be non-standalone (NSA) or standalone (SA).

The technical solutions provided in this application can also be applied to machine-type communication (MTC), long-term evolution-machine (LTE-M) communication, device-to-device (D2D) networks, machine-to-machine (M2M) networks, Internet of Things (IoT) networks, or other networks. Among these, IoT networks may include, for example, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) networks. The communication methods in V2X systems are collectively referred to as vehicle-to-X (V2X), where X can represent anything. For example, V2X may include vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication, vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication, vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P) communication, or vehicle-to-network (V2N) communication, etc.

In the embodiments of this application, the terminal device may also be referred to as user equipment (UE), mobile station (MS), mobile terminal (MT), etc., and refers to a device that provides voice and/or data connectivity to a user. For example, the terminal device may be a mobile phone, tablet computer, computer with wireless transceiver capabilities, mobile internet device (MID), wearable device, virtual reality (VR) terminal device, augmented reality (AR) terminal device, wireless terminal in industrial control, wireless terminal in self-driving, wireless terminal in remote medical care, wireless terminal in smart grid, wireless terminal in transportation safety, wireless terminal in smart city, wireless terminal in smart home, drone, drone controller, etc. The embodiments of this application do not limit the application scenarios. Terminal devices also include devices capable of sidelink communication, such as in-vehicle terminals, or handheld terminals capable of V2X (vehicle-to-everything) communication. For ease of description, the following text will use terminals or UEs as examples to describe terminal devices.

It should be noted that the terminal device can be a device or apparatus with a chip, or a device or apparatus with integrated circuitry, or a chip, module, or control unit in the device or apparatus shown above; this application does not limit the specifics. For example, the chip can be a chip in the terminal device responsible for communication functions, such as a modem chip, also known as a baseband chip, or a system-on-chip (SoC) chip or system-in-package (SIP) chip containing a modem core.

In communication systems, terminals are classified into different types based on their varying levels of implementation complexity and capabilities. For example, one type of terminal is the low-complexity terminal (reduced capability UE, RedCap UE), another type is the even lower-complexity terminal (enhanced reduced capability UE, eRedCap UE), and yet another type is the standard terminal, such as the enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) terminal.

The different types of terminal devices mentioned above have different features and capabilities, which include one or more of the following:

Bandwidth, number of supported or configured resources, number of transmit antenna ports and/or receive antenna ports, number of RF channels, number of hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes, supported peak rate, application scenarios, latency requirements, processing capacity, protocol version, duplex mode, services, etc. The following provides a detailed description of each characteristic.

Bandwidth, or channel bandwidth, or the maximum channel bandwidth supported or configured by the terminal device, varies depending on the type of terminal device. For example, the bandwidth of a RedCap or eRedCap terminal may be 20MHz, 10MHz, or 5MHz, while the bandwidth of a legacy terminal may be 100MHz. Understandably, with the development of communication technology, the bandwidth of a RedCap or eRedCap terminal may also evolve to wider or narrower bandwidths, such as 3MHz, 25MHz, or 50MHz.

The number of resources supported or configured can be RBs, REs, subcarriers, RB groups, REG bundles, control channel elements, subframes, radio frames, time slots, mini time slots, and/or the number of symbols. For example, a normal terminal device supports 48 RBs, while a RedCap terminal device supports 96 RBs.

The number of transmit antenna ports and/or receive antenna ports. For example, a RedCap terminal device may have 1 transmit antenna port and 2 receive antenna ports, while a regular terminal device may have 2 transmit antenna ports and 4 receive antenna ports.

The number of radio frequency channels, for example: RedCap terminal devices can have 1 radio frequency channel, while ordinary terminal devices can have 2 radio frequency channels.

The number of hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes, for example: the number of HARQ processes for RedCap terminal devices can be 8, and the number of HARQ processes for ordinary terminal devices can be 16.

Supported peak rates, for example: RedCap terminal devices can support a maximum peak rate of 100Mbps, while ordinary terminal devices can support a peak rate of 200Mbps.

Application scenarios include: RedCap terminal devices are used in industrial wireless sensing, video surveillance, wearable devices, etc., while ordinary terminal devices are used in mobile communication, video internet access, etc.

Latency requirements, for example: RedCap terminal devices may require a latency of 500 milliseconds, while ordinary terminal devices may require a latency of 100 milliseconds.

Processing capabilities and processing speeds vary for different types of terminal devices under different subcarrier space (SCS) conditions, depending on the timing of channel or data processing. For example, RedCap terminal devices do not support complex calculations, which may include artificial intelligence (AI) and VR rendering, while ordinary terminal devices support complex calculations.

The duplex mode includes half-duplex and full-duplex. For example, RedCap terminal devices operate in half-duplex mode, while ordinary terminal devices operate in full-duplex mode.

The services mentioned include, but are not limited to, IoT applications, such as video surveillance and mobile broadband (MBB). For example, RedCap terminal devices support real-time video surveillance, while ordinary terminal devices support mobile broadband (MBB). This application does not limit the scope of these services.

Access network equipment or network equipment refers to a radio access network (RAN) node (or device) that connects a terminal to a wireless network. It can also be called a base station, such as an NR gNB or an LTE eNB, among other types of base stations. For ease of description, this application embodiment uniformly refers to "access network equipment" as "network equipment" or "base station". The NR gNB can adopt an architecture that separates centralized units (CU) and distributed units (DU), as shown in base station #1 in Figure 1, where the CU and DU are connected via the F1 interface for message transmission; or it can adopt an architecture that integrates the CU and DU, as shown in base station #2 in Figure 1. This application embodiment is not limited to this. In scenarios where access network equipment includes separate deployments of CU and DU, the CU supports protocols such as Radio Resource Control (RRC), Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP), and Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP); the DU primarily supports radio link control (RLC), media access control (MAC), and physical layer protocols. In dual connectivity (DC) scenarios, terminal devices can connect to two base stations simultaneously. One base station acts as a control anchor point, providing both control plane and user plane connections for the terminal; this is called the primary base station. The other base station provides only user plane connections for the terminal; this is called the secondary base station.

Core network equipment refers to the equipment in the core network (CN) that provides service support to terminals. Examples of core network equipment include: Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) entities, Session Management Function (SMF) entities, User Plane Function (UPF) entities, etc., which will not be listed here. The AMF entity is responsible for terminal access management and mobility management; the SMF entity is responsible for session management, such as user session establishment; and the UPF entity can be a user plane functional entity, primarily responsible for connecting to external networks. It should be noted that in this application, entities can also be referred to as network elements or functional entities. For example, an AMF entity can also be called an AMF network element or an AMF functional entity, and an SMF entity can also be called an SMF network element or an SMF functional entity, etc.

The aforementioned network equipment provides services to the cell. The terminal equipment communicates with the cell through the transmission resources (e.g., frequency domain resources, or spectrum resources) allocated by the network equipment. The cell can belong to a macro base station (e.g., macro eNB or macro gNB) or to a base station corresponding to a small cell. The small cells here can include: metro cells, micro cells, pico cells, femto cells, etc. These small cells have the characteristics of small coverage area and low transmission power, and are suitable for providing high-speed data transmission services.

In this application, the apparatus for implementing the functions of the access network device can be the access network device itself; it can also be an apparatus capable of supporting the access network device in implementing the functions, such as a chip system, hardware circuit, software module, or hardware circuit plus software module. This apparatus can be installed in the access network device or can be used in conjunction with the access network device. In the technical solution provided in this application, the apparatus for implementing the functions of the access network device is an access network device, and the access network device is a base station, as an example to describe the technical solution provided in this application. In the embodiments of this application, a network device may include one or more cells, and each cell includes one or more transmission reception points (TRPs) or transmission points (TPs).

With the continuous development of wireless communication systems, wireless communication has greatly enriched people's communication and lives. Faster networks, better network experiences, and greater connectivity between people and things allow people to fully enjoy the benefits of smart living. At the same time, the energy consumption brought about by wireless communication cannot be ignored. Therefore, achieving green network connectivity is an important issue that urgently needs to be addressed.

In a wireless communication system, system information may include remaining minimum system information (RMSI) and other SIBs. The RMSI may include the master information block (MIB) and SIB1; other SIBs may include system information block type n (SIBn), where n is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2 (e.g., n can range from 2 to 18).

The MIB can include radio frame number information, which can be used to receive SIB1 configuration;

SIB1 may include the cell’s access configuration (e.g., random access resource configuration) and scheduling information from other SIBs (including SIB2 to SIB18);

SIB2 can include cell reselection information, which is mainly related to the serving cell;

SIB3 may include serving frequency points and co-frequency neighboring cell information related to cell reselection. The co-frequency neighboring cell information may include cell reselection parameters common to the frequency points and cell-specific reselection parameters.

SIB4 may include other NR frequency points and inter-frequency neighbor cell information related to cell reselection, which can also be used for NR idle/inactive measurements. The inter-frequency neighbor cell information may include cell reselection parameters common to the frequency points and cell-specific reselection parameters.

SIB5 may include evolved universal terrestrial radio access (E-UTRA) frequency points and E-UTRA neighbor cell information related to cell reselection. The E-UTRA neighbor cell information may include cell reselection parameters common to the frequency points and cell-specific reselection parameters.

SIB6 may include the primary notification for the Earthquake and Tsunami Warning System (ETWS);

SIB7 may include ETWS secondary notifications;

SIB8 may include alert notifications from the Commercial Mobile Alert System (CMAS);

SIB9 may include information related to the Global Positioning System (GPS) and Coordinated Universal Time (UTC).

SIB10 may include human-readable network names (HRNNs) of non-public networks (NPNs) listed in SIB1;

SIB11 may include information related to idle/inactive measurements;

SIB15 may include disaster roaming information;

SIB16 may include slice-based cell reselection information;

SIB17 may include information related to the tracking reference signal (TRS) configuration of the terminal in the RRC_idle/RRC_inactive state;

SIB18 may include information related to the group ID for network selection (GIN) associated with the SNPN listed in SIB1.

Currently, SIBn supports two broadcast methods: periodic broadcasting and on-demand broadcasting based on the needs of different terminals. However, for SIB1, network devices always broadcast periodically regardless of whether there are any terminals in the cell, which leads to higher network power consumption.

In view of this, this application proposes a method for requesting system information, allowing a terminal to send a request message to a network device to request SIB1 according to its own needs. For example, the terminal can send the request message even if the version of SIB1 stored locally is not the latest version; or, for example, the terminal can send the request message even if the version of SIB1 stored locally is invalid. In this way, the network device can send SIB1 according to the terminal's needs, thereby reducing the network energy consumption caused by the network device periodically broadcasting SIB1.

The method provided in this application will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the technical solution of this application can be applied to the network architecture shown in Figure 2 or Figure 3. It is also understood that the network architectures shown in Figures 2 and 3 can all be applied to the communication system shown in Figure 1.

It should be noted that the steps performed by the network devices in the following figures can be executed by the gNB or ng-eNB in the network architecture shown in Figure 2, or by the gNB-CU and gNB-DU in the network architecture shown in Figure 3, without limitation. In the embodiments shown in the following figures, the various processes are described using the interaction process between the terminal and the network device as an example, but this should not constitute any limitation on the executing entity of this application. For example, the terminal can also be replaced by components configured in the terminal, such as chips, chip systems, or other modules that can be used to implement some or all of the terminal's functions; the network device can also be replaced by components configured in the network device, such as chips, chip systems, or other modules that can be used to implement some or all of the network device's functions.

The system information request method provided in this application will be described in detail below with reference to Figure 4.

Figure 4 illustrates a system information request method 400 provided in an embodiment of this application. The method 400 includes steps 410 to 420. The various steps of method 400 are described in detail below.

In step 410, the terminal sends a request message to the network device, which requests first system information. Correspondingly, the network device receives the request message from the terminal.

The aforementioned first system information refers to the first system information of the first cell, and the first system message is system information block 1 (SIB1). System information block 1 (SIB1) contains the information required for the terminal's initial access in the first cell, as well as the scheduling information of other system message blocks besides SIB1.

In step 420, the network device responds to the request message by sending first system information to the terminal. Accordingly, the terminal receives the first system information from the network device.

It should be understood that the network device sending the first system information to the terminal does not mean that the network device only sends the first system information to the terminal that sent the request message. For example, the network device may broadcast the first system information or unicast the first system information. This application does not limit this.

Based on the above scheme, network devices can respond to terminal requests and send first system information on demand, thus reducing network energy consumption caused by the periodic transmission of first system information. Since the first system information of the first cell can be sent in response to terminal requests, i.e., sent on demand, it is, on-demand system information. Therefore, the network energy consumption of the first cell is reduced, and this first cell can be called a network energy-saving (NES) cell. An NES cell is a cell where the first system information (e.g., SIB1) needs to be sent based on a request. In contrast, the second cell can periodically send the first system information (e.g., SIB1), and can be called a non-network energy-saving cell (i.e., a non-NES cell). A non-NES cell is a cell where the first system information (e.g., SIB1) does not need to be sent based on a request.

Figure 5 illustrates a system information request method 500 according to an embodiment of this application. The system information request method 500 describes the implementation flow of the method using the interaction between a terminal, a second network device managing a first cell, and a first network device managing a second cell as an example. It should be understood that the first cell and the second cell are different, and the first network device and the second network device are also different. The method 500 shown in Figure 5 is based on the method 400 provided in Figure 4, and illustrates a more complete processing logic for the system information request method.

In S501, the first network device receives configuration information for the first cell from the second network device. Correspondingly, the second network device sends the configuration information for the first cell to the first network device. The second network device manages the first cell. The first cell is a cell that supports Network Energy Saving (NES). The first network device and the second network device are different.

The configuration information of the first cell can be carried in Xn interface messages, reusing existing Xn messages. Examples include XN SETUP REQUEST, XN SETUP RESPONSE, NG-RAN NODE CONFIGURATION UPDATE, other Xn interface messages, or newly defined messages. This configuration information can be exchanged when the interface between the first and second network devices is established, updated when the network power-saving status of the second network device changes, or updated whenever the configuration information changes. The second network device can determine whether to enable or disable network power-saving for the first cell based on its own power-saving needs and update the network power-saving status and configuration information of the first cell to the first network device.

As shown in Figure 6, the configuration information of the first cell includes MSG1 resources for random access for N terminal types, where N is an integer greater than or equal to 1. That is, the configuration information of the first cell can include MSG1 resources for random access for the first type of terminal, up to the MSG1 resources for random access for the Nth type. The MSG1 resources for random access for the N terminal types can be used by the terminal to request the first system message from the first cell. The first system message is system information block 1 (SIB1). For example, the N terminal types can be ordinary terminals, RedCap terminals, eRedCap terminals, or other terminal types. System information block 1 (SIB1) contains the information required for initial UE access, as well as scheduling information for other system information blocks besides SIB1. Different terminal types are configured with different MSG1 resources for random access in the configuration information of the first cell.

The MSG1 resources for random access mentioned above include at least one of the following: time-domain resources, frequency-domain resources, preamble information, uplink carrier information corresponding to the MSG1 resources, and the number of MSG1 repetitions. The time-domain resources can be a PRACH configuration index configured by a higher layer. Through the PRACH configuration index, the terminal can calculate the timing for transmitting the preamble. The time-domain resources can also be other time-domain related configuration information. The terminal can use the corresponding table in the 3GPP protocol TS38211 to determine the time-domain resources for transmitting MSG1. The frequency-domain resources can be information such as MSG1-FDM and msg1-FrequencyStart configured by a higher layer, or other frequency-domain related configuration information. The uplink carrier information corresponding to the MSG1 resources indicates whether MSG1 can be transmitted using a normal uplink (NUL) or a supplementary uplink (SUL). The number of MSG1 repetitions indicates the number of times the terminal will repeatedly transmit the preamble. In the configuration information of the first cell mentioned above, different terminal types are configured with different random access MSG1 resources. That is, at least one of the MSG1 resources used by different terminals is different. For example, it can be different time domain resources or different frequency domain resources.

Optionally, the configuration information of the first cell may include its Physical Cell Identity (PCI). The configuration information of the first cell may also include its Absolute Frequency SSB (SSB), which can be either a cell-defined Synchronization Signal Block (CD-SSB) frequency or a non-cell-defined Synchronization Signal Block (NCD-SSB) frequency. After receiving the above configuration information for different cells, the terminal can distinguish between them using the Physical Cell Identity and the Absolute Frequency SSB.

Optionally, the configuration information of the first cell may include PDCCH configuration information corresponding to N terminal types. Terminals use the PDCCH configuration information matching their terminal type to receive random access MSG2 messages or scheduling information for receiving SIB1 messages requested by the terminal. This scheduling information can be carried in the DCI. For example, different terminal types can configure different receiving bandwidths using different PDCCH configuration information; for instance, RedCap terminals use 5Mbps bandwidth, while ordinary terminals use 20Mbps bandwidth.

Optionally, the configuration information of the first cell may also include cell prohibition information corresponding to N terminal types. For example, the cell prohibition information may be an indication of whether access is prohibited for low-complexity terminals (cellBarredRedCap-r17), or an indication of whether access is prohibited for even lower-complexity terminals (cellBarredRedCap-r18), or an indication of whether access is prohibited for network energy saving (cellBarredNES). Further, the indications may be based on the protocol version and the number of receiving antennas of the low-complexity terminals, specifically cellBarredRedCap1Rx-r17, cellBarredRedCap2Rx-r17, cellBarred-eRedCap1Rx-r18, and cellBarred-eRedCap2Rx-r18. The cell prohibition information corresponding to the N terminal types may also be other prohibition information besides the above-mentioned prohibition information; this invention does not limit this. The values of the above indication information can all be either "barred" or "not Barred".

S502, the first network device broadcasts the configuration information of the first cell. For example, the configuration information can be broadcast via system messages of the cell managed by the first network device. Correspondingly, different types of terminals receive the configuration information of the first cell through the broadcast message from the first network device.

S503, after receiving the configuration information of the first cell, the terminal can identify the random access MSG1 resource of its own terminal type through the above information. The terminal uses the random access MSG1 resource matching its own type to send an MSG1 message to the first cell. The MSG1 message is used to request the first system message of the first cell. The first system message can be an SIB1 message.

S504 After receiving the MSG1 message from the aforementioned terminal, the first cell of the second network device can distinguish the type of terminal requesting the first system message through the random access resources used by MSG1.

For example, taking a RedCap terminal as the first type of terminal, the RedCap terminal receives the configuration information of the first cell from the first network device. If the configuration information of the first cell contains MSG1 random access resources that RedCap can use, then when the RedCap terminal needs to request the first message SIB1 from the first cell, it sends the MSG1 message using the random access resources of the RedCap terminal type in the first cell. After receiving the MSG1 message, the first cell can identify the type of the terminal as a RedCap terminal through the random access resources it has allocated. The above method can also be applied to other types of terminals; for example, the first type of terminal can also be a regular MBB terminal, which is not limited here.

S505, the first cell of the second network device uses a PDCCH configuration matching the terminal type to send scheduling information for an MSG2 message or a SIB1 message requested by the terminal to the terminal. Furthermore, the scheduling information can be a DCI message. Correspondingly, the terminal can use the PDCCH configuration information corresponding to the terminal type in the configuration information of the first cell to receive the MSG2 or SIB1 scheduling information. Taking a RedCap terminal as an example, the RedCap terminal can use the PDCCH configuration information corresponding to the RedCap terminal in the configuration information of the first cell to receive the MSG2 or SIB1 scheduling information. Similarly, the above method can also be applied to other types of terminals; for example, the first type of terminal can also be a regular MBB terminal, which is not limited here.

S506, the first cell of the second network device uses the above scheduling information to send an MSG2 or SIB1 message to the terminal.

Based on the above scheme, when there are N different types of terminals in the network, the network device can send the configuration information of the NES cell corresponding to the different types of terminals to the terminals, ensuring that the terminals use network resources that match their type and that the terminals can obtain the first system message of the NES cell as needed.

Figure 7 illustrates a system information request method 700 according to another embodiment of this application. The system information request method 700 describes the implementation flow of the method using the interaction between a terminal, a second network device managing a first cell, and a first network device managing a second cell as an example. It should be understood that the first cell and the second cell are different, and the first network device and the second network device are also different. The method 800 shown in Figure 5 is based on the method 400 provided in Figure 4, and illustrates a more complete processing logic for the system information request method.

The system information request method 700 describes the implementation flow using the interaction between a terminal, network device #1 managing the first cell, and network device #2 managing the second cell as an example. It should be understood that the first cell and the second cell are different, and network device #1 and network device #2 are also different. The method 700 shown in Figure 7 is based on method 400 provided in Figure 4 and method 500 provided in Figure 5, and illustrates a more complete processing logic for the system information request method. The following focuses on describing steps that differ from method 500; steps identical to those in method 500 can be referred to the relevant descriptions in method 500 above, and will not be repeated here.

S701, the first network device receives the configuration information of the first cell sent by the second network device. Correspondingly, the second network device sends the configuration information of the first cell to the first network device. The configuration information of the first cell includes MSG1 resources for random access of N types of terminals, where N is an integer greater than or equal to 1. That is, the configuration information of the first cell may include MSG1 resources for random access of the first type of terminal, and MSG1 resources for random access of the second type, up to MSG1 resources for random access of the Nth type.

S702, the first network device broadcasts the configuration information of the first cell mentioned above.

The configuration information of the first cell mentioned above has been described in detail in method 500. Steps S701 and S702 are the same as steps S501 and S502 in method 500, and will not be repeated here.

S703, the second network device broadcasts the second system information of the first cell. Correspondingly, the terminal receives the second system information of the first cell. The aforementioned second system information includes the cell prohibition status information of the first cell, and the second system information can be Master Information Block (MIB) information. The MIB information contains the cell prohibition status information of the first cell and the basic physical layer configuration information required to receive other system information, such as the configuration information of CORRSET#0.

S704, the terminal can reasonably understand the cell prohibition status information of the first cell based on the cell prohibition status information in the second system information broadcast by the first cell and the configuration information of the first cell received from the first network device. If the terminal receives a cell prohibition status of "barred" in the second system information, but the configuration information of the first cell contains first configuration information matching the terminal type (i.e., a random access MSG1 resource matching the terminal type), then the terminal can consider the cell status information of the first cell for that terminal type to be "notbarred". If the terminal receives a cell prohibition status of "barred" in the second system information, but the configuration information of the first cell does not contain first configuration information matching the terminal type (i.e., no random access MSG1 resource matching the terminal type), then the terminal can consider the cell status information of the first cell for that terminal type to be "barred". The "barred" status means that within 300 seconds, the terminal needs to exclude the first cell from the candidate cells for cell selection/reselection. The "notbarred" status means that the terminal can initiate random access in the first cell or can use it as a candidate cell for cell selection or reselection.

For example, taking a RedCap terminal as the first terminal type, if the cell prohibition status information in the MIB message broadcast by the first cell received by this terminal is "barred", and the configuration information of the first cell received by the terminal from the first network device includes MSG1 random access resources that RedCap can use, then the terminal can consider the cell status information of the first cell for RedCap type terminals to be "notbarred", that is, the RedCap terminal can initiate random access in the first cell or can be used as a candidate cell for cell selection or reselection. If the configuration information of the first cell received by the terminal from the first network device does not include MSG1 random access resources that RedCap can use, then the terminal considers the cell status information of the first cell for RedCap type terminals to be "barred", that is, the RedCap terminal needs to exclude the first cell from the candidate cells for cell selection/reselection within 300 seconds.

S705, if the first cell status is "notbarred" for the above-mentioned type of terminal, the terminal, based on the configuration information of the first cell received from the first network device, uses the random access MSG1 resource matching the terminal type to send an MSG1 message to request a first system message from the first cell of the second network device. The first system message is SIB1.

S706 After the first cell of the second network device receives the MSG1 message from the aforementioned terminal, it can distinguish the type of terminal requesting the first system message through the random access resources used by MSG1.

S707, the first cell of the second network device sends scheduling information of MSG2 message or SIB1 message requested by the terminal to the terminal, using PDCCH configuration that matches the terminal type.

S708, the first cell of the second network device uses the above scheduling information to send MSG2 or SIB1 messages to the terminal.

In the above scheme, steps S705 to S708 are the same as S503 to S506 in method 500. The detailed steps have been described in method 500 and will not be repeated in method 700.

The above solution ensures flexibility for different types of terminals and allows for a reasonable understanding of the cell prohibition status of NES cells. It eliminates the need to transmit NES cell prohibition status information for different types of cells between different network devices, and also avoids broadcasting information to terminals through other network devices, thus saving signaling overhead between network devices and for broadcast messages.

It should also be understood that the above embodiments are mainly illustrated using devices in existing network architectures as examples. It should be understood that the specific form of the device is not limited in the embodiments of this application. For example, any device that can achieve the same function in the future is applicable to the embodiments of this application.

It is understood that the methods and operations implemented by the network device in the above-described method embodiments can also be implemented by components (such as chips or circuits) that can be used in the device.

It is also understood that some optional features in the various embodiments of this application may not depend on other features in some scenarios, or may be combined with other features in some scenarios, without limitation.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that, based on the units and algorithm steps described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein, this application can be implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is implemented in hardware or by computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

The communication device provided in the embodiments of this application will be described in detail below with reference to Figures 8 to 10. It should be understood that the description of the device embodiments corresponds to the description of the method embodiments. Therefore, for content not described in detail, please refer to the method embodiments above. For the sake of brevity, some content will not be repeated.

This application embodiment can divide the transmitting or receiving device into functional modules according to the above method examples. For example, each function can be divided into its own functional modules, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The integrated module can be implemented in hardware or as a software functional module. It should be noted that the module division in this application embodiment is illustrative and only represents one logical functional division; other division methods may be used in actual implementation. The following description uses the division of functional modules according to each function as an example.

Figure 8 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 8 provided in an embodiment of this application. The device 8 includes a transceiver module 11 and a processing module 12. The transceiver module 11 can implement corresponding communication functions, and the processing module 12 is used for data processing. In other words, the transceiver module 11 is used to perform operations related to receiving and sending, while the processing module 12 is used to perform other operations besides receiving and sending. The transceiver module 11 can also be referred to as a communication interface or a communication unit.

Optionally, the device 8 may further include a storage module 13, which can be used to store instructions and/or data. The processing module 12 can read the instructions and/or data in the storage module to enable the device to perform the operation of the device in the aforementioned method embodiments.

In one design, the device 8 may correspond to the first network device in the above method embodiment. The transceiver module 11 can be used to perform the transceiver-related operations of the first network device, and the processing module 12 can be used to perform the processing-related operations of the first network device.

In one possible implementation, the transceiver module 11 is used to receive configuration information of a first cell from a second network device. The configuration information of the first cell includes MSG1 resources for random access of N terminal types. The MSG1 resources are used to send a message requesting first system information of the first cell. The first system information is system information block 1 (SIB1), and N is an integer greater than or equal to 1. The transceiver module 11 can also be used to broadcast the configuration information of the first cell.

In another possible implementation, device 8 may correspond to the first type of terminal in the above method embodiment. The transceiver module 11 can be used to perform transceiver-related operations of the first type of terminal, and the processing module 12 can be used to perform processing-related operations of the first type of terminal.

In one possible implementation, the transceiver module 11 receives configuration information of a first cell from a first network device. The configuration information of the first cell includes MSG1 resources for random access for N terminal types. These MSG1 resources are used to send messages requesting first system information from the first cell. The processing module 12 can select a random access MSG1 resource matching the terminal type corresponding to the device 8. Then, the transceiver module 11 can use the MSG1 resource matching the terminal type to send an MSG1 message requesting the first system information from the first cell. The first system information is an SIB1 message.

The transceiver module 11 can also receive DCI using PDCCH configuration information that matches the first type of terminal, and receive MSG2 or SIB1 messages from the first cell using scheduling information in the DCI.

It should also be understood that device 8 here is embodied in the form of a functional module. The term "module" here can refer to an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), electronic circuitry, a processor (e.g., a shared processor, a proprietary processor, or a group processor, etc.) and memory for executing one or more software or firmware programs, integrated logic circuitry, and/or other suitable components supporting the described functions. In an alternative example, those skilled in the art will understand that device 10 may specifically be a first network device in the above embodiments, used to execute the various processes and/or steps corresponding to the first network device in the above method embodiments; or, device 10 may specifically be a second network device in the above embodiments, used to execute the various processes and/or steps corresponding to the second network device in the above method embodiments; or, device 10 may specifically be a first type of terminal in the above embodiments, used to execute the various processes and/or steps corresponding to the first type of terminal in the above method embodiments. To avoid repetition, further details are omitted here.

The apparatus 8 of each of the above-described schemes has the function of implementing the corresponding steps performed by the device (such as the first network device) in the above-described methods. This function can be implemented by hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above-described functions; for example, the transceiver module can be replaced by a transceiver (for example, the sending unit in the transceiver module can be replaced by a transmitter, and the receiving unit in the transceiver module can be replaced by a receiver), and other units, such as processing modules, can be replaced by processors, which respectively execute the transceiver operations and related processing operations in each method embodiment.

In addition, the transceiver module 11 can also be a transceiver circuit (for example, it may include a receiving circuit and a transmitting circuit), and the processing module can be a processing circuit.

Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of another communication device 20 provided in an embodiment of this application. The device 20 includes a processor 21, which is used to execute computer programs or instructions stored in a memory 22, or to read data/signaling stored in the memory 22, to perform the methods in the above method embodiments. Optionally, there may be one or more processors 21.

Optionally, as shown in FIG9, the device 20 further includes a memory 22 for storing computer programs or instructions and/or data. The memory 22 may be integrated with the processor 21 or may be disposed separately. Optionally, there may be one or more memories 22.

Optionally, as shown in FIG9, the device 20 further includes a transceiver 23 for receiving and/or transmitting signals. For example, the processor 21 is used to control the transceiver 23 to receive and/or transmit signals.

As one option, the device 20 is used to implement the operations performed by the first network device, the second network device, or the first type of terminal in the various method embodiments described above.

It should be understood that the processor mentioned in the embodiments of this application can be a central processing unit (CPU), or other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components, etc. A general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor or any conventional processor.

It should also be understood that the memory mentioned in the embodiments of this application can be volatile memory and/or non-volatile memory. Non-volatile memory can be read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or flash memory. Volatile memory can be random access memory (RAM). For example, RAM can be used as an external cache. By way of example and not limitation, RAM includes the following forms: static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (DDR SDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (ESDRAM), synchronous linked dynamic random access memory (SLDRAM), and direct rambus RAM (DR RAM).

It should be noted that when the processor is a general-purpose processor, DSP, ASIC, FPGA, or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic device, or discrete hardware component, the memory (storage module) can be integrated into the processor.

It should also be noted that the memory described herein is intended to include, but is not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

Figure 10 is a schematic diagram of a chip system 30 provided in an embodiment of this application. The chip system 30 (or may also be called a processing system) includes logic circuitry 31 and an input/output interface 32.

The logic circuit 31 can be a processing circuit in the chip system 30. The logic circuit 31 can be coupled to a memory unit, calling instructions from the memory unit, enabling the chip system 30 to implement the methods and functions of the embodiments of this application. The input/output interface 32 can be an input/output circuit in the chip system 30, outputting processed information from the chip system 30, or inputting data or signaling information to be processed into the chip system 30 for processing.

As one approach, the chip system 30 is used to implement the operations performed by the first network device, the second network device, or the first type of terminal in the various method embodiments described above.

For example, logic circuit 31 is used to implement processing-related operations performed by the first network device, the second network device, or the first type of terminal in the above method embodiment; input/output interface 32 is used to implement related operations performed by the first network device, the second network device, or the first type of terminal in the above method embodiment.

This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing computer instructions for implementing the methods executed by the device in the above-described method embodiments.

For example, when the computer program is executed by a computer, it enables the computer to implement the methods executed by the first network device, the second network device, or the first type of terminal in the various embodiments of the above methods.

This application also provides a computer program product comprising instructions that, when executed by a computer, implement the methods performed by a first network device, a second network device, or a first type of terminal in the above-described method embodiments.

This application also provides a communication system, including the aforementioned first network device and second network device. Optionally, the communication system may further include a first type of terminal.

The explanations and beneficial effects of the relevant contents in any of the devices provided above can be found in the corresponding method embodiments provided above, and will not be repeated here.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that the units and algorithm steps of the various examples described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

Those skilled in the art will understand that, for the sake of convenience and brevity, the specific working processes of the systems, devices, and units described above can be referred to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, apparatuses, and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for instance, the division of units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some interfaces; the indirect coupling or communication connection between apparatuses or units may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

In addition, the functional units in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit.

If the aforementioned functions are implemented as software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or a portion of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, portable hard drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical disks.

The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this application, but the scope of protection of this application is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the scope of the technology disclosed in this application should be included within the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims (17)

A communication method, characterized in that it includes: The first network device receives configuration information of a first cell from the second network device. The configuration information of the first cell includes MSG1 resources for random access of N terminal types. The MSG1 resources are used to send a message requesting the first system information of the first cell. The first system information includes system information block 1 (SIB1), where N is an integer greater than or equal to 1. The second network device manages the first cell. The first network device and the second network device are different. The first network device broadcasts the configuration information of the first cell. The communication method according to claim 1 is characterized in that, The configuration information of the first cell also includes one or more of the following: The Physical Cell Identity (PCI) of the first cell; The absolute frequency SSB information of the first cell includes the frequency information of the cell-defined synchronization signal block (CD-SSB) or the frequency information of the non-cell-defined synchronization signal block (NCD-SSB). The PDCCH configuration information corresponding to the N terminal types, wherein the PDCCH configuration information is used to receive MSG2 through random access or to receive the first system information; or The cell blocking information for the N types of terminals. The communication method according to claim 2 is characterized in that, The MSG1 resource for random access includes at least one of the following: time-domain resource, frequency-domain resource, preamble information, uplink carrier information corresponding to the MSG1 resource, or the number of repetitions of the MSG1. The method according to claim 3 is characterized in that, The MSG1 resources for random access differ for different types of terminals. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4 is characterized in that, The configuration information of the first cell is carried in the Xn interface message. A communication method, characterized in that the method is applied to a first type of terminal, the method comprising: The configuration information of the first cell is received from the first network device. The configuration information of the first cell includes MSG1 resources for random access of N types of terminals. The MSG1 resources are used to send a message requesting the first system information of the first cell. The first system information is system information block 1 (SIB1). N is an integer greater than or equal to 1. The second network device manages the first cell. The first network device and the second network device are different. Based on the random access MSG1 resource of the first type of terminal, a random access MSG1 message is sent to the second network device. The MSG1 message is used to request the first system information of the first cell. The method according to claim 6 is characterized in that, The configuration information of the first cell also includes one or more of the following: The Physical Cell Identity (PCI) of the first cell; The absolute frequency SSB information of the first cell includes the frequency information of the cell-defined synchronization signal block (CD-SSB) or the frequency information of the non-cell-defined synchronization signal block (NCD-SSB). The PDCCH configuration information corresponding to the N terminal types, wherein the PDCCH configuration information is used to receive MSG2 through random access or to receive the first system information; or The cell blocking information for the N types of terminals. The method according to claim 7 is characterized in that, The MSG1 resource for random access includes at least one of the following: time-domain resource, frequency-domain resource, preamble information, uplink carrier information corresponding to the MSG1 resource, or the number of repetitions of the MSG1. The method according to any one of claims 5 to 8, characterized in that it further comprises: Receive second system information from the second network device, wherein the second system information indicates that the state of the first cell is barred; If the configuration information of the first cell includes random access resources for the first type of terminal, then the first cell is determined to be in a notbarred state for the first type of terminal; or, If the configuration information of the first cell does not include random access resources for the first type of terminal, the first cell is determined to be in a barred state for the first type of terminal. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that it further comprises: When the cell prohibition status for the first type of terminal in the first cell is notbarred, the random access MSG1 is sent to the second network device according to the configuration information of the first cell. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that it further comprises: Based on the configuration information of the first cell, receive random access MSG2 messages or the first system information. The method according to claim 9 is characterized in that, The barred status indicates that the terminal will exclude the first cell from the candidate cells for cell selection/reselection within 300 seconds; The notbarred status indicates that the terminal will consider the first cell as a candidate cell for cell selection/reselection. The method according to any one of claims 6 to 12 is characterized in that, The first type of terminal is a low-complexity terminal (RedCap UE), or an even lower-complexity terminal (eRedCap UE), or a normal terminal. A communication device, characterized in that, It includes one or more functional units for implementing the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 5, or for implementing the method as described in any one of claims 6 to 13. A communication device, characterized in that, Includes a processor for executing program code to cause the communication device to implement the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 5, or to implement the method as described in any one of claims 6 to 13. A computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, characterized in that, When the computer program is executed by a processor, it causes the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 5, or the method for implementing any one of claims 6 to 13, to be executed. A computer program product, characterized in that, Includes a computer program that, when run, causes the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 5, or is used to implement the method as described in any one of claims 6 to 13, to be performed.